The Ltle-Known Story of Iran's First Gay Marriage

Contents:

• THE LTLE-KNOWN STORY OF IRAN'S FIRST GAY MARRIAGE
• THIS GAY COUPLE LEFT IRAN FOR A BETTER LIFE. NOW THEY WONR IF IT CAN LAST IN AMERI.
• BEFORE THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTN, A GAY WEDDG HAPPENED TEHRAN
• ONE OF N.L.'S FIRST MARRIED GAY UPL LOOK BACK WH PRI
• GAY MULLAH FLE IRAN FOR NDUCTG SAME-SEX WEDDGS

THE LTLE-KNOWN STORY OF IRAN'S FIRST GAY MARRIAGE

But he is equally well-remembered for one sgle event: his gay marriage, the first ever rerd Iran.

THIS GAY COUPLE LEFT IRAN FOR A BETTER LIFE. NOW THEY WONR IF IT CAN LAST IN AMERI.

At the Turquoise Rtrant on the hotel’s top floor, over a 360-gree view of Tehran, an unprecented event took place: the marriage ceremony of two gay men, an event unimagable the Islamic Republic today.

BEFORE THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTN, A GAY WEDDG HAPPENED TEHRAN

After the ceremony, the uple had planned to ri a rriage to Danhjou Park, their shared project, which had quickly also bee a gay hangout. Mojahed, the official an of the People’s Mojahed Organizatn [MEK], clared a weddg held by two gay men symbolized “the height of rptn” of Pahlavi regime.

Tehran’s Commodore Hotel, the se of this unprecented unn, now belongs to the Mistry of Agriculture Jihad unr a regime that not only do not regnize the human rights of homosexuals, but stead routely hangs them. In a bleaker scenar, they would be ad or behd bars for the crime of beg what they are: gay. They’re alive, they’re married, and they live openly as gay Haghjoo and Nia also fd themselv a untry where the print tried to ban new refuge and immigrants om Iran and several other Mlim natns, on the argument that such people pose a threat to Ameri’s safety.

And they worry now about what will happen ― is already happeng ― to LGBTQ people a untry unr Republin want Iran to change so that people like them n be accepted as gay upl.

ONE OF N.L.'S FIRST MARRIED GAY UPL LOOK BACK WH PRI

To change so they n be accepted as gay refuge om Iran. Homosexualy is agast the law, and sex between two men n be punishable by ath. Other acts, such as kissg or even jt nfsg to homosexualy, n lead to punishment.

While there are secret works for LGBTQ people, many of them onle, members live unr the nstant threat of beg Haghjoo also wanted to be hont about who he was and to avoid ary service, bee n be dangero even for closeted gay was at risk for other reasons as well. Then his home phone man on the other end of the le said that he knew Nia was gay and that nothg bad would happen to him if he operated by gog to the man’s hoe and named other gay people.

Nia repeatedly cled to nfirm that he was gay or to intify anyone else, but the man kept his llege, a secury guard told Nia that a man had been there and asked for his schle. Based on the persecutn he experienced as a gay man.

GAY MULLAH FLE IRAN FOR NDUCTG SAME-SEX WEDDGS

Sometim others who had fled their hom and were now stuck Turkey argued that beg gay ma easier for Nia and Haghjoo ― that they uld move through the refugee procs more quickly, while took longer for polil refuge. They didn’t unrstand that beg gay Iran had been “a prison, ” Nia Turkey was difficult, too. They were featured on the popular Humans of New York Facebook page ― a photo of them standg on a pathway amed wh snow and a short ptn: “We’re gay refuge om Iran.