Did Mohammad Need Natural Male Enhancement?

Sex and The Habibi

Sex, Nudity, and the Arab (Graphic) Novel

Arab Literature (In English)

Two novels that I’ve read of late, one from Egypt (Mona Prince’s So You May See) and one by a Syrian (Fadi Azzam’sSarmada), have depictions of sex that would give many God-fearing Anglo readers a coronary. And the atheists, too.

I haven’t seen Hanan al-Shaykh’s interpretation of 1,001 Nights, but English-language reportage on its staging seems full of titillated, heart-fluttering winks.

If 1,001 Nights is one of the foundational texts of Arabic literature, and if Arabs are generally not as terrified of sex as Anglos, then it’s reasonable to expect interesting “sexual content” in Arab novels. Is some of it taboo-breaking for the sake of gaining attention? Well, probably. Is some of it a self-Orientalizing mask for the sake of gaining (Western) attention? Oh, why not.

Still, most of this writing labors in obscurity. Censors pass it by. Parents, librarians, government officials, and other guardians of morality don’t lift their eyes. What intellectuals do in their closets…well!

Sex talk in the Egyptian theater, inspired by The Vagina Monologues, has received some attention from censors. And yes, individual guardians of the public interest at print shops across Egypt will stop a sex scene (or perhaps let it run for a few pounds). But none of the literary (shocking) depictions of sex have gained attention in the manner of one simple, not-particularly-shocking image of a nude twenty-year-old girl.

Youssef writes about this image in The Arabophile, noting, “Had Alia Mahdi appeared nude on an adult dating or porn site, had she sent the picture privately to a million people, had she shown shame or reluctance, no one would have tut-tutted or smiled, neither intellectuals nor horny prudes of the cyber realm.”

What Mahdi’s appearance—and the anger surrounding it—reminds me of is not sex in the Arab novel, but instead the battleground of Magdi al-Shafee’s pioneering graphic novel Metro, and how al-Shafee plays with 1,001 Nights in a piece he penned for the collection Autostrade. Graphic novels, although they are still ignored by most Arab publishers (too expensive! just for kids!) have the potential to set a new literary battleground.

I’m not talking about breasts or sex; I’m not talking about Habibi; I’m talking about literature that was previously kept behind the closed door of (just) words.

Very Brave Homosexual Muslims Celebrate their Dual Identities

Queer Muslims

A Tumblr by & for Queer Muslims - celebrating our dual identities.

This is not a space for debate or where we will feel compelled to justify our existence. This is a place for us to express ourselves without fear, to share resources, and to connect with other queer Muslims. 

Asks should keep the above in mind. We reserve the right to ignore asks, no matter how "polite", that deviate from our mission of a positive space for us. Negativity, "nasiha", name-calling, takfiring, questioning of our level of Islamic knowledge, and demands for us to justify our existence will NOT be published here or responded to. If people have personal questions/comments for the moderators that step outside the positive & affirming mission of this blog, they should go to our personal Tumblrs (though we make no promises that we will entertain you there either!)

Description: Photo of me, smiling and sitting on a bench outside in the sunshine. There are trees behind me. I’m wearing a green headscarf, jeans, a long-sleeved green top, and a white t-shirt that says “Queer + Muslim = Fabulous!” I’m holding a black cane.

Commentary: This photo was taken by a friend a couple weekends ago at the LGBT Muslim Retreat outside Philly, where I did a workshop on Islam & Disability. The dark green hijab is originally from Shukr, the lime green long-sleeved top is from Old Navy (XL), the white Queer + Muslim = Fabulous! shirt was specially made for the retreat (XL), and the jeans are no-gap size 22 Lee jeans - my FAVORITE pair and they fell apart as soon as I came home from the retreat. (I have worn them like 2x/week for the last 3-4 years…so…I guess it was time. But I was still heartbroken!) My sexy black cane was purchased at Wal-Mart :) I weigh about 225 in this photo (I’m 5’4”).

[Image: Two people in headscarves embracing intimately, appearing about to kiss.]

“I created this series of photos in response to Iran’s president Ahmadinejad’s naive comments that we do not have homosexuality in Iran. I wanted to say that we do have homosexuals and we have lots of them. My hope was to give solace to Muslims who feel they cannot be Muslims and homosexuals at the same time. I wanted to say that your love for God or belief in good for humanity should not determine who you’re choosing to love. My hope is that more people come to see that we should leave people to make their own choices, regarding who they want to love. I think the message of love from all of the prophets was lost, in all the noise from the later organizers of religions and their followers. I wish to remind people of that original intention of our belief in a higher good.” 

1. Muslim lesbian woman Honour her Parents