Away from the Public Eye

Away From the Public Eye

Should I tell anyone? Would they hate me if they knew? Such questions often arise from gay teenagers who think that coming out may be the right thing to do in a country where homosexuals are considered to be biologically, and psychologically abnormal. It is disappointing to see a developed country facing such issues. Homosexuals in the United Arab Emirates do not deserve the death penalty, imprisonment, deportation, or any sort of punishment simply because homosexuality is not a problem, but denying your true identity is.

Homosexuality is a term used to describe same-sex attraction; by attraction I mean both emotional and sexual desirability. It is not a disease or a mental imbalance. In 1973 the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from their list of psychiatric disorders. Homosexuality has a deep root in human history. It has been present since human beings first found means of recording information in the form of texts or pictures. However, in early times it mostly occurred as a form of prostitution, and later when modern religions like Christianity and Islam arrived it turned into "forbidden love". Forbidden because the new religions depicted the male and female figures as two halves that unite to bring new souls to this world, and a homosexual relationship would never be fertile, thus being taboo, sinful or simply against God.

Each country has its own laws and principles that inhabitants should abide by. When the laws are unreasonable, a conflict between the government and its inhabitants may arise. One example is the harsh punishment homosexuals face in the United Arab Emirates. According to Article 354 of the Federal Penal Code, capital punishment is forced on "any individual who forcibly... man to sodomy" ("Sodomy Laws: United," 1998). United Arab Emirates is one of the nine countries that have the death penalty.

A homosexual living in United Arab Emirates would feel left out, unwanted and constantly haunted by the penal code of laws. Every move a homosexual makes must be planned. When homosexuals make a wrong move, it can be detected by the authority, and punished for. The native homosexuals feel much worse since they have to face the fact that their home country is rejecting them. If these laws are not reconsidered, there is no future for the gay individuals in United Arab Emirates. To understand the reason for this harsh reality we have to go back to the root of the problem: religion.

Islam has great power In U.A.E. Most of the laws and regulations are based on Islam. In Islam, the Qur'an mentions homosexuality by referring to the stories of Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah. To understand more about Sodom and Gomorrah we have to consider different perspectives and refer to the original Hebrew texts.

What many people fail to notice is that when the texts say that the people of Sodom and Gomorrah went after strange flesh, it clearly does not identify men going after men. Strange flesh means a connection between angelic flesh and human flesh (the two visitors of Lot were angels). "Strange flesh means...the mixing of two distinct orders of creation" ("Sodom and Gomorrah," 1998).

Religious texts are too complicated for us to comprehend since people and lifestyles have changed as time passed. Religious texts might be false since the holy books are only inspired by God and written by people. However, religion cannot be argued. When it comes to religion, the solution is to just think about it deeply and believe in what you think is right for you. In the end, God created you with the free willpower for a reason, to be able to distinguish right and wrong by yourself. And remember, no one but God has the right to judge you.

Many ancient experts support homosexuality. Plato, a Greek philosopher, believed that human beings are categorized as males, females, and homosexuals. In addition, Alfred C. Kinsey, a biologist and human sexuality research scientist, believed that there are four sexual orientations: homosexual, heterosexual, bisexual, and asexual.

There is no scientific proof that homosexuality is genetic. Many recent studies show that homosexuals are not born that way. The Mustanski study, which was conducted at the University of Illinois in Chicago, (Throckmorton, W., Durwood, R., 2005) has shown that there is no solid evidence to support a relationship between DNA and sexual orientation.

Whether they are born that way or not is not the case here. Society says that a child's environment can turn him, or her, into a homosexual. Moreover, most citizens of the U.A.E strongly believe that gay people are not born as homosexuals but eventually turn into them or chose to become gay. Society has to take responsibility and make an attempt to accept the minority of non-heterosexuals.

A questionnaire by Norah Jamaleddine, a student

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