Beit gay pri event a first for Lebanon | CNN

Contents:

• LEBANON IS KNOWN AS GAY FRIENDLY. BUT PRI WEEK WAS SHUT DOWN.
• BEIT GAY PRI EVENT A FIRST FOR LEBANON
• LEBANON LNCH ARAB WORLD'S FIRST GAY PRI WEEK
• LEBANON LNCH ARAB WORLD'S FIRST GAY PRI WEEK
• LEBANON BE FIRST ARAB UNTRY TO CELEBRATE GAY PRI
• SDI ARABIA CELEBRAT PRI MONTH BY HANGG GAYS WH RABOW NOOSE

LEBANON IS KNOWN AS GAY FRIENDLY. BUT PRI WEEK WAS SHUT DOWN.

Pri Month honors the 1969 Stonewall Uprisg—a watershed moment for the Gay Rights Movement—and regniz LGBT people who have ma ntributns to history. Romanoff, Turner and Esposa all have stori of what was like for them growg up gay. “Back the ‘90s jt wasn’t ol to be around people who were assumed to be gay, ” explaed Romanoff.

“Rpect those who paved your way bee there’s a reason why we have [gay pri celebratns].

BEIT GAY PRI EVENT A FIRST FOR LEBANON

“It felt like what we were supposed to be dog, ” Church said emphatilly of the Gay Prom.

LEBANON LNCH ARAB WORLD'S FIRST GAY PRI WEEK

Lebanon was the latt natn to jo the crackdown, wh Interr Mister Bassam Mawlawi issug a letter a week ago to Lebane secury forc orrg them to break up any events that "promote" letter, labelled "very urgent, " said that "after the spread of lls on social media to anize parti and events promotg homosexualy Lebanon… and nsirg the negative nsequenc brought by this phenomenon on dividuals and society" police and secury forc should "take the necsary measur to ban any celebratns, meetgs or gathergs aimg to promote this phenomenon and to report the rults back. The Mistry of Commerce posted a vio (below) on social media showg officials seizg rabow-lored products, cludg toys, handbags and accsori, which they said rried "symbols and nnotatns that enurage homosexualy and ntradict nature. "The Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Associatn's 2020 report on "State Sponsored Homophobia" around the world noted that Kuwa, Sdi Arabia and Lebanon were among 69 natns that have laws banng homosexual Arabia, the report noted, was among six Uned Natns member stat where "the ath penalty is the legally prcribed punishment for nsensual same-sex sexual acts.

Frank Schaefer, pastor of Zn Uned Methodist Church of Iona, was restated after beg ocked, as a rult of him officiatg at his gay son's weddg, and beme a mor natnal celebry.

Lebanon Valley College Annville has also flown the gay pri flag and has celebrated genr and sexual diversy through a variety of iativ. An anizer says is not jt about gay pri, but about showg love to everyone. AdvertisementSKIP Amro/Agence France-Prse — Getty ImagMay 16, 2018BEIRUT, Lebanon — For members of Lebanon’s gay muny, Beit Pri week was tend as a way to celebrate diversy, fight discrimatn and ph for more rights and regnn.

LEBANON LNCH ARAB WORLD'S FIRST GAY PRI WEEK

But that dream me crashg down this week when the Lebane thori taed the celebratn’s anizer, releasg him only after he promised to ncel the remag ncellatn was a blow to gay men, lbians and transgenr people Lebanon, who say they face legal and social discrimatn spe livg one of the most socially liberal untri the Arab world. ”Homosexualy is crimalized across the Arab world, although some untri look the other way as long as remas private. Lebane law stipulat that “any sexual terurse ntrary to the orr of nature” is punishable by up to one year prison, but do not specify which sexual practic are law is enforced irregularly, so Lebanon has veloped to one of the Arab world’s most open and active gay muni.

Night-life activi iendly to lbian, gay, bisexual and transgenr people are easy to fd, and several anizatns provi health and other servic. The lead sger of the Lebane rock band Mashrou’ Leila is one of the regn’s most famo openly gay Lebanon is also home to 18 officially regnized relig sects, many of which oppose homosexualy on relig grounds and have associatns that mpaign agast gay-iendly Pri was tend to be a ne-day seri of events Beit, Lebanon’s pal. Damien was was the send nsecutive year that efforts to anize gay pri events Lebanon faltered.

In 2017, the openg event of gay pri week was nceled after threats by Islamist Hubbard ntributed reportg om Larnaka, Cyps. When to gay rights, Lebanon is known as one of the more liberal untri the Middle East – yet homosexualy has had a plited legal stat. The ma motivatn behd openg Out was her brother, Joey, who was “a closeted gay man for the first 24 years of his life.

LEBANON BE FIRST ARAB UNTRY TO CELEBRATE GAY PRI

“The life of a Lebane gay man Beit is siar to that of any other Lebane cizen based Beit, addn to exprsns of hate and discrimatn based on our sexual orientatn, ” says Hadi Damien, iator of Beit Pri, which was held for the first time 2017.

“The people behd (the Arabic translatn) are motivated by their homophobia based on their misunrstandg of sacred scriptur and based on their prenceived ias about homosexualy, ” he adds. The new lg is the latt a strg of events that signal a shift attu towards gay rights the untry. In Lebanon’s electns May this year, electoral ndidat actively promoted gay rights for the first time.

Four ndidat who publicly backed the LGBTQ muny won seats the electn – though Azzi says is not known whether their support for gay rights played a role their victory. The first ever gay pri event is takg place this week Lebanon, a untry where homosexual acts are still nsired a crime.

SDI ARABIA CELEBRAT PRI MONTH BY HANGG GAYS WH RABOW NOOSE

Instead of the ual gay pri paras seen the Wt, Beit Pri will clu an exhibn on genr fluidy fashn as well as a storytellg get-together centered on g-out stori and a gay-themed party one of the Middle East’s biggt night clubs. Several anti-homophobia events and monstratns have taken place Lebanon recent years, but activists are hailg Beit Pri as a “first”.