Iran's persecutn of gay muny revealed | Iran | The Guardian

Contents:

• Y, THERE ARE GAY PEOPLE IRAN
• PRI IS A PROTT: THE STGGLE FOR GAY RIGHTS IRAN
• GAY IRANIAN MAN ALLEGEDLY KILLED BY FAY DAYS BEFORE SEEKG ASYLUM
• IRAN'S PERSECUTN OF GAY MUNY REVEALED
• IRAN GAY PRI

Y, THERE ARE GAY PEOPLE IRAN

On May 17, the Internatnal Day Agast Homophobia and Transphobia, a group of LGBT activists Tehran, Iran, risked their liv to take a stand for gay rights, the Atlantic Onle reports. They were armed wh nothg but a sgle rabow flag and two small signs -- one of which read "No to homophobia and transphobia” Persian, a untry where beg gay n be punishable by the ath penalty, the rare public display of support for Iranian gay rights holds a powerful signifince.

Last year, the Guardian reported that a group of gay activists had set up a Facebook mpaign lled 'We Are Everywhere, ' enuragg LGBT Iranians to post vios of themselv tailg the discrimatn they face. She says that the officer appeared to be foced on prsg charg related to the protts and therefore did not pursue the allegatns of homosexualy.

He said those untri were no place to "set norms for the world, sce they are phg humany towards the brk of extctn by promotg immoral behavur like homosexualy".

PRI IS A PROTT: THE STGGLE FOR GAY RIGHTS IRAN

Through onle activism, publishg poetry, lerature and artwork onle, and engagg wh global gay culture through televisn and the ter, gay Iranians are g of age, spe the myriad of rtrictns they still face Iranian society and at the hands of the state.

Mehdi Hamzad is young gay man his early thirti who has recently fished higher tn; he liv Tehran, and has braved g out to his iends, though not to his fay.

We spoke to him about what life is like the days for gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenred Iranians, and whether is even possible to live a fulfilled, secure life as a gay person a untry such as Iran:. Unr the current circumstanc, Iranian youth, whether gay or straight, face many different obstacl, some of which have to do wh the regime (social rtrictns and iologil and polil prsure or the enomic suatn), and some to do wh public culture (a lack of acceptance of different liftyl and closed, tradnal thkg). The suatn wh my iends is the bt, as they are eher homosexuals themselv, or have accepted homosexualy and feel fortable wh me this rpect.

GAY IRANIAN MAN ALLEGEDLY KILLED BY FAY DAYS BEFORE SEEKG ASYLUM

There will always be teractns among -workers, people on the street and the bazaar, and gathergs that will have trac of homophobia them, and which will create an unwanted distance between a homosexual and his environment.

Wh all the media attentn around this subject (pecially onle, satelle televisn programs, and foreign films and seri), homosexuals make peace wh themselv rather quickly and relatively easily, but there are problems, too.

One major problem is the tradnal and relig upbrgg of the society, and the patriarchal state propaganda that alienat homosexuals and acceptance of homosexualy to take a lot of time and energy. Homosexuals who live small towns, more sular environments, and those who e om lower social levels and don’t have sufficient avenu for accsg rmatn and fdg others wh siar characteristics, or fdg a more accurate unrstandg about themselv, face other problems.

IRAN'S PERSECUTN OF GAY MUNY REVEALED

Those who have known about my homosexualy om the begng, and those who learned about later, have approached wh acceptance and support. In alg wh myself, I have fully accepted my homosexualy, but alg wh the outsi world, wh people and the society, I am always led to circumstanc where I am willgly or unwillgly remd of my homosexualy. [I see homophobia] jok, nversatns, socializg, or judgments, which often refer to homosexuals gradg, sultg, il, pathetic, disgtg, or immoral ways.

In my opn, there are two ways to rce this homophobia: for people to see more and more homosexuals around themselv as cizens, and to fd more awarens about sexual orientatn. How do you answer those iends and acquatanc who mistakenly tell you that homosexualy is not natural, and that even animals don’t do this way bee do not lead to procreatn?

IRAN GAY PRI

There are those like [Islamic philosopher Abdolkarim] Soroh, who haven’t yet thought about homosexualy; there are those like the [progrsive theologian-cleric Mohsen] Kadivar who, if we nsir him an tellectual, support Islamic punishment agast homosexualy, and others like Akbar Ganji, Ram Jahanbegloo, Arash Naraghi, and others who fend the rights of homosexuals. Overall you n feel that the different issu of homosexuals have no space the mds of most tellectuals and they see no reason to pay attentn to . Discrimatn between the active and the passive partners, opposg transsexuals, misogyny, ternalized homophobia, a tradnal and biased view towards two people’s relatnship, lack of sufficient emotnal matury, and over-emotnalism are some of the thgs that n more or ls be seen among homosexuals.

Sometim the tense prsure the homosexual experienc over time ph him on a path where he may lack sufficient strength and patience to ntually evaluate himself and to ratnally manage his relatnships.