Iranians and Gay Marriage
Iranians and Gay Marriage
Sam Ghandchi
http://www.ghandchi.com/727-gay-marriage-eng.htm
ايرانيان و ازدواج همجنسگرايان
http://ir.voanews.com/content/blog/1536442.html
http://www.ghandchi.com/727-gay-marriage.htm
Ali Larijani, head of Iran's parliament, recently said that gay relationships
are "today's modern savagery of the West." Before him, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
Iran's president, during a trip to New York said that in Iran “we don’t have
homosexuals.” In the meantime, Islamic Republic of Iran's criminal law
prescribes heavy sentences, even execution, for practicing same-sex relations.
The discussions currently under way in the West, including in the United States,
in support or opposition to same-sex marriage, are not the subject of this
essay, particularly since in the United States, both presidential candidates and
also the Democratic and Republican parties have clearly expressed their views on
the issue.
But it seems that in Iranian circles, among gay marriage supporters and
detractors alike, the main question that is asked is whether Iranian society is
ready to enter such discussions. Some even believe that entering such
discussions will hurt the pro-democracy movement of Iran.
Scientific research has shown that those who identify themselves as gay, though
not necessarily ‘practicing’ it, are at higher risk for suicide than the rest of
the population (1). And in Iran, not only does this implicit danger exist in
society, but also the right to life for gay individuals is under threat by the
government (2).
In other words, while in the United States the right to gay marriage is being
discussed, in Iran the right to life for gay people is the main subject for
debate and the government itself is actively involved on one side of the fence.
In this situation, wouldn’t the evasion of this discussion by
Iranian circles be more of a cause for isolation and distancing from the
general populace?
Hoping for a democratic and secular
futurist republic in Iran,
Sam Ghandchi, Editor/Publisher
IRANSCOPE
http://www.ghandchi.com
http://www.iranscope.com
Oct 31,
2012
Footnote:
1. ScienceDaily: Youth who self-identify as gay, lesbian or
bisexual at higher suicide risk, say researchers
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/02/100205122240.htm
2.
خودکشی و همجنسگرايان
http://www.ghandchi.com/648-SuicideAndGays.htm
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