Muslim LGBT Inclusion: Starting The Conversation

Intersections International, Believe Out Loud’s parent organization, recently released a compelling new report on LGBT inclusion in the Muslim community.

Sponsored by the Arcus Foundation, the report draws on conversations with more than 50 Islamic leaders in six cities – clergy, academics, community leaders and youth – as well as three commissioned scholarly articles.

The report paints a picture of community that is far removed from the monolithic picture of Islam painted by the mainstream media.  As Intersections’ Executive Director Rev. Robert Chase told Religion Dispatches in a recent interview,

“I went in looking to do an assessment, and came out being inspired with real hope for our whole world. One part of our world that is so often demonized as being insensitive and rigid and uncompromising and out of touch with nuances of human history proved to be just the opposite: engaged, sensitive, curious, imaginative…(I)f this is the demonized community, then our future is a lot brighter than what we’ve been led to believe.”

Among the findings:

• The mosque is not uniformly central to Muslim culture and identity. Indeed, studies suggest that from 70-80% of Muslims do not belong to a mosque. This suggests that Muslim religious institutions are not necessarily positioned to be instruments of change and that whatever model is implemented to promote LGBT inclusion should address this reality.

   

• The queer Muslim community, while making strides in visibility, is still in its nascent stage. Accordingly, LGBT Muslims have limited access to organized support structures that help to unify sexual and religious identities.

   

• Participants emphasized that an LGBT-inclusive interpretation of Islam should be rooted in the great human diversity created by Allah and blessed by the Prophet. As one D.C. convert to Islam said, “I didn’t come to Islam through an intellectual activity, but because my sense of right and wrong was informed by the idea of Allah’s justice and mercy.”

In concluding, Intersections recommends a two-track follow up that “equips groups of queer Muslims to service their members more effectively and that sensitizes the wider Muslim community to the needs of this particular constituency within its ranks. This strategy should include both an international and a media component. As queer Muslim leaders emerge into positions of strength and support from among their peers, and as the wider community is better equipped to receive their leadership, counsel and participation, the Muslim community and the whole world will be enriched.”

Amen to that.

Read the whole story at Intersections International

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Image courtesy of Intersections International