Myrtus

A Yamulke Day & A Gay Square...NOU breekt m'n klomp!

Last week it was the "baiting Jew" proposal, now it's a "Yamulke Day" and a "Gay Square" proposal on the table by Dutch MP Ahmed Marcouch, as part of the so-called "Solidarity Action" days, in his noble quest to combat hate crime.

I'm sure his heart is in the right place and I'm big on conflict resolution and all, but sometimes you can go a tad too far with too much of a good thing, if you ask me. 

I'd say carrot and stick people, carrot and stick.....unfortunately I've been seeing too much "stick" and not enough "carrot" in the Netherlands lately.

Ahmed Marcouch Petition Update

Hello friends

I got word from Ahmed Marcouch himself and one other source who's a close friend/associate of his saying how moved he is, expressing his appreciation for all our support with this petition.  And I too must thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your support and helping raise awareness. 

 

A great big hug to all! :)

Normally I don't put all that much faith in politicians, but with Ahmed Marcouch it's different, mainly because when I read the newspapers, it appears that he didn't set out to be where he's at right now with his political career, he's paving the way as he goes purely with his NO-nonsense approach to whatever ails the community and just takes care of things.  He's now in the position to possibly become a key lawmaker and a staunch advocate for minorities, the disadvantaged and education at a national level, purely by popular vote.

At the recently held municipal elections in The Netherlands he was positioned last on the list of candidates by his political party (PvdA) in Amsterdam (at #29), but he ended up coming in 2nd (with a little over 12000 votes), securing a spot as a city councilman in Amsterdam.  This was probably due to all the great things he has accomplished in the few years that he's been district mayor in a highly troubled part of Amsterdam.  During that time, not only did he manage to ease tensions caused by widespread ETHNIC CLASHES and clamp down on HOMOPHOBIA, which had reached a critical level among Muslim youth, he actually succeeded in tearing down the entire neighborhood where the Muslim extremist who murdered filmmaker Theo van Gogh grew up, to root out evil and send a strong message of TOLERANCE, DIVERSITY and FREEDOM above all.  And the fact that he's a practicing Muslim fighting against homophobia....I myself as a (non-practicing Muslim) find it truly remarkable. 

Take THAT Ahmadinejad!

Supporter Bryan F. writes:

Thanks for the update.  It is very interesting for me to learn of Ahmed Marcouch's message to be one of hope of TOLERANCE, DIVERSITY and FREEDOM.  

Unfortunately in the world today, Islam and Muslims, and even those who appear to be of Arab ethnicity have been unfairly classified and categorized as being radical fundamentalists who threaten and plague the Western World.  That fabrication must be addressed and corrected. I applaud you for taking the time to thoughtfully post a petition on Change.org to enlighten all regarding this issue.

Keep up the good work, and please keep me informed accordingly.

Be well or as a friend of mine says,

Salaam alaikum,

Bryan :-)

I dare you sign this PETITION! :)

Petition

Fatwa on Lesbianism/Tomboys

The Malaysian term for lesbianism is "Pengkid", which is already considered a crime in Malaysia, but now the Malaysian Department of Islamic Development wants to add "tomboy" to its vague and confusing definition of "pengkid". 

According to these religious loons, women who dress and behave like men are more inclined to develop sexual desires for other women, therefore they must be stopped immediately to prevent them from committing "homosexual crimes".

Access Malaysia Today: Sunday Interview: Fatwa on 'pengkid' to prevent lesbianism

Q: What is the actual definition of “pengkid”?
A: Pengkid refers to a married woman or maiden whose appearance or image is like that of a man. Although this also includes the dressing of the person and not just the way she behaves, the way of dressing is just one aspect of what makes a pengkid.

A woman may be dressed as a woman, but her behaviour may be like a man, or it might be a combination of this. She might also have a sexual desire for women.

This brings it “hampir” (close) to the practice of les bianism.

Q: Is it close to, or is it actually lesbianism?

A: We can’t say that all people who are pengkid are lesbians. That wouldn’t be right. That’s why I say it is “hampir”.

Hampir means she doesn’t do that act, but she is heading that way. For instance, Islam forbids people from coming close to zina. That means, not only is the act forbidden, but any act that may lead to the actual act is also forbidden.

I believe there is no religion that allows lesbianism or homosexuality. But anything that can drive or lead towards it should also be stopped. So, this is the culture that we are trying to stop.

Actually, we are trying to save these women (from be coming lesbians).

Read the rest of this religious loony acrobatics here.

This silly fatwa has no leg to stand on as long as there is some serious doubt amongst Muslim scholars whether homosexuality is prohibited under Islamic law. Some scholars say that there is no mention of homosexuality or lesbianism, but there is mention of "liwat" (violent sodomy), which is forbidden in Islam. Some even argue that since a homosexual relationship/act isn't necessarily violent by definition, there is no reason to make it illegal.

A Day Without Gays

As one of their mottos goes: 

"A day without gays would be tragic because it would be 

a day without love."


This just in via email:

A Day Without Gays



Start Time:  Wednesday, December 10, 2008 at 12:00am

End Time:  Thursday, December 11, 2008 at 12:00am

Location: Across the 
United States

Street: 
Main Street



Description

We are calling for a nationwide strike and economic boycott by all Gays

 

In Defense of Moroccan Civil Liberties

Spanish newspaper El Pais reports that 150 intellectuals, politicians and journalists came together to sign a manifesto in defense of civil liberties in Morocco, saying "no to hatred".  Among those who participated in this initiative was Abderrahim Ariri, the editor of the weekly Al Watan who received an 8 month prison sentence last year for publishing a classified military document, which disclosed information on a terrorist threat.

According to El Pais, what triggered this initiative was the popular reaction to the gay marriage that took place in Morocco last November.  Six of the men who were present at this wedding were sentenced to prison for "sexual perversion".

"¡No a la Inquisición en Marruecos!" · ELPAÍS.com

"¡No a la Inquisición en Marruecos!"

150 intelectuales, políticos y periodistas marroquíes piden más tolerancia con la homosexualidad

The Twilight Zone of Gay Muslims in Europe

Ms Souad throws parties for stress relief and tells her story of what it's like being gay and Muslim in Germany.

Gay Muslims Pack a Dance Floor of Their Own

“Depending on which part of Berlin I go to, in one I get punched in the mouth because I’m a foreigner and in the other because I’m a queen,” said Fatma Souad, the event’s organizer and master of ceremonies. Ms. Souad, 43, a transgender performer born in Ankara as a boy named Ali, has put on the party for over a decade.

Ms. Souad came to Berlin in 1983 after leaving home as a teenager. She studied to be a dressmaker and played in a punk band, but discovered Middle Eastern music through a friend and began teaching herself belly dancing. Ms. Souad started Salon Oriental, her first belly dancing theater, in 1988, and threw the first Gayhane party — hane means home in Turkish — in January 1997.

The club was packed by midnight and still had a line out the front door. On stage, Ms. Souad mixed a white turban and white net gloves with a black tuxedo with tails and a silver cummerbund, her face made up with perfectly drawn eyeliner and mascara. Dancing, she was all fluid motion, light on her feet, expressively twisting her hands and swiveling her hips.

Tolerance for Muslim gays

IRIN Middle East

JOHANNESBURG, 4 December 2007 (IRIN) - Suhail Abu al-Sameed looked calm, yet he was shaking inside. He was seated before a row of ulama, distinguished Islamic scholars, from Afghanistan to Yemen at the International Consultation on Islam and HIV/AIDS, organised by the charity, Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), in Johannesburg, South Africa, last week.

The previous day, several of them had denounced homosexuality as un-Islamic and evil. Today, Abu al-Sameed had something to tell them. "As a gay Muslim, I feel unsafe, unloved and unrespected in this space," he said. "Were I to become HIV-positive, the first thing I would lose is my Muslim community. I couldn't come to you guys for support."

You could cut the tension the room with a knife. Abu al-Sameed continued: "I wish you did not refer to gays with the (Arabic) words 'shaz' and 'luti' - perverts and rapists - because we are not." Two men in keffiyas, the gingham headcloth worn by men in many Muslim countries, waved their arms to silence him but the chairman nodded for him to continue.

Blog Post of the month: Muslim Preacher Preaching Compassion and Tolerance Towards Homosexuals

Muslim Preacher Preaching Compassion and Tolerance Towards Homosexuals!

Want me to say it again?

Gay wedding in Morocco again?

Remember that so-called gay wedding in Morocco we talked about a while back?

Well, the story has been getting an awful lot of hits for about a week now and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why all this sudden attention considering that it's old news.  I did a few searches every day but I couldn't find anything new until now.  Does any of this make sense to you?

gay marriage in Morocco « Crazymoor’s Weblog

The gay who has recently got married and celebrated his marriage with music , dancing and drinking alcohol , as you will see in the video below, is a famous figure in the small ,conservative city of KSAR EL KEBIR ( THE PARADOX HERE IS THE MAYOR OF THE CITY IS AN ISLAMIST AND MEMBER OF THE PJD ( the Moroccan islamic party ).He is a bootleger and a notorious gay but ,well, as long as he is not a devout moslem, everything is fine with him….The dying moroccan economy needs him to boost gay tourism in a region known for its poverty…

Update:

Alarabiya.net - Moroccan "bride" jailed for gay wedding

A wedding for a well-known gay man in Morocco ended with the colorful 'bride' behind bars, along with five other wedding guests, and sparked riots and calls for authorities to clamp down on gays in Moroccan society.

The Court of First Instance in the northern city of Al-Qasr Al-Kabir, where the wedding took place, handed down jail sentences to six people who participated in the lavish wedding ceremony, including the 'bride', Fouad, a well-known gay man who sells alcohol for a living.

The identity of the groom is still unknown, press reports said Monday, but a full investigation is underway.

Interesting Note:

Moroccan gays were recently allowed to found their own organization, which demands equal rights for homosexuals and aims to combat all forms of discrimination.