The status of gay men and women in Iraq has never been good. Gay sex was a criminal offense under Saddam and remains one today. But some gay Iraqis have argued that life was actually better under Saddam's secular regime because there was neither the political will nor the Islamic militias there to pursue a policy of active persecution. Balancing the human rights of this group and the traditional religious beliefs of the country will be a difficult task to be sure, especially as conservatives push to make Islamic law the basis of the country's legal system.This week's article in the NY Times talks about how despite the relative decrease in violence in Iraq, a dangerous atmosphere for the openly gay remains very much intact in Sadr City. In the past two months, 25 men have been killed there most likely due to their sexual orientation and a café frequented by gays was burned down. And so, in a period when other Iraqi citizens are feeling more and more comfortable about going out at night, some gay Iraqis are feeling the pressure to stay inside day and night.
Blame for the killings is not concentrated on the Shiite “death squads” that we hear so much about in the news. Instead, local police say that the murders are being carried out by the victim’s own relatives, who feel that his homosexuality has brought shame upon the whole family.
This article forced me to think about a couple of uncomfortable questions. First, what casualties do we privilege in our death tolls? Of course every week we count up the American soldiers who have died, and sometimes we pay attention to losses in the Iraqi security services or civilian casualties within the theatre of war. But it seems to me that the casualties of “cultural transition” often go uncounted. I hate to admit it, but this is probably especially true as concerns freedom of sexual orientation. It is one of those freedoms and rights that many American supporters of democracy either outright oppose or feel little sympathy for. Even though we Americans have gotten rid of Saddam and supposedly allowed for the establishment of a freer society in Iraq, I don’t know whether we are ready to defend all elements of that freer society equally.
And so I wondered whether the U.S. army has interested itself in this issue at all up to this time or if their presence has inadvertently acted as a mild disincentive to violence? What is going to happen to men and women that push the limits of Iraqi sexual sensibilities when the U.S. army pulls out for good? Frankly, I doubt that the U.S. army gives much concern to the welfare of gays outside the Green Zone, yet I feel like the situation is likely to worsen when they are gone. It seems like the Iraqi police are already acting very nonchalant about these murders, denying the extent of the problem and the role of religious leaders in stirring up hate. Even if they wish that people would not break the law against murder, they do not show any sympathy for the victim in this article. In fact, they are put into the same categories as beggars, liars, and thieves. Furthermore, the families of the victims seem disinterested in cooperating with any investigations or even claiming the body. All this is sort of a perfect storm already for wiping out the openly gay community. And I feel that if the general rate of violence rises after the withdrawal of American troops, then between the general atmosphere of insecurity and the fact that hate crimes are likely to get totally lost in the shuffle, the gay subculture will be forced back underground or into the closet. And thus all of our fighting for a “freer” society in Iraq will have been totally meaningless for these people.
