Gay Communy Thriv Lebanon : NPR

Contents:

• LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?
• ACTIVISTS NMN VLENCE AGAST LGBTQ MUNY ST. VCENT, WHERE GAY SEX IS ILLEGAL
• NORTH LEBANON GAY TRAVEL
• CHARL BARKLEY FENDS LGBTQIA+ MUNY, BUD LIGHT EXPLETIVE-FILLED RANT: ‘IF YOU’RE GAY, GOD BLS YOU’
• GAY COMMUNY THRIV LEBANON
• DISVER THE 5 MOST GAY-IENDLY ARAB UNTRI
• FOR BEIT'S GAY MUNY, CHEMIL BLAST SHATTERED A SAFE SPACE
• UGANDA'S LGBTQ MUNY IS ' SHOCK' OVER NEW MEASURE, GAY ACTIVIST SAYS
• GAYT PLAC IN OREGON FOR 2020
• THIS IS WHO WE ARE: BUILDG COMMUNY FOR HIV PREVENTN WH YOUNG GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN BEIT, LEBANON

LGBT RIGHTS AI: WILL KENYA BE THE LATT TO PASS ANTI-GAY LAW?

Image source, Getty ImagIn the latt sign of risg homophobia different Ain untri, a Kenyan opposn MP is leadg a mpaign for parliament to further crimalise the untry's small LGBTQ muny. Gee Peter Kaluma's move after neighbourg Uganda adopted a tough new anti-gay law, rejectg threats by US Print Joe Bin to impose sanctns and travel rtrictns on "anyone volved ser human rights ab". "We want to prohib everythg to do wh homosexualy, " Mr Kaluma tells me, addg that his bill will be much broar than the legislatn passed by Uganda's parliament and approved by Print Yoweri Meveni May.

The Ugandan law is regard as one of the harsht anti-LGBTQ laws the propos life imprisonment for anyone nvicted of homosexualy, and the ath penalty for so-lled aggravated s, which clu havg gay sex wh someone below the age of 18 or where someone be fected wh a life-long illns such as the other si of the ntent, MPs Ghana earlier this month unanimoly voted favour of amendments to the untry's anti-gay legislatn, phg closer to beg enacted to law. Though ls harsh than Uganda's new law, the Promotn of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Fay Valu Bill propos a three-year prison sentence for anyone who intifi as LGBTQ and a 10-year sentence for anyone who promot homosexualy. Gay sex is already illegal Kenya, but the ernment n also be tolerant of gay people - for example, has given asylum to people om other Ain untri, cludg Uganda, who faced persecutn their home untri bee of their sexual orientatn.

ACTIVISTS NMN VLENCE AGAST LGBTQ MUNY ST. VCENT, WHERE GAY SEX IS ILLEGAL

Image source, Getty ImagImage ptn, Many Kenyans believe that gay rights are agast their relign - whether Christian or MlimAlthough the meetg Uganda was billed as an attempt to protect the "sovereignty" of Ain stat, was actually -sponsored by an Amerin Christian right-wg anisatn, Fay Watch Internatnal (FWI) Kapya Kaoma, a Zambian prit the Anglin Church and an amic at Boston Universy the US, says Ain untri are beg targeted by FWI and siar US-based anisatns, and that the impact of s lobbyg has been "horrible and humane" parts of Ai, fuellg what he lls "ant homophobia". "It is one thg to say: 'I don't agree wh you beg gay', but we didn't have the ant one, where policians now are sayg: 'You go to jail for life, you go to jail for talkg about beg gay, you go to jail bee you're livg wh your fellow woman', " Dr Kaoma says. ”Human Rights Watch terviewed more than 20 members of the island’s LGBTQ muny who shared their stori but were not intified to protect them, notg that lol police are often openly discrimatory toward gay people who seek help.

(Beit) – Lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people and their rights  Lebanon are part and parcel of the natnwi protts that began on October 17, 2019, Human Rights Watch said today a web feature. Vcent, anal sex is punishable by up to 10 years prison, while “gross cency” wh another person of the same sex is punishable by up to five years, acrdg to lonial-era laws that are mon the socially nservative Caribbean rarely voked, the rights group and a lol activist said the laws help legimize hostily and abe agast gay people.

Several reported that their fai are homophobic and physilly and verbally abed them, g them to bee homels and promptg some to nsir also stggle to fd jobs amid a high unemployment rate and said they face discrimatn, cludg a 19-year-old gay man who said he has rorted to beggg: “Sometim I am so hungry. Around 2009, some Lebane judg began to realize that "fg those laws of nature do not only imply beg heterosexual, you n be homosexual by nature, ” said Elsy Sayegh of Mosaic anizatn. 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.

NORTH LEBANON GAY TRAVEL

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. For Brian Whaker, a journalist and thor of "Unspeakable Love, " a book about gay and lbian life the Arab world, wr that terms of opportuni for gay social life and activism, Beit is as good as gets.

If you n five the state-approved homophobia and are willg to act wh discretn while out and about, the Arab untri n reem themselv a thoand and one different ways, om the ancient centre of Petra to the glterg ephets of Bahra and to the serts beyond. While by and large closeted kgdoms, the handful of gay clubs the progrsive cy of Beit n allow you to be your te self, while the luxury ternatnal hotels across the regn n ensure your privacy is rpected. Wh so much do see and do, Mt is bt seen by tour b, allowg you to hop off at untls mms, the Sultan’s Palace and the Mutrah Corniche wateront, before venturg further afield on day trips to the beach and turtle-filled lagoons for divg and of the slightly more tolerant untri the regn, Oman is said to have once had s own gay sultan – Sultan Qaboos b Said al Said – although the state prs is quick to ny this as a pric mour!

In realy, the laws are rarely upheld except high-profile s, however, and gay Oman remas a perfectly safe place to | Photo: Katera KerdiPetra, particular, is the crowng glory of Jordan, protected wh sandstone cliffs and offerg an unrivalled llectn of monuments, cludg the fg Siq to the Treasury on an ethereal sert se of red rock and dun known as Wadi Rum2. Jordan crimalised homophobia as early as 1951 and while there remas social stigma and ‘public moraly’ laws that hr LGBTQ+ eedoms, gay Jordan gas tractn thanks to s unrground gay muny (most active on Grdr!

CHARL BARKLEY FENDS LGBTQIA+ MUNY, BUD LIGHT EXPLETIVE-FILLED RANT: ‘IF YOU’RE GAY, GOD BLS YOU’

On paper, Tunisian law still stat that homosexualy is illegal, yet wh an openly-gay printial ndidate recently nng and ongog activism, ’s lookg more and more likely crimalisatn will e. Avoid the occurrenc and Lebanon will she, thanks to s fantastic beach rorts not far om the pal as well as s mounta vistas, ancient s and more, all urteoly attend by kdly Lebane social stigma rgs te and the ft array of Arabian gays is likely to be found onle (hello Grdr, my old iend) gay Lebanon is perhaps one of the few Arab natns where a tentative gay scene tak shape real life. As well as hostg the regn’s largt gay club, POSH, where gay Arabs and ternatnals n fally dance together whout fear of persecutn, gay Beit also hosts annual queer events such as the Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia and Beit Pri.

GAY COMMUNY THRIV LEBANON

“My parents are super relig, so my mom had this nversatn wh me where she was like, ‘Ah, you n’t stay here bee my relign wouldn’t allow me to keep you here, bee you’re gay, bee you do a lot of thgs that we n’t accept, ’” he said.

’”The Arab world’s progrsive enclaveLebanon is nsired relatively liberal the Arab world, even though remas one of the approximately 70 untri around the globe that still crimaliz homosexualy. And while s volvg homosexualy still go to trial om time to time the untry, an 80-year old article the penal prosecutg homosexual relatns has been unrmed recent years by a succsful mpaign waged by activist lawyers to obta liberal judicial lgs, which have ma creasgly difficult to crimalize same-sex 2017, a judge Lebanon led for the first time that homosexualy is not a crime, so long as is not public, wh a mor or unr ercn. “When you want to look at Lebanon as a whole, at least om a personal queer perspective, you have to separate Beit om the rt of at least terms of tolerance, ” Sandra Melhem, an LGBTQ activist and owner of Beit gay club Ego, lled the neighborhoods of Mar Mikhael and Gemmayzeh hubs for the cy’s queer muny and slammed ernment officials for storg nearly 3, 000 tons of highly explosive ammonium nrate the heart of the nsely populated pal cy for years.

KAMPALA, Uganda — Members of Uganda’s LGBTQ muny are shock and fear beg arrted after Parliament passed a measure that would make a crime to intify as gay and impose tough sentenc that clu the ath penalty certa s, an activist said “Anti-Homosexualy Bill, 2023” was passed wh a near-unanimo majory by lawmakers  the east Ain untry, where anti-gay sentiment ns ep. Ronald Kabuubi / APThe legislatn will next be sent to Print Yoweri Meveni, who has repeatedly nounced homosexualy, to be signed to Mugisha, one of a few Ugandans who live openly as gay, told Rters he was sred the measure would trigger “mass arrts of lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer persons and mob vlence toward LGBTQ muni.

DISVER THE 5 MOST GAY-IENDLY ARAB UNTRI

There’s gog to be a lot of trma and s of mental health that will lead to a lot of suici, ” he relatns were already illegal Uganda, but supporters of the new law say is need to punish a broar array of LGBTQ activi, which they say threaten tradnal valu the nservative and relig East Ain measure clus steep sentenc that clu ath for “aggravated homosexualy” and life prison for same-sex relatns. The exceptn may be Lebanon, which has slowly grown more tolerant thanks to the work of Bohnak for The New York TimThroughout the Arab world, gay, lbian and transgenr people face formidable obstacl to livg a life of openns and acceptance nservative societi. In Sdi Arabia, homosexualy n be punished by floggg or Egypt, at least 76 people have been arrted a crackdown sce September, when a fan waved a rabow flag durg a ncert by Mashrou’ Leila, a Lebane band wh an openly gay there is one exceptn, has been Lebanon.

While the law n still penalize homosexual acts, Lebane society has slowly grown more tolerant as activists have worked for more rights and 2013, the Lebane Psychiatric Society said homosexualy did not need to be treated as a mental disorr. Azzi believ that activism has been a kd of shock therapy for Lebanon, but that was necsary to give the muny a voice so that would be taken much more work needs to be done to enurage tolerance other ci, “beg gay Beit is no longer a sry thg.

She helps others who have the same qutns she once did, and shows them they are not, she do not believe Lebanon is entirely safe for gays and lbians, and she did not want her full name is often asked if she is a boy or a girl. While Lebanon is an exceptn the Arab world, is not an exceptn the Middle East; Israel, gay, bisexual and transgenr people have wispread rights and we handle rrectnsA versn of this article appears prt on, Sectn A, Page 10 of the New York edn wh the headle: Comg Out Lebanon, and Helpg It to Be More Tolerant. That means there are a total of 7, 355 gay hoeholds The Beaver goal wh this post is to e data and science to terme the gayt ci analyzg 107 ci wh over 1, 000 hoeholds, we’ve termed the are The Gayt Ci Oregon for 2020.

FOR BEIT'S GAY MUNY, CHEMIL BLAST SHATTERED A SAFE SPACE

Seasi (Photos)Sweet Home (Photos)Milwkie (Photos)Phoenix (Photos)Coos Bay (Photos)Hood River (Photos)Portland (Photos)Warrenton (Photos)Redmond (Photos)Monmouth (Photos)What’s the gayt place Oregon?

Acrdg to the facts, Seasi is the gayt place Oregon for more on how we lculated the top ten, and for more rmatn about the plac, read you’re lookg for somethg more natnal, check out the gayt ci more Oregon readg, check out:Bt Plac To Live In OregonCheapt Plac To Live In OregonMost Dangero Ci In OregonThe 10 Gayt Ci In Oregon For 2020Source: Public domaHoeholds: 2, 890Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)Gay Hoeholds: 42 (24th hight)% Gay Hoeholds: 2. The populatn has reached 9, 534 as of the 2010 cens and is part of the Salem Metropolan Statistil do you terme the bt ci for same-sex hoeholds Oregon for 2020In orr to rank the gayt ci Oregon, we ed the 2014-2018 Amerin Communy Survey om the U. We looked at:Percentage of all hoeholds that are unmarried, same sex partnersWe limed the analysis to non-CDPs that have over 1, 000 ranked each place om 1 to 107 wh the cy ntag the hight percentage of unmarried, same sex partners hoeholds beg the most the end, end up beg the the most gay place wh 2.

Or skip to the end to see the list of all the plac the state om gayt to You Have It – The Most LGBT Friendly Ci In Oregon For 2020If you’re lookg at the number of gay hoeholds Oregon, this is an accurate you’re cur enough, here are the least gay plac Oregon:WoodburnNewbergEstadaFor more Oregon readg, check out:Richt Ci In OregonSaft Plac In OregonWorst Plac To Live In OregonMost Expensive Plac To Live In OregonDetailed List Of The Gayt Plac To Live In OregonRankCyHoeholds% Gay Hoeholds1Seasi2, 8902. Analys revealed three major them (1) the need for safe spac which to socialise, (2) the importance of beg able to lote and nnect wh other young gay men, and (3) ambivalence regardg a gay muny that was supportive some ways but also agmented and often judgemental.

UGANDA'S LGBTQ MUNY IS ' SHOCK' OVER NEW MEASURE, GAY ACTIVIST SAYS

This trend may crease vulnerabily to HIV throughout Beit’s gay muny, as US-based rearch shows that unprotected anal terurse between men is more equent wh sexual partners met onle (Rosser et al. There is prently no prehensive HIV preventn programmg signed for young gay men Beit or elsewhere the regn, spe of growg ncern about HIV risk this theoretil amework is rmed by work that monstrat a lk between gay muny mobilisatn HIV preventn work (Altman 1994), argug that meangful volvement of muny members is a necsary element the velopment of effective rpons to the HIV panmic amongst gay men. Studi of young gay men other regns have found that availabily of safe spac, relative visibily of young gay men, and muny hn and support may be important factors to addrs (Hays, Rebchook and Kegel 2003; Mutchler 2000).

However, very ltle rearch has examed muny dynamics that may be key to implementg muny level HIV preventn terventns wh young gay men recent s, the troductn of a number of socially progrsive stutns, such as the first gay rights anisatn the Arab world and a number of gay-iendly venu (e. Our aim is to better unrstand issu such as the orr to support culturally-ngent muny-based HIV preventn Beit, and our overarchg rearch qutn is: What key dynamics fluence the procs of buildg and stag a muny of gay and bisexual men Beit?

MethodsWe nducted peer ethnography and foc groups to ga an sirs’ perspective on how young gay men Beit talk wh peers about sexual health issu, gay and bisexual muny engagement, and ias for muny-based HIV preventn programm. The ethnographers were stcted to document any public nversatns they engaged or overheard between young gay men Beit that were related to sexual health or experienc wh the lol gay and bisexual muny. Many also noted the importance of support om other gay and bisexual men, and proposed numero muny activi geared to fosterg bonds between members of different Importance of Safe SpacOne of the them participants emphasised most was the importance accs to safe spac where gay and bisexual men uld socialise whout fear of beg sctised or targeted by homophobic people or stutns.

GAYT PLAC IN OREGON FOR 2020

One add that while he was ‘fortable beg gay, ’ the realy was that ‘you nnot live eely wh your sexualy [ Beit]’ and displays of affectn, such as holdg hands or kissg, were risky public spac. One timated that ‘75% if not more of Lebane gay guys don’t have their own place, as is cultural to live wh our fay until we are married, ’ notg that he had met men for renzvo dangero settgs, such as serted buildgs. I thk ’s important to create a place where people n e and be wh people who unrstand them and feel accepted… Growg up was hard to fd other gay men, or to feel belongg to a place, pecially on social media.

(Foc Group 2 – Age 25–29)Fdg Each Other: Balancg Safety wh VisibilyAnother theme was that gay men are beg creasgly visible to each other—better able to lote and intify each other, not only by visg gay-intified venu, or through iends, but also onle. This was juxtaposed wh the limed visibily of ‘discreet’ men, who were scribed as existg on the margs of the gay muny, not disclosg their sexual orientatn even to other sexual mori, orr to avoid stigmatisatn. As found a qualative study of Turkish gay men, prevalent hegemonic norms for masculy may prevent gay men om acceptg who they are, leadg to ternalised stigma (Eslen-Ziya and Koc 2016).

THIS IS WHO WE ARE: BUILDG COMMUNY FOR HIV PREVENTN WH YOUNG GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN BEIT, LEBANON

Gradually creasg visibily Many participants noted an overall crease public openns over the past several years among a certa portn of gay men Beit, where creasg numbers of men ‘are more nfint to e out as gay.

(Foc Group 2 – Age 25–29)Importantly, this sense of creasg openns was seen as limed to certa areas of Beit, a cy where ‘if you know how to fd the plac where you n be ee, there are a lot of gay iendly plac. Fdg each other through smartphone apps Many participants noted how the procs of nnectg wh other gay men creasgly occurs through smartphone apps, which have bee so popular that some felt they have supersed efforts to meet -person. Those who held maly posive views often poted to the efulns of apps for meetg other gay and bisexual men, exprsg their sexual sir, or facilatg sexual experienc that would otherwise be difficult to arrange Beit.