A gay-owned Virgia rtrant is a dispute wh s neighbors - Washgton Post

Contents:

• GAY IRANIAN MAN ALLEGEDLY KILLED BY FAY DAYS BEFORE SEEKG ASYLUM
• GAY IRANIAN MAN AD ALLEGED 'HONOR KILLG,' RIGHTS GROUP SAYS
• ALIREZA FAZELI MONFARED WANTED TO LIVE AS A EE GAY MAN THE WT. HIS FAY IRAN BEHEAD HIM DAYS BEFORE HIS DREAM ME TE, SAY ACTIVISTS.
• Y, THERE ARE GAY PEOPLE IRAN
• WHAT 'S LIKE TO BE GAY IRAN
• GAY MULLAH FLE IRAN OVER SECRET SAME-SEX WEDDGS
• IRANIAN, GAY & SEEKG ASYLUM
• GAY IRAN: NO PLACE TO CALL HOME
• CANNED CKTAIL ‘GAY WATER’ AIMS TO SH ON BUD LIGHT’S DYLAN MULVANEY DISASTER
• A GAY UPLE RAN A RAL RTRANT PEACE. THEN NEW NEIGHBORS ARRIVED.

GAY IRANIAN MAN ALLEGEDLY KILLED BY FAY DAYS BEFORE SEEKG ASYLUM

Alireza Monfared, a 20-year-old who was gay, was allegedly killed by fay members, jt days before he uld leave Iran to seek asylum, acrdg to multiple of his early May ath ma headl the U. "I believe the exact term for this horrendo murr is gay-killg rather than the general term of honor-killg, " Ma Khani, an Iranian LGBTQ and women's rights activist based Germany, told ABC News. "Of urse the motive of such murrs by fay members is to fend the 'honor' of the tribe or fay, but we should never fet the social stigma and hatred nstantly reproduced by the social and legal nstcts agast LGBTQ members, " she this area of the world face enormo dangers for beg openly gay.

Acrdg to Human Rights Watch, nearly 15 untri the Middle East and Northern Ai crimalize homosexualy, leadg to punishments that clu prison, lash and even the ath penalty. Iranian law stat that men over the age of 18 need to serve the ary before they may leave the untry, but homosexualy is classified unr "psychologil disorrs, " which n lead to an exemptn om service. We are still aaid of the regime makg a database of gay and transgenr people and puttg them unr prsure whenever they want, " Shadi Am, an LGBTQ activist based Germany, told ABC ia of receivg an exemptn rd is leavg many gay and trans Iranians worried they'd be brand and vulnerable to harassment and discrimatn.

"People hold banners prottg agast discrimatn and persecutn agast homosexuals Iran, July 28, 2007, ont of the Eiffel tower Meda/AFP via Getty Imag, File Mahdi, a 36-year-old Iranian gay man who did not want to e his full name over safety ncerns, told ABC News that hearg the news of Monfared's murr broke his heart. "Bis the immediate threat that many gay exempts face now, such way of verage and the prsure om outsi of the untry is not likely to have any impact on the illogil and nservative officials Iran, " he said.

GAY IRANIAN MAN AD ALLEGED 'HONOR KILLG,' RIGHTS GROUP SAYS

Ali Fazeli Monfared, a 20-year-old gay Iranian man, was allegedly killed an “honor killg” by some of his male fay members after they found out he was gay, acrdg to an LGBTQ rights group Iran and Monfared, who was known as Alireza by iends and fay, lived a cy southwt Iran.

He had applied for an exemptn om pulsory ary service so he uld leave the untry and move to Turkey to live wh his close iend, Aghil Bayat, acrdg to 6Rang, the Iranian Lbian and Transgenr homosexual nduct is crimalized Iran, part of the ary exemptn law allows gay and transgenr people to receive a medil exemptn om service for their inty. ”Fazeli Monfared received an exemptn rd the mail om the Islamic Revolutnary Guard Corps after disclosg his homosexualy, but one of his male relativ found and disvered he was gay, acrdg to 6Rang.

“We thk that bee of his genr exprsn and his behavrs, they knew that he is homosexual, but was proof that shows he wants to leave the untry, and he is a gay man, ” Am said. If Fazeli Monfared’s alleged killers had ught him havg sex wh a man, then they might receive lser punishments for his is one of an timated 11 untri where same-sex sexual acts are punishable by ath, acrdg to the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associatn, and one of almost 70 untri where is crimalized, acrdg to Human Rights Watch, an ternatnal human rights group based New York. "The are moral prcipl regardg the behavr of people general, ” he said at the time, acrdg to German broadster Dtsche are no statistics or rerds of the number of anti-LGBTQ “honor killgs” — which are perpetrated by relativ who feel the LGBTQ person has brought “dishonor” to the fay — that happen Iran or other untri that crimalize homosexualy, Tara Sepehri Far, who vtigat human rights ab Iran and Kuwa for Human Rights Watch, told NBC said Fazeli Monfared’s se highlights the importance of the role of the fay LGBTQ people’s liv when the state crimaliz who they are.

ALIREZA FAZELI MONFARED WANTED TO LIVE AS A EE GAY MAN THE WT. HIS FAY IRAN BEHEAD HIM DAYS BEFORE HIS DREAM ME TE, SAY ACTIVISTS.

“Exposg that to the very same thori who, theory, have the thory to arrt and prosecute you is very risky, ” she said other untri should prsure Iran to remove the law crimalizg homosexualy and the ath penalty “bee this is the reason why the fai, they allow themselv to have the right to vlate their children. Alireza Fazeli Monfared, a 20-year old Iranian man, was behead what an Iranian human-rights group says was an "honor killg" by fay members after they learned he was gay.

"The Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia' is g up on Monday (May 17), " Okan Sengun, the executive director and founr of the LGBT Asylum Project, said. "Homosexualy is also nsired a psychologil disease Iran, and the ary's ary board n exempt a gay man om service if they are emed homosexual after an examatn, " she add. The activist hop the vios rm people of queer people's liv Iran, where punishments for beg gay range om 100 lash of the whip to, the munitns director for the Center for Human Rights Iran, said homophobia was wispread the untry.

Y, THERE ARE GAY PEOPLE IRAN

"In the days followg the killg, Okan Sengun of the LGBT Asylum Project said he received many emails om gay Iranians who were heartbroken by Monfared's ath. Through onle activism, publishg poetry, lerature and artwork onle, and engagg wh global gay culture through televisn and the ter, gay Iranians are g of age, spe the myriad of rtrictns they still face Iranian society and at the hands of the state. Mehdi Hamzad is young gay man his early thirti who has recently fished higher tn; he liv Tehran, and has braved g out to his iends, though not to his fay.

We spoke to him about what life is like the days for gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenred Iranians, and whether is even possible to live a fulfilled, secure life as a gay person a untry such as Iran:.

Unr the current circumstanc, Iranian youth, whether gay or straight, face many different obstacl, some of which have to do wh the regime (social rtrictns and iologil and polil prsure or the enomic suatn), and some to do wh public culture (a lack of acceptance of different liftyl and closed, tradnal thkg).

WHAT 'S LIKE TO BE GAY IRAN

There will always be teractns among -workers, people on the street and the bazaar, and gathergs that will have trac of homophobia them, and which will create an unwanted distance between a homosexual and his environment. Wh all the media attentn around this subject (pecially onle, satelle televisn programs, and foreign films and seri), homosexuals make peace wh themselv rather quickly and relatively easily, but there are problems, too. One major problem is the tradnal and relig upbrgg of the society, and the patriarchal state propaganda that alienat homosexuals and acceptance of homosexualy to take a lot of time and energy.

Homosexuals who live small towns, more sular environments, and those who e om lower social levels and don’t have sufficient avenu for accsg rmatn and fdg others wh siar characteristics, or fdg a more accurate unrstandg about themselv, face other problems. In alg wh myself, I have fully accepted my homosexualy, but alg wh the outsi world, wh people and the society, I am always led to circumstanc where I am willgly or unwillgly remd of my homosexualy.

GAY MULLAH FLE IRAN OVER SECRET SAME-SEX WEDDGS

In my opn, there are two ways to rce this homophobia: for people to see more and more homosexuals around themselv as cizens, and to fd more awarens about sexual orientatn. How do you answer those iends and acquatanc who mistakenly tell you that homosexualy is not natural, and that even animals don’t do this way bee do not lead to procreatn? There are those like [Islamic philosopher Abdolkarim] Soroh, who haven’t yet thought about homosexualy; there are those like the [progrsive theologian-cleric Mohsen] Kadivar who, if we nsir him an tellectual, support Islamic punishment agast homosexualy, and others like Akbar Ganji, Ram Jahanbegloo, Arash Naraghi, and others who fend the rights of homosexuals.

Discrimatn between the active and the passive partners, opposg transsexuals, misogyny, ternalized homophobia, a tradnal and biased view towards two people’s relatnship, lack of sufficient emotnal matury, and over-emotnalism are some of the thgs that n more or ls be seen among homosexuals.

IRANIAN, GAY & SEEKG ASYLUM

Sometim the tense prsure the homosexual experienc over time ph him on a path where he may lack sufficient strength and patience to ntually evaluate himself and to ratnally manage his relatnships.

There is no official dissematn of rmatn for homosexuals and the only way to reach awarens about such issu is dog personal rearch, talkg to other homosexuals, and ocsnally gettg profsnal unselg.

When you live for many years wh Iranian homosexuals, you will learn that there is no shortage of prsn, dissatisfactn, psychologil tensn, and even attempted suici among them. At the same time there is more social acceptance and rpect for other mori the untri and most of them there are varyg gre of legal mechanisms for support of homosexuals and observatn of their rights.

GAY IRAN: NO PLACE TO CALL HOME

In the middle of the fierce nontatn of polil activists wh the regime, many believe that this is not the appropriate time to be raisg the mands of homosexuals. It is not necsary for all of to talk or take actn about the rights of Baha’is or homosexuals; but if someone has somethg to say or wish to take a step, we should all support him or her. She's currently on the on the Wt Hollywood Bs License Commissn and was prevly a member of the cy's Lbian and Gay Advisory other new member is John Erickson, a gay man who at 35 will be the youngt person on the uncil, the Los Angel Tim reports.

CANNED CKTAIL ‘GAY WATER’ AIMS TO SH ON BUD LIGHT’S DYLAN MULVANEY DISASTER

Shyne received the most vot last week's electn, 7, 850, while Erickson was send place wh 7, 118, so they won the two seats that were up for a vote this bted two cumbents, both gay men: John Heilman, who'd been on the uncil, except for a three-month hiat, ever sce Wt Hollywood rporated as a cy 1984, and John Duran, a uncil member sce 2001, who had been acced of sexual harassment. Sexual teractn between two women is punishable by vast majory of media reports about homosexualy Iran are based on acunts of torment and opprsn om gays and lbians who have fled the untry.

And while their experienc are reprentative for some of Iran's homosexuals, they are hugely different om those of the people who choose to stay the untry, or don't have the opportuny to om lower class and ral areas, where stigmatizatn is often most severe, rarely have the abily to move out of the hoe before marriage, let alone leave the untry. There is generally ltle acceptance of homosexualy, but some middle- and upper-class Iranians have the means to create parallel liv, out of sight of their relativ or iends. "Nety-five percent of gays Iran will never e out, " Saeed says over pasta at one of northern Tehran's ffee shops, where the atmosphere is relatively permissive.

| (VOCATIV/SUNE ENGEL RASMUSSEN)"The number one threat to gays and lbians Iran is the fay, " agre Hosse Alizah of the Internatnal Gay & Lbian Human Rights Commissn (IGLHRC), and himself an Iranian. "The Iranian thori ually turn a bld eye to the gay muny's pas, but much like the telligence servic the former Soviet Unn, Iranian telligence is believed to pile large fil on many cizens, which they n e to build a legal se agast people who might be ught engagg polil activi.

A GAY UPLE RAN A RAL RTRANT PEACE. THEN NEW NEIGHBORS ARRIVED.

The park is also one of the most popular pickup spots for Tehran's gay dk, Maseratis, BMWs and the ocsnal Porsche circle the park; you don't have to wa long to spot one of them slow to a halt and pick up a sgle man cisg the g. It also provis a temptg e, for gays and straights alike, an enomy bet by flatn and though the typ of -person enunters are a way to elu virtual spi, they are still ght wh risk. He was jt strangled to ath, " says Saeed, who has bee more ut about meetg up wh strangers bee of siar 's parks are always crowd, and particularly around dk, many of them bee popular cisg spots for gay men.

Seven months later, they rented an apartment wtern Tehran; they both still live at home and when Naeem here, he tells his parents he is gog out of town wh challenge of fdg a steady partner weighs heavily on Iranian gays; many speak of prsn, lonels and paranoia as almost permanent mental stat. (In a male-domated society like Iran, homosexual women have even ls privacy than men, and often risk beg shunned by neighbors if they rent an apartment whout a hband.

"I thk she tri to not watch the clip so she always chang the channel or pretends that she don't watch the TV, " he of the stigma agast homosexuals is trsic to the Persian language, which has two different words for homosexualy. "Yet the problem for men like Naeem and Behram is there's no real outlet to bate semantics: Although homosexualy n be punished, 's not somethg that is officially regnized.