Gay expat reveals what ’s like to live Dubai where homosexualy is punishable by 10 years prison | The Sun

Contents:

• PERIL AND PRIVILEGE: GAY EXPAT NIGHTLIFE DUBAI
• CAN I BE GAY DUBAI?
• GAY EXPAT REVEALS WHAT ’S LIKE TO LIVE DUBAI WHERE HOMOSEXUALY IS PUNISHABLE BY 10 YEARS PRISON
• DUBAI: GAY TRAVEL ADVICE (OM A LOL)
• GAY DUBAI DUBAI CY GUI
• WHAT 'S LIKE TO BE A GAY EXPAT DUBAI
• GAY DUBAI
• DUBAI GAY TRAVEL
• ASIE EXPAT REVEALS WHAT ’S LIKE TO BE GAY DUBAI

PERIL AND PRIVILEGE: GAY EXPAT NIGHTLIFE DUBAI

That is the qutn that LSE’s Dr Centner and his -thor Harvard’s Manoel Pereira Neto explore their groundbreakg rearch to Dubai’s expatriate gay men’s nightlife. “As two queer rearchers, we were able to enter the worlds of relatively privileged Wtern gay expatriat. [but] not bars intified as gay.

Not a sgle venue’s webpage the word ‘gay’ or related phemisms, nor do they ht at targetg a gay crowd. They also nducted terviews, relyg on personal ntacts, to fd 26 gay men, aged 24-48 and reprentg 15 natnali. Their forthg paper explas: “Much of the Dubayyan gay nightlife tak place venu wh the cy’s p ternatnal hotels, which are technilly open to all who n afford them.

The rearchers wonred, at first, how so many men knew that the are events attend by many other gay men: “The were ed ‘parti’ – on a specific night of the week for different s – equented by gays, not bars intified as gay. Gay datg apps are also shunned for fear of entrapment by ’s this nstant sense of your hair standg on end and havg to be ut about who's listeng, who's at the door, who's ved, or what might be said and passed along, that uld get most such venu, the rearchers note that the mic played is rarely the kd of remixed, beat-heavy tracks or classilly “gay” songs that domate self-proclaimed LGBTQ bars across many global ci. Only those wh the most cumulative privilege among a generally imperilled populatn of heterogeneo Dubai-based homosexuals would attempt to ploy this repertoire openly.

CAN I BE GAY DUBAI?

Fdg your “gay fay”. As you might image, is private hom where Wtern gay men experience the most eedom to build a “more robt sense of belongg, tablishg supportive works that rerce their intifitn as both gay and Wtern, dividually and as a group.

Most terviewe talked about needg to fd their “gay fay” Dubai as soon as they arrived, so they might make a “home away om home.

GAY EXPAT REVEALS WHAT ’S LIKE TO LIVE DUBAI WHERE HOMOSEXUALY IS PUNISHABLE BY 10 YEARS PRISON

Sce most pani arrange randomly assigned hog shared flats, is up to gay men to ask heterosexual flatmat to swch wh a gay ntact, so two or more gay men n habate and anise private and very selective social seekg some sense of home away om home...

The men are, advertently, unwillgly, or some s, que explicly, keepg out other typ of gay or queer people who are not ‘siar’ to them. Reflectg on the signifince of the rearch, Dr Centner says: “In addn to brgg some attentn to this kd of existence, is also important to note how this is very much an expatriate, relatively privileged, experience of gay life Dubai. So, part of what we try to do is to pot out how, seekg some sense of home away om home, that the men are, advertently, unwillgly, or some s, que explicly, keepg out other typ of gay or queer people who are not ‘siar’ to them.

DUBAI: GAY TRAVEL ADVICE (OM A LOL)

“So even if homosexualy is illegal, Dubai don't want to be seen as specifilly anti-gay.

“However, we felt that, ntrast to plac where even if homosexualy is not illegal, but there's plenty of vlent homophobia, everythg felt more on edge Dubai.

GAY DUBAI DUBAI CY GUI

As every untry, there are plenty of gay people Dubai, is more a qutn of how openly you n be gay Dubai. There are no LGBT (Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgenr) rights any of the Uned Arab Emirat. Knowledgeable expats Dubai remend that Gay upl should not even risk old hands public.

WHAT 'S LIKE TO BE A GAY EXPAT DUBAI

This means that the more ual punishments for beg gay – beatgs, prolonged imprisonment, flogggs, torture, and chemil stratn – would be nsired to be gettg off lightly. Back 2013 they discsed troducg some form of ttg to prevent gay foreigners om enterg any of those untri. They only dropped the proposal bee they feared a ntroversy that might rail the 2022 FIFA World Cup , no: not a gay-iendly regn.

There are no gay bars Dubai, but you n rt assured that there is a high gay-quotient every trendy bar.

GAY DUBAI

Gay marriage is not regnized Dubai, no matter how married you may be your home untry.

Ironilly, beg sent to prison Eygpt only rults more gay sex.

DUBAI GAY TRAVEL

ON the surface, beg gay Dubai sounds like a dangero prospect. Ined, should you be unlucky enough to be ught engagg homosexual activy the regn, reports claim that punishment n range om 10 years prison, f, portatn and even the ath penalty. 4 Atralian expat Pl Ewart shar his experience of beg a gay man DubaiCred: Pl Ewart.

Dpe this, Dubai is host to a thrivg unrground gay scene, wh men flockg to unofficial LGBT clubs wh ltle fear of the nsequenc, acrdg to Detaed Dubai. Here, Atralian expat Pl Ewart shar his experience of beg a gay man Dubai. It’s 2am and the club is packed wh a sea of sweaty, gay men gettg their groove on to a Madonna classic — and I’m one of them.

Nothg strange here you might thk, I mean, there are gay clubs the world over, right? 4 Pl claims clubs are packed wh a sea of sweaty, gay men gettg their groove on to Madonna classicsCred: Pl Ewart.

ASIE EXPAT REVEALS WHAT ’S LIKE TO BE GAY DUBAI

Dpe beg nservative by Wtern standards, this is where alhol and sex-starved Arabs flock to drov to get their fix — and that clus the gays.

From the get go, I’m unr no illns about Dubai’s official attu to homosexualy.