Gay Muslims

{{Main|LGBT in Islam}}

LGBT in Islam is influenced by the religious, legal, social, and cultural history of the nations with a sizable Muslim population, along with specific passages in the Quran{{cite web|url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/pwh/quran-homo.asp|title=The Qu'ran and Homosexuality|work=Internet History Sourcebooks Project|publisher=Fordham University|access-date=7 November 2013|quote=Richard Burton suggests the following Qu'ranic verses as relevant to homosexuality:

}}{{Cite book|title = Sexual Ethics & Islam|last = Ali|first = Kecia|publisher = OneWorld Publishing|year = 2006|isbn = 978-1-85168-456-4|location = Oxford, England|page = 90}} and hadith, statements attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The Quran cites the story of the "people of Lot" destroyed by the wrath of God because they engaged in lustful carnal acts between men. Homosexual acts are forbidden in traditional Islamic jurisprudence and are liable to different punishments, including the death penalty, depending on the situation and legal school. However, homosexual relationships were generally tolerated in pre-modern Islamic societies,{{Cite encyclopedia|year= 2012 | title=Liwāṭ |encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia of Islam| edition=2nd|publisher=Brill |editor=P. Bearman |editor2=Th. Bianquis |editor3=C.E. Bosworth |editor4=E. van Donzel |editor5=W.P. Heinrichs| doi=10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_4677 }}{{cite encyclopedia|author=Everett K. Rowson|title=Homosexuality|editor=Richard C. Martin|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World|publisher=MacMillan Reference USA|year=2004}} and historical record suggests that these laws were invoked infrequently, mainly in cases of rape or other "exceptionally blatant infringement on public morals".{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/homosexuality-ii|author=E. K. Rowson|title=HOMOSEXUALITY ii. IN ISLAMIC LAW|encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Iranica|year= 2012}} Homoerotic themes were cultivated in poetry and other literary genres written in major languages of the Muslim world from the eighth century into the modern era.{{cite book|author=Khaled El-Rouayheb |title=Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World 1500–1800 |pages=12 ff}} The conceptions of homosexuality found in classical Islamic texts resemble the traditions of Graeco-Roman antiquity, rather than modern Western notions of sexual orientation.{{Cite book|first=Kecia |last=Ali | author-link = Kecia Ali | year=2016 | title=Sexual Ethics And Islam |publisher=Oneworld Publications (Kindle edition)|page=105}} It was expected that many or most mature men would be sexually attracted to both women and male adolescents (variously defined), and men were expected to wish to play only an active role in homosexual intercourse once they reached adulthood. In early 2010s, extreme prejudice persists, both socially and legally, in much of the Islamic world against people who engage in homosexual acts.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-14895656|title=UK party leaders back global gay rights campaign|date=13 September 2011|work=BBC Online|access-date=7 November 2013|quote=At present, homosexuality is illegal in 76 countries, including 38 within the Commonwealth. At least five countries - the Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mauritania and Sudan - have used the death penalty against gay people.}}{{cite web|url=http://www.care2.com/causes/man-accused-of-gay-handshake-stands-trial-in-dubai.html|title=Man Accused of "Gay Handshake" Stands Trial in Dubai|access-date=27 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151030104723/http://www.care2.com/causes/man-accused-of-gay-handshake-stands-trial-in-dubai.html|archive-date=30 October 2015|url-status=dead}}{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/06/13/here-are-the-10-countries-where-homosexuality-may-be-punished-by-death-2/ |title=Here are the 10 countries where homosexuality may be punished by death |date=2016-06-16 |author1=Max Bearak |author2=Darla Cameron |newspaper=The Washington Post |place=Washington, D.C. |issn=0190-8286 |oclc=1330888409}}

The diverse ways of understanding of the Quran are echoed in the documentary by Dr Scott Siraj al-Haqq Kugle of Swarthmore College (now at Emory University) in the United States, currently a research fellow at Leiden University in the Netherlands. He believes that sharia – Islamic law – is determined by male jurists whose interpretations of Islamic texts are based on cultural assumptions situated in particular times, and particular political and geographical locations. Rather than sharia being divine, Kugle believes that it offers different avenues for Muslims to live their lives. He also points out that there is no word in the Quran for "gay" or "homosexual", and no mention of lesbians.{{citation needed|date=March 2007}}

{{See also|LGBT in Islam#LGBT movements within Islam}}

Some 200 lesbian and gay Muslims were contacted by the programme makers but only a handful were willing to be interviewed, and most of those insisted on keeping their identities hidden, to prevent reprisals. Only one was prepared to show his face and give his true name. He was Adnan Ali, an activist on issues affecting LGBTQ Muslims. Adnan described how, when he first came out in Pakistan, he was physically and verbally abused. He then came to the United Kingdom, where he chatted online with members of the American Al-Fatiha Foundation, an international organisation dedicated to Muslims who are LGBT or questioning, and their friends. Adnan then set up a sister group, now called Imaan.{{citation needed|date=March 2007}}

The interviewees speak of their commitment to and belief in Islam, though they are mostly ostracised than their beliefs getting support by their community and family. ‘Razeem’ speaks of his pain at being denied access to the children of his previous marriage, despite having a legal right to access and the fact that his wife ran away with another man. He also wishes there were more role models, like Adnan Ali, for gay Muslims. ‘Shakir’ and his parents find it easier to accept lesbianism than gay men's homosexuality. ‘Farah’ contemplates going back into the closet, to lie about her sexuality to ease the tension in her relationship with her parents.{{citation needed|date=March 2007}}

The programme's presenter, Sonia Deol, says that the gay Muslim group Imaan supports the idea of "keeping sexuality a private matter".{{citation needed|date=March 2007}}

{{Portal|LGBTQ|Islam|United Kingdom|Film}}

• A Jihad for Love, a 2007 film produced by Sandi Simcha DuBowski

{{reflist}}

• [https://web.archive.org/*/http://www.channel4.com/culture/microsites/C/can_you_believe_it/debates/gaymuslims.html Channel 4's "Gay Muslim's" Information Page] (Archive)
• {{IMDb title|id=0778701|title=Gay Muslims}}
• [http://www.occri.org.uk/Articles/Gay%20Muslims.htm Shaykh Riyad Nadwi's comments] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070512181019/http://www.occri.org.uk/Articles/Gay%20Muslims.htm |date=12 May 2007 }}

Category:Channel 4 documentaries

Category:British documentary television films

Category:Islam in the United Kingdom

Category:2006 television specials

Category:British television specials

Category:Documentary films about LGBTQ and Islam

Category:2006 in British television

Category:2006 in LGBTQ history

Category:2006 in Islam

Category:British LGBTQ-related documentary films

Category:2006 LGBTQ-related films

Category:British LGBTQ-related television films