Five, Three, and Four

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This is my call to action. I’m sick of it. We really need to get ourselves together and get out there and demand our rights. We cannot live in a country where we can be thrown in a tiny, nauseating cell with cockroaches for mates and batons for entertainment, all before we even have time to tuck our cocks back in. As fun as that sounds, I want to be able to fuck without having to watch my back (I’ll refrain from making an easy joke here).

Thus far, no serious effort has been done by any group in Lebanon to abolish Article 534. Let’s face it! It is still illegal to have “unnatural” intercourse in Lebanon, and honestly, if it’s “natural” then how much fun can it really be? We still live knowing that on a daily basis, the police can come and arrest us, throw us in jail for a year, and make our arrest (and our sexual adventures) public. It is rarely done, but the fact that it is complete legal keeps all of us on our toes.

These occasional moments of terror are what stops us from being who we want to be. I don’t want to undermine the hate and lack of understanding/knowledge of the society, but that’s another issue altogether.

For many years I have thought we need one brave soul to get up there and actually be the public face of homophobia. A sort of victim turned hero/activist/daring martyr.

I no longer think that.

What we need today is a community with balls (forgive the sexist idiom). We all need to get ourselves out there, go on TV, talk to the press, talk to our friends, colleagues, lawyers, politicians, wastats, enemies, and get things moving. Bring 534 to the spotlight, highlight how unfair it is, how it keeps us down, why it needs to go. By raising awareness of it, we can get people to demand that it goes away. Occasional phone calls to some random politician or friend of a friend will not do. We need grassroots demand for action.

We need to make sure that everyone in Lebanon knows what 534 stands for. As long as only gay people are aware of this law, it’s not going anywhere. As soon as our friends and allies realize what it is, then we may just be able to have some room for action.

This means that we must get out, no pun intended. We must educate and empower all of those around us to have the guts to get out there and demand that this hateful law be removed and thrown into the gutter. We must march on the streets, we must scream on the television, we must lobby politicians, we must educate, educate, educate, and most importantly, we must be able to share our experiences. One by one. It is our only hope, the only way to engrave the evil of 534 into the minds of everyone that matters.

Let’s start today.

Tags: Article 534, community, Fear, lebanon