My gay life Nigeria – Isolatn, danger & fear | Peter Tatchell Foundatn

Contents:

• BEG GAY ALGERIA TODAY
• BEG GAY ALGERIA
• BEG GAY ALGERIA: ‘I’LL NEVER LIVE WH THE ONE I LOVE’
• 5 SAFT PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2019 (AND THE MOST DANGERO)
• MY GAY LIFE NIGERIA – ISOLATN, DANGER & FEAR
• TRAVEL SAFETY REPORT: 20 WORST PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2021
• GAY IN NIGERIA: LGBT LIFE IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST HOMOPHOBIC NATNS

BEG GAY ALGERIA TODAY

The Algerians of the Maghreb and the North Ains livg France and Belgium e together thought by lightg a ndle at home, their hoe, their bedroom, discreetly, so as not to get ught by anti-LGBT or homophobic parents, neighbours or others. GLA (“Gays et Lbienn d’Algérie” – gays and lbians of Algeria) is a fom found by a group of iends whose objective is to une the muny, promote the activi of associatns directed toward LGBT’s, and discs matters of tert, regardls of the sex, race, relign and pecially the sexual orientatn of members.

» Si on se présente à ux dans certas hôtels, le réceptnniste pt trouver que la suatn t louche et no empêcher louer une chambre, et là, c’t e perdue pour l gays «, déclare le nseiller. L Algériens et Algérienn du Maghreb, l brs France et Belgique se retrouvent par la pensée en mettant à brûler une bougie chez x, à la maison, dans lrs chambre, discrètement pour ne pas se faire pcer par l parents, voiss ou tr anti LGBT ou homophob.

A ( Gays et Lbienn d’Algérie) t un fom fondé par un groupe d’amis, dont l’objectif t rassembler la munté, promouvoir l activés s associatns à orientatn LGBT, échanger sur l sujets qui l térsent, quel que so le sexe, la race, la relign, et surtout, l’orientatn sexuelle s membr. (Beit) – An Algerian urt on September 3, 2020 sentenced 2 men to prison terms and 42 others to spend terms after mass arrts at what the police alleged was a “gay weddg, ” Human Rights Watch said today.

BEG GAY ALGERIA

An Algerian lawyer volved the se told Human Rights Watch that the urt ed police reports scribg the ratns, flowers, and sweets ditive of a weddg celebratn, and the men’s supposedly gay appearance, as evince of guilt. “Algerian thori’ attack on personal eedoms is nothg new, but arrtg dozens of stunts based on their perceived sexual orientatn is a flagrant gement on their basic rights, ” said Rasha Youn, lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) rights rearcher at Human Rights Watch.

Acrdg to a 2019 analysis by the Internatnal Lbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenr and Intersex Associatn (ILGA), laws regulatg nonernmental anizatns Algeria make virtually impossible for anizatns workg on issu of sexual orientatn and genr inty to legally register.

BEG GAY ALGERIA: ‘I’LL NEVER LIVE WH THE ONE I LOVE’

’ The peculiar habs of sgers are part of the folklore of Algeria’s barets, rai mic venu wh a reputatn for alhol, prostutn and homosexualy that are tolerated as long as they rema on the margs of pole society. Some acce the Wt of seekg to export a ‘gay inty’ that don’t exist Algeria; this may enurage homophobic behavur by the thori and nservative elements of society (1) Last July, some Arabic media plaed when the Brish embassy Algiers raised an LGBT (lbian, gay, bisexual and trans) flag support of the Pri London para.

Acrdg to Mariem Guellouz, a doctor of lguistics, ‘every word for homosexualy Arabic has negative nnotatns, other words the language self is systemilly hurtful and discrimatory. It’s very different for those born after the civil war (1992-2000); they are on new media all the time, and the offer a view of homosexualy that is not guilt-ducg, and posive role mols. Am, a universy stunt, joked, ‘The character Mar, Degrassi [a Canadian drama seri that als wh the teenage problems and issu a realistic way], changed my life: I realised that beg gay was a thg.

The poort are the most vulnerable, bee when public spac are the only place where you n have sex, there are many dangers: the police, homophobic attacks, theft, and health risks if you don’t have a ndom. The hierarchy of the sex and the domance of men fluence even homoerotic relatnships;many men prent themselv as active toprerve their digny, and assert their virily by rejectg anythg that might be perceived as feme.

5 SAFT PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2019 (AND THE MOST DANGERO)

The ncepts of gay inty and sexual orientatn that have served as a basis for claimg rights sce the rebelln of the patrons of the Stonewall gay club New York 1969 have worked for some, like Slimane. Though Algeria do not have reprsn on a sle parable to some Sub-Saharan untri, those nvicted of homosexual acts are subject to a fe of 500 to 2, 000 dars ($4 to $17) and between two and 24 months prison (the penalti are heavier if one partner is a mor).

If the populatn together to fight agast the patriarchy and the relig taboos that (unequally) opprs the sexualy of all, then gay people will feel eer to assert their difference: 10 October has been LGBT Day Algeria sce 2007 (6), but is only celebrated on social works.

In fact, I uld only terpret that as a mere pretext, sce the novel had received a good al of media attentn Algeria - not for the referenc to God that ntas, but rather for addrsg homosexualy the ntext of the revolutn; namely, the protagonist reprents a gay martyr the Algerian War of Liberatn. A few months prr, I had been excsively attacked one of the largt natnal Arabic daili (ach-Chourouq) and on the ma Islamist pag Algeria, which picted the novel as g homosexualy to sult the revolutn and the image of fallen Algerians.

MY GAY LIFE NIGERIA – ISOLATN, DANGER & FEAR

The strong argument, which ultimately swayed public bate favour of my novel, was that I had dited to Jean Sénac, also known by his nom guerre Yahya al-Ouahrani, a proment Algerian rebel known for beg gay. Yet was still strikg to disver the official perceptn of homosexuals as send class cizens, even those who fell durg Algeria’s War of Liberatn and who were erased om llective memory until my novel Cy of the Whe Shadows forced the subject to the public bate.

TRAVEL SAFETY REPORT: 20 WORST PLAC FOR GAY TRAVELERS IN 2021

It draws on Algerian history - or rather, on a fake nceptn of the past, falsified to reprent homosexuals Algerian media, Arabic cema, and Islamic culture as ridiculo, idtic dividuals whose sole and only tert life is to engage sexual terurse.

Th, explorg the field of the Algerian War and raisg this taboo of gay rebels was a slap the face of the over-sacralised treatment of the Algerian Revolutn, pecially as this was ctomarily bathed the mk of ttosterone and other pheromon of masculy and virily.

GAY IN NIGERIA: LGBT LIFE IN ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST HOMOPHOBIC NATNS

Only one among other neglected topics that rema unspoken, my novel addrsg homosexualy n break stereotyp and open up this subject to realistic, cril discsn and renewed study of this Revolutn’s history. One way or another, the repeated wicked treatment of sexual mori Algeria, particularly of male homosexuals, has forced the groups to a sort of acceptance of send-class cizenship. Algerian law crimalis homosexualy and scrib as sexual viancy or unnatural behavur, spe the fact that Algeria is a member of the World Health Organisatn, which removed classifitn of homosexualy as a disease almost three s ago.

The nversatn is basilly elist and not shared wh the public, which has created a discursive gap among the el and their people; many are actually aaid to be put the same negative tegory as homosexuals, if they were to explicly exprs their posive opns about them.