Reem over at Mideast Youth has just published the first post in a series that I think is going to be groundbreaking. The only times I’ve come across the subject of homosexuality in Sudan being discussed openly were in research-related work on AIDS.
So, I think this podcast is a big deal for sure.
The blogger being interviewed is Ali aka Black Gay Arab, whom many of you already know thanks to the time I blogged about him here and here.
Kudos to Reem for doing this, because we do need an open conversation about the subject, something which is already starting to happen across the Arab world.
Let the fun begin. The reactions should be entertaining to watch.
Meanwhile, on a related note, I wrote about what seems to be Sudan’s first LGBT rights organization here in my latest GVO round up post.
SudaneseThinker
SudaneseThinker
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I picked up the link to the LGBT website from your roundup post, thanks btw. When I read the list of the names of the organization’s board, my initial reaction was like “Oh boy, they must be out of their minds”
But guess what, in hindsight, I felt a sense of relief that the voices of our fellow Sudanese homosexuals are finally unbridled. It’s time to blow the cover off the myth that there are no homosexuals in Sudan. I personally know far too many to go into.
On the one hand, it makes sense that some people argue that the issue of gay rights does not constitute a priority in a country like Sudan, where economic hardships and other forms of misrule are rife, where violation of basic freedoms is a common practice. On the other hand, there is the counter argument that freedom discourse in Sudan does not have to follow the footsteps of the West, that you can’t do cherry-picking when it comes to freedoms, either you take it all or leave it all. One can only hope that the progress towards freedoms for all people picks up the pace, but I don’t really think that the homosexuality issue is going to find a foothold in Sudan anytime soon.
That said. I must explain that I am not averse to homosexuality. Everybody is entitled to lead their sexual life the way they want, provided that they don’t harm other people.
Thanks again Drima
I forgot to say that I salute Ali for his courage.
MO
Wow, really sad that there are some countries in the world where coming out of the closet might he persecuted or worse.
Interesting.. Sudan Radio Project out of Pennsylvania just aired an interview with a gay Sudanese who lives in Sudan. Very revealing.
It’s here: http://www.sudanradioproject.org/
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