I, like most others, woke up to tragic news on June 12th, 2016. The first thing I saw when I went online was an article about the mass shooting that occurred at a gay bar in Orlando, Florida the night before. I learned that the shooter had previously been enraged by the sight of a same-sex couple kissing. I learned that 50 people were dead and even more were injured. I was informed by many that the shooter was a Muslim, but his religion had absolutely nothing to do with his actions. I got a call from my dad who lives in Nigeria. He asked if I had heard what happened. He told me to avoid “places like that.”
Still reeling from everything I’d just read, I got up and went to LA Pride like I had been planning to do. While waiting for the parade to start, I checked Facebook and learned that a man who had intended to go to LA Pride with guns and explosives had been arrested.
There were several Christians at Pride who held signs that said things like “HOMO SEX IS SIN” and “You’re Going to Hell.” They yelled at pride goers and let us know that we were disgusting, we should feel ashamed, and that our “lifestyles” aren’t what “Jesus would want.”
When tragedies like the one in Orlando occur or when anti-gay religious groups come to Pride to harass gay people, many are quick to say “Not all Christians/ Muslims are like that” or “His actions were definitely not motivated by his religion.” They always make the distinction between the “radicals” who are bad but in the minority, and the good, hardworking, non-homophobic majority.This seems to me like an unwillingness to examine the hateful parts of their religions as well as a way to significantly downplay the levels of homophobic violence that are directly fueled by said religions.
I was raised in a Christian household. As a kid, I went to church almost every other day. The most homophobic people I have ever encountered in my life have been religious. These religious homophobes have told me every variation of “god made Adam and Eve not Adam and Steve,” “The bible says man shalt not lie with man,” and “I love the sinner but hate the sin.”
I understand that many feel very strongly about their religious beliefs, but this ongoing trend of people shutting down critiques of religion and making it seem as if the homophobia within their specific faith is so minute that it isn’t worth talking about needs to stop. How can we address the problem of homophobia within religious groups if we’re not allowed to talk about it? When will we stop to acknowledge the very real pain that has been inflicted on thousands of LGBT people in the name of some religion?
August 28, 2017 at 11:07 am
I mean, the phrasing could be different, but I get your point. It’s just that as a muslim lesbian, it’s hard for me to watch both my identities get attacked by both my communities at the same time. I know both the feeling of being thrown out because of my religion, and being thrown out for my sexuality. After that day, when people were quick to say that this was not an attack based on religion, it was to protect people like me and many, many other muslims I know that are completely accepting. Even my homophobic mother strongly believes that they shouldn’t hurt and kill gay people, even if it is wrong. Because that’s what islam is about. No one is allowed to hurt or kill anyone, if not out of defense.
Now, I’m rambling, but in short, it’s not the religion’s fault. Every one of these homophobic religious communities come from religions based on peace and acceptance. What the problem is, is when people use their ‘beliefs’ to further their homophobic acts and justify their hate. No where in the Quran does it say to hate.
I can only hope that the western lgbt community can also fix it’s own racist bias, even when it’s based on misunderstanding.
August 29, 2017 at 11:25 pm
“it’s not the religion’s fault. Every one of these homophobic religious communities come from religions based on peace and acceptance.”
Unfortunately, the original “peaceful” intention of a religion ceases to matter when MOST of the people who actually practice it use it to uphold homophobic and misogynistic ideals.
And in response to your last point: Islam (much like Christianity) is an entirely man-made concept. Critiquing it will never be akin to racism. My hope is that more people start to question the stuff that they’ve been fed about “higher powers”, “holy books”, and the rest.
– Ashley