Dangerous Living by GLASS

By Kalie GibsonOn Nov. 2nd, the Office of Multi-Cultural Affairs, in conjunction with GLASS, presented "Dangerous Living: Coming Out in The Developing World."

The documentary, directed by John Scagliotti, highlights homosexuality in non-western cultures. It explored the consequences of overt homosexuality in areas such as Egypt, Thailand, Honduras and Kenya.

The film particularly focuses on an incident where 52 Egyptian men were arrested on the Queen Boat, a floating gay nightclub, in 2001. There was not a law against homosexuality during that time, but the men were tried for debauchery, or over-indulgence in sensualities.

Ashraf Zanati was one of the men arrested, and Egyptian officials subjected him to beatings. He was sentenced to 13 months in prison. The documentary also highlights other acts of violence, such as the son of a lesbian Honduras woman being tortured, simply because his mother was homosexual.

One important aspect of the documentary is the belief that gay rights is a "Western" idea, and many countries in the east accused homosexuals of being "westernized." However, another idea is that homophobia is also a Western concept, and that it was carried over to the east due to colonialism.

The film was released in 2003, but progress has been considerably slow for gay tolerance in third world countries. Many countries across the Asian and African continents have laws against homosexuality, and in some countries, like Sudan, Saudi Arabia and Iran, the penalty may be death. In other countries such as Singapore and Jamaica, only gay males are punished. Gay rights activists were interviewed in Dangerous Living, and some mentioned that organizing a gay rally or march could mean imprisonment or death in some areas.

Homosexuality may be a Western concept, since an overwhelming majority of Europe allows homosexuality. However, marriage and adoption are still illegal in most countries. Here in North America, the United States allows for each individual state to set up their own policy. Canada is one of the very few countries around the world to allow gay marriage and adoption.

The struggle still continues for gay rights around the world. No matter what, the harshest of laws will not rid the East of homosexuality. As Ashraf Zanati stated, "My sexuality is my own sexuality. It doesn't belong to anybody. Not to my government, not to my brother, my sister, my family.