Gay Moroc: The experience is very different for Morocns and foreigners.

Contents:

• GAY-IENDLY: MARRAKECH FOR HOMOSEXUALS
• WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE GAY … MOROC?
• DOZENS OF GAY MEN ARE OUTED MOROC AS PHOTOS ARE SPREAD ONLE
• GAY SNA MOROC
• GAY MEN ABED MOROC AFTER PHOTOS SPREAD ONLE
• GAY SNA ASILAH
• GAY SNA MEKNèS-TAFILALET
• GAY SNA MOROC (MISSOURI)
• GAY SNA OUARZAZATE (CY)
• GAY SNA TIRHANIMîNE
• GAY MARRAKH TRAVEL GUI 2023

GAY-IENDLY: MARRAKECH FOR HOMOSEXUALS

Even though Marrakech’s clubs and hotels do not openly e labels such as “gay” or “gay-iendly” for advertisg, is the new “Pk Cy”, havg overtaken the formerly ternatnal zone of Tanger. Strongly fluenced by relign and patriarchal stctur, Morocn society is characterized by tradnal valu, and is, th, rather homophobic. Apart om that, the gay party scene meets at the VIP-Club, Le Pacha, Le Comptoir Darna, or the other bars along the Avenue Mohammed V.

Some gut ho are labeled “gay-iendly” and are ed to homosexual clients, so there are no irratns when, say, a double bed is requted. The gay night life n be bt experienced one of the clubs mentned above, but is advisable to keep a keen md even there: It is not unlikely that the young man showerg you wh pliments is a prostute, and the police are rather strict their effort to nta prostutn, pecially as is gradually creasg Moroc.

For those who heard about the se of Ray Cole—a Brish tourist arrted last year Marrakech, Moroc, on spicn of mtg “homosexual acts” and sentenced to four months’ hard time a Morocn jail prr to his early release— is perhaps difficult to image that Moroc was somethg of a gay paradise for whe men of standg the aftermath of World War II. Somethg of the gay scene moved to Marrakech, but suffice to say, is far removed om Tangier’s heyday and very much nfed to the margs.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE GAY … MOROC?

Gay life tak place the pths of certa hammams (Turkish baths) and the back rows of cemas, if people happen to know the right spots; needls to say, cisg plays an important role. Seen this light, the se of Ray Cole n be said to be another part of the story of the wherg away of gay life Moroc, or at the very least, the end of turng of a bld eye to . But what is more signifint about Cole’s se is that monstrat the te realy for gay men Moroc, namely, that while the laws on homosexualy are enforced nsistently, there is evintly a double standard employed their applitn.

The lerature available to potential gay travelers to Moroc—of which there is a great al sce, spe of laws and social norms there, Moroc remas a prime statn for package holiday-goers om Bra, France, and Germany—is very clear settg out what is and isn’t acceptable. Gay upl should rea om public displays of affectn and would be advised to seek out hotels and riads (a tradnal hoe wh an terr urtyard) known to be gay-iendly. The scen of Cole’s fay greetg him at Bra’s Gatwick Airport ntrast starkly wh how gay men are treated Morocn society: looked down upon, rejected by their fai, dismissed wh the Maghrebi Arabic slur zamel.

DOZENS OF GAY MEN ARE OUTED MOROC AS PHOTOS ARE SPREAD ONLE

“More than [Cole’s] own se, what happened to him shows how vulnerable gay Morocns are, ”Abllah Taïa, a Morocn wrer and filmmaker who now liv exile, wrote The Guardian, “They are at the mercy of anyone. ” To the qutn of what is like to be gay Moroc, then, the answer very much means one thg to a Wtern visor and que another to Morocn natnals, who are nsired by their society and their state to be of lser value. AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTThe ia was to show the hypocrisy of Morocn society by showg how many gay men are livg quietly straight society.

It backfired S/Agence France-Prse — Getty ImagPARIS — At least 50 to 100 gay men were outed Moroc over the last two weeks, rights activists say, after the men were intified on lotn-based meetg apps while shelterg at home amid a ronavis at least three s, men were kicked out of their ho, L. ”In Moroc, a North Ain kgdom where homosexualy and sex outsi marriage are crim, gay people are pafully acctomed to the feelgs of peril and rejectn, and many keep their sexual inti unr, their ver has been blown a way that would be crimal most Wtern societi, rights advot say.

”What mak this episo particularly paful, gay lears say, is that was igned by someone who had also been sgled April 13, a Morocn transgenr Instagram personaly based Istanbul, Naoufal Mosa or Sofia Talouni, was sulted about her sexual orientatn.

GAY SNA MOROC

In a rage, she released a profany-laced vio enuragg women to download the lotn-based meetg apps, like Grdr and Pla Romeo, which are ually ed by gay subsequent vios, she said her aim was to reveal the hypocrisy of Morocn society by showg her attackers how many gay men were livg their vicy, perhaps even their own people followed Ms.

Mosa’s lead and created fake acunts on the apps to gather photos of gay men, which they then posted on private and public Facebook pag, settg off the homophobic attacks igned a firtorm of cricism, both of Ms. “My datg life Moroc was somehow OK as long as my partner and I were beg super discreet and ut, ” said one gay man who asked to be intified only by his ials, N. Abllah Taia, a proment gay thor and one of few to publicly clare his sexual orientatn Moroc, says that the state keeps people a gray area, makg them vulnerable to abe and discrimatn and forcg many to hidg.

GAY MEN ABED MOROC AFTER PHOTOS SPREAD ONLE

”Moroc’s Interr Mistry did not rpond to a requt for outg episo is seen by many as stroyg a agile balance that the untry’s unrground gay culture has built laborly over the years, ma even worse a time of uncertaty and enomic hardship.

But they do have some support at Bezad, the print of the Pan-Ain Organizatn for the Fight Agast AIDS, said that while Moroc’s laws were unlikely to change, s health mistry enurag associatns like hers to help vulnerable populatns, cludg gay people. One n search for a Gay Sna Moroc which prerv a vibrant gay sna scene and prents lots of possibili to the guts for sweat and have enjoyable. Gay snas wh their stunng and morn signs, clu thgs like summer season space, rtrants, bars, hydro massage pools, good snas and a lot of other luxur ameni which are a have to for all gay 2023Gay bathho are now mostly owned and operated by gays, and have e to be totally licensed gay tablishments which generally serve as rmal gay meetg plac, and venue exactly where chums uld meet and unwd.

GAY SNA ASILAH

At a gay sna, there are a lot of activi you n appreciate such as, spendg an eveng or a weekend, hangg out, watchg the game, havg a drk or enjoyg 3-urse meals the fancy bars and rtrants some of the lotns. If you are tired of diss and nightclubs, you n pick out to stop by a gay sna exactly where you'll meet new men an excg new way. Image source, Getty ImagImage ptn, Same-sex relatns n be punished wh up to three years prison MorocGay men are beg harassed and abed Moroc after photos taken om gay chat apps were circulated spread after a social media fluencer told her followers to make fake acunts on apps to see how mon homosexualy is.

Homosexualy is illegal the nservative Mlim untry, which is lockdown bee of rtrictns mean many men are unable to leave their hom where fai abe them, activists man, a stunt who returned om France durg the lockdown, killed himself after beg intified as gay, Morocn media LGBT anisatns who support gay men Moroc have told BBC News that men are beg harassed and are at risk the untry after the photos el Mouti ns a Facebook group lled The Morocn LGBT Communy, which giv advice and support to LGBT people, many of whom nceal their number of men reportg abe and askg for help has creased sce the onle mpaign began, says Mr Mouti, who left Moroc to study for a PhD the man ntacted the Facebook group to say he feels like "a ad man". "You might also be terted :The outgs began when transgenr mol and fluencer Sofia Taloni ed an Instagram Live to enurage women Moroc to set up fake acunts on gay chat dog so, she said they would disver how many men e the platforms, cludg potentially "their hbands and brothers" said her aim was to ll out hypocrisy Morocn society by showg people how many men are secretly gay the men e apps cludg Grdr as a way to nnect private, bee LGBT anisatns or meetg plac are illegal activists are enuragg men to close their acunts to protect themselv. You might be lockdown wh homophobic fay, and wh Ramadan, people are very ncerned about moraly, and thgs might get heated, " Mr Mouti explas.

"The Morocn thori should immediately step to protect LGBT people's privacy and repeal anti-LGBT laws that n only fuel this homophobic behavur, " said a statement on Monday.

GAY SNA MEKNèS-TAFILALET

To be sure: the male bath hoe is not a gay place; 's where (gay & straight) Morocn men go for a thorough bath, often wh their orred the full scb and massage, undrsed a ty closet (brg your swimmg tnks or you'll need their very basic apron) and entered the wet room. The laws rerce societal prejudic, effectively givg tac legal sanctn for stigma, discrimatn, and vlence agast lbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenr (LGBT) people.

The laws are vaguely word, have broad latu, and sgle out nsensual gay sex the “sexual offens” sectn of the crimal that is otherwise rerved for crim like rape, ct, and sexual asslt.

GAY SNA MOROC (MISSOURI)

In July 2019, two gay men om Sat Vcent and the Grenad livg abroad filed a se challengg the nstutnaly of the discrimatory provisns the crimal . Along wh Domi, Guyana, Grenada, Jamai, Sat Lucia—the other five untri the Caribbean that crimalize gay sex—Sat Vcent and the Grenad ntu to be an outlier a hemisphere that has chewed the crimalizatn of nsensual gay sex. Every LGBT person terviewed by Human Rights Watch said they wished to leave the untry immediately or had envisned their future abroad due, part, to the homophobic or transphobic vlence and discrimatn the untry.

Some terviewe noted that fay rejectn was often uched moralistic terms, echog the homophobic rhetoric preached some church, which are a rnerstone of social life and shape social attus. In ls than a , five Caribbean untri have crimalized gay sex, brgg the Wtern Hemisphere closer to beg pletely ee of the discrimatory laws.

Decrimalizatn may also facilate the ernment’s abily to further addrs homophobic and transphobic discrimatn var sectors, such as work and tn. Six untri the English-speakg Caribbean—Domi, Grenada, Guyana, Jamai, and Sat Lucia, addn to Sat Vcent and the Grenad—ntue to crimalize gay sex.

GAY SNA OUARZAZATE (CY)

In 2018, after a group of people publicly attacked two genr non-nformg dividuals prumed to be gay Calliaqua town, Gonsalv stated: “Jt let them be.

GAY SNA TIRHANIMîNE

Man said that 2019, he was attacked his neighborhood, and he believed the attack uld have been motivated by his sexual orientatn sce many people there know that he is gay. Smh thks the assailants, who were not attackg anyone else, targeted him bee they know him form the neighborhood and know that he is a gay man:.

Aled Henry, a 58-year-old bisexual man om Sat Vcent, said that March 2009, he suffered a homophobic attack that ed permanent damage to his speech, visn, motor functns, memory, and balance:.

He said whenever somethg happened, he went to the police, but he eventually stopped bee they were unhelpful every time and “are very homophobic. For Andrew Williams, a 28-year-old gay man om the ma island of Sat Vcent, “the verbal attacks on the street hurt more than the physil attacks. Kyle Wilson, a 19-year-old gay man om Sat Vcent, exprsed feelg a nstant, daily sense of secury due to vlence he believ was motivated by homophobia.

GAY MARRAKH TRAVEL GUI 2023

While Shane Hathaway, a 43-year-old gay man om Bequia, never experienced a physil altertn, people have lled him “battyman” and thrown sticks his directn. If people are havg an argument, that’s what they jump to, that’s the jtifitn for homophobia, they say ’s the laws, that ’s illegal, and bee of the scriptur. Kyle Wilson, the 19-year-old gay man om Sat Vcent mentned above, tried to file plats at the Kgston police statn about five tim, all related to harassment public spac, but said he gave up when police appeared unwillg to help.

If the police officer knows you’re gay, they will ll you ‘bullerman’ or say, ‘How [e] your mother didn’t kill you, you’re a disgrace. For Melissa Ashton, the 28-year-old lbian om Sat Vcent, laws crimalizg same-sex nduct make her hant to go to the police for help related to homophobic vlence: “Nothg would e om gog to the police. Some terviewe noted that fay rejectn was often uched moralistic terms, echog the homophobic rhetoric preached some lol church, which are a rnerstone of social life and help shape social attus.

Renée Kg, a 21-year-old bisexual woman om Sat Vcent, said her fay, particularly her mother and grandmother, are “extremely homophobic. Ruth Daniels, a 24-year-old non-bary person om Sat Vcent, said relig beliefs play a role her fay’s jtifitn for overt homophobia.