Let me start with noting that in this time after the Orlando tragedy, my voice is not the one that matters. The voices we need to be listening to are those of the LGBTTQ2SA+ community, those of the Muslim community, and particularly those who are in both communities. For example, Samra Habib wrote an article specifically addressing the mourning of queer Muslims in the aftermath of this horrible attack.
That being said, I process best sometimes by writing. And this is one of those times that something has gotten caught swirling around my head, and needs to be written down.
The intolerance has already reared it's ugly head. Voices yelling about the intolerance of Islam and the dangers of letting people from cultures different from our own are clamouring for hate. Somehow the fact Christianity is often used to preach hate and that certain governments, and that parties have been dehumanizing and attacking the LGBTTQ2SA+ community in the West all on their own, has been conveniently forgetten by some.
As I read the hate and fear filled words of Islamophobes, the same image keeps coming into my head. An image of a quiet, shy girl in hijab working on math problems with a tatted up tough guy day after day in a library. You see, my former employer was a school that had a very large population of Muslim students, including many young female refugees from various countries. It also had a good sized population of very out LGBTTQ2SA+ students. And often, these students would meet. Do you know what didn't happen often? Or at all? Hate. And violence. These students who grew up in Muslim countries, some of which were very anti-LGBTTQ2SA+, would interact with students diverse in racial, ethnic, gender, sexuality, ability and every other way you can imagine. I'm not going to say everyone always became friends, because this is reality, but everyone was civil. The worst conflict I had to deal with (which involved pushing of a cafeteria tray into another student) was between two Muslim girls who had a personality clash.
So when I hear anti-muslim rhetoric, I think of these students I've worked with, some who have fled untold horrors and others who came here for better opportunities. I think of girls in hijab working with people of all genders to improve their education. I think of the men I have worked with to help them get their old careers back who wanted nothing more than to take care of their children. Were there some less accepting than others? Of course. But same could be said of the non-muslim students. I think of teaching the male reproductive system to embarrassed girls from Somalia and being endeared (and entertained because I'm terrible) by their mortification at saying the word scrotum. I think of the various Muslim friends and colleagues I have had, especially those who I love. And in the end, I think of the intolerance these people face, an intolerance none of them have earned.
There are many factors that contributed to Sunday's horrible attack. Hatred of LGBTTQ2SA+ people that is preached by political and social leaders in the US is a factor, and cannot be ignored as such. Easy access to guns is a factor. Toxic masculinity is a factor. Our societal unwillingness to deal with the perpetrators of domestic abuse is a factor. And one man's twisted relationship with his religion may be a factor in the end.
But this entire religion, with all its internal diversity and shades, is not your scapegoat. If you turn around and direct hatred at another vulnerable group, filled with people like the students and colleagues I have described above, then you are contributing to the hate and fear that poisons our world.
Instead, do something productive. Donate to the the groups raising funds for the health care of the survivors and the burial costs of those who died. Donate to your local LGBTTQ2SA+ advocacy groups. If you're in the US, pressure your politicians about gun control and vote against hate. If you can, donate blood. Wherever you are, it will help someone. Stand up to homophobia/biphobia/transphobia and so on when you encounter it. Also stand up against Islamophobia. And just spread some love and tolerance to counteract the hate and fear.
