Pride in a Pandemic
Opinion piece by Taleen El Gharib, Staff Writer
July 3rd, 2020
The following article was written in honor of the Egyptian LGBTQI+ activist, Sarah Hegazi, who committed suicide on June 14, 2020 in exile in Canada.
Lebanon is a country of diversity. Much like a mosaic, the country is enriched with an abundance of cultures, traditions, and religions. Walking down the streets of Beirut, one will get a taste of the cultural mosaic that is Lebanon — within the basic building blocks of its culture lies remnants of many other civilizations.
The preamble of the Lebanese constitution states: “Lebanon is a sovereign, free, and independent country. It is a final homeland for all its citizens.” The first article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, co-written by Lebanese academic and diplomat, Charles Malik, proclaims: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.”
However, despite Lebanon’s ratification against any form of degrading, inhuman treatment, and/or punishment, the reality in Lebanon proves otherwise, disregarding both the Lebanese constitution, and the UDHR. Under the article 534 of the Lebanese Penal Code, “any carnal union contrary to the order of nature shall be punished with imprisonment for up to one year.”
Despite the court orders issued in 2017 stating that “homosexuality is a personal choice and not a punishable offense”, several members of the LGBTQI+ community have expressed the degrading mistreatment they endured in detention — from threatening the use of “egg tests” (banned in 2009), to being beaten and forced to kiss or undress in front of police officers, and even being submitted to HIV and drug tests without their consent.
The uprisings of October 17 were considered a ‘safe’ places for members of the LGBTQI+ community to voice their struggles and demand their rights as a marginalised group in Lebanon. They have long exercised self-censorship when walking through the streets of the country and had arguably finally found an outlet where they were being heard. But by who? Not the government necessarily.
The Coronavirus pandemic has weighed a heavy toll on the community, and their struggles have not been voiced to the public. Considering the profuse obstacles they experience in their daily lives, many critical factors deem LGBTQI+ people more vulnerable to the Coronavirus, with many members of the community showing their reluctance to seeking medical treatment, as well as the disproportionate effect the pandemic has on their mental health. Dr. Suha Ballout, a nursing faculty member at the University of Massachusetts Boston, expressed LGBTQI+ individuals’ “humiliating” experiences when seeking healthcare in Lebanon.
“These struggles start from the minute they walk through the doors of an institution, (…) They are in many instances refused care or talked to in a demeaning manner, as if they are a ‘disease’ themselves,” she explained.
With several disproved studies linking the Coronavirus outbreak to homosexuality, a prevalent rise in homophobia emerged worldwide, further hindering the community members’ basic right of access to healthcare. Apart from the medically related obstacles, the community’s already sparring plight with mental health has not been considered or covered by the media, despite many researchers expressing their concerns over the current state of members of the community. With lockdown, the closeted youth are limited to socialising with their family, who may or may not be aware of their child’s sexual identity and orientation. Many face the drilling struggle of either putting up with the use of false pronouns and assumptions about their sexual identity, or coming out to their family and possibly jeopardising their relationship. If a member of the youth was to be kicked out amidst a pandemic, with a constant fear for their health, rather than family support, and access to healthcare, they may be thrown into a mental state that could endanger the already marginalised members of this community.
Board member of the Lebanese Medical Association for Sexual Health (LebMASH), Dr. Antoine Beayno, has given The Phoenix Daily a statement. LebMASH is a non-profit NGO that particularly focuses on LGBT health in Lebanon, lead by health professionals based in Lebanon and the US.
“Family rejection remains very prevalent in the Lebanese context, leading LGBT youth to seek supportive places and name members of the community their ‘chosen family’. Unfortunately, many have been forced to isolate at home with their biological families who may have subjected them to stigma and discrimination, and even abuse.”
Dr. Beayno also added that the current economic situation has not been of help. “LGBT youth have higher rates of unemployment or underemployment. With worse economic strain, vulnerable groups, including sexual and gender minorities, are at significantly higher risk of worsened mental health outcomes.” Dr. Beayno stressed on the term “positive social interactions”, which have significantly decreased for LGBT youth, paralleled with an increase in negative social interactions. Places, or people, that provided social acceptance and a sense of belonging were no longer within reach.
The pandemic has doubled the already existing stressors that the LGBTQI+ community faces: harassment, family and peer rejection, bullying, isolation and lack of a sense of belonging. And for those who found sanctuary in friends or certain peers (and places), who are in support of the community, LGBTQI+ people have lost the ability to spend time with people in their circle who temporarily inhibit these stressors.
The current global situation further proves the importance of acceptance, and providing support to members of the LGBTQI+ community, specifically from family and friends. Family rejection is a strong predictor of negative health outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, and substance abuse. For those with pre-existing tendencies of self-isolation, not only are they experiencing their own personal lockdown, but one on a more physical level, surrounded by potential dangers to their mental health.
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References:
Cover image by illustrator, Sam Kalda, for The Chronicle.
StepFeed, (2019, March 22). Lebanon’s LGBT community is often denied healthcare, and it's not OK. Retrieved from https://stepfeed.com/lebanon-s-lgbt-community-is-often-denied-healthcare-and-it-s-not-ok-3341
Lebanon's LGBT People Reclaim Their Power. (2020, June 17). Retrieved from https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/07/lebanons-lgbt-people-reclaim-their-power
ICCPR. (2018, March). Retrieved from https://www.ecoi.net/en/file/local/1427870/1930_1522228110_int-ccpr-css-lbn-30241-e.pdf
Proud Lebanon. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CCPR/Shared%20Documents/LBN/INT_CCPR_ICO_LBN_27260_E.pdf
Human Rights Campaign Youth Report. (2018). PDF.
Lebanese Medical Association for Sexual Health. (2017, May 15). Retrieved from https://www.lebmash.org/