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شَاذٌّ: Dear 'saviors' of Muslim LGBTQI

hummussexual:

  • “We” are not monolithic: do not all walk the same path and live the same life.
  • “Our” stories are not something for you to fetishize and exoticize.
  • “We” are not helpless objects for you to (hyper)sexualize and prey upon with your colonial gazes.
  • “We” do not need your saving: you will not turn us into your latest causes célèbres.
  • Non-heteronormative Muslims are not the (new) measuring stick by which you judge weather or not cultures/societies/countries/religious traditions are deemed as ‘modern/civilized/1st world’!
  • “We” are not ‘progressive/forward thinking/open-minded’ for identifying within your accepted categories of LGBTQI. 
  • Nor are “We” ‘medieval/backwards’ for identifying with our various religious traditions!
  • “Our” agentivity is not yours to gauge: the multiplicity of ways chosen to live our lives (emancipation from region/family/religion/culture OR NOT!) are all equally valid… regardless of whether they measure up to your expectations.
  • Enough with the tired clichés around the veil/unveiling/lifting the veil, kabab/kebab, sultan-harem, etc. imagery. It’s void of meaning, offensive and orientalist.
  • The concept of “Coming Out” and its veneration is firmly based within a framework of a society that values individuation, not all societies do (i.e. check your privilege!)

Thanks to Kawlture for brainstorming with me… This is a work in progress.

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There were four country churches in a small town; the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist Church, the Southern Baptist, and the Catholic Church.
Each church was experiencing the same problem: they were all overrun with bothersome squirrels.
One day, the Presbyterian Church called a meeting to decide what to do about the squirrels. After several hours of prayer and soul-searching they arrived at the conclusion that the squirrels had been put there for a reason, predestined from above. They thought that interfering with them would be in direct conflict with God’s divine will. Obviously, a course of action none of them were eager to pursue.
The Methodist group got together and decided that they could not, in good conscience, cause harm to any of God’s creations. So, they humanely trapped the squirrels and set them free a few miles outside of town. Three days later, the squirrels were back.
The Baptist Church decided to have a squirrel roast and sent out their parish hunters to rid the area of the furry troublemakers. They made $1575 on the dinner. Not all the quarry was eliminated, however, so they decided to make the squirrel roast an annual event.
It was the Catholics who were able to come up with the best and most effective solution though. They baptized the squirrels, registered them as members of the church, and gave the, envelopes. Now they only see them on Christmas and Easter.

On the Lighter Side… Squirrels in Church

From the June 10, 2012 bulletin, Holy Family Catholic Church in Ontonagon MI.

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(via ruthtastic)

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thepeoplesrecord: Breanna Manning lawyer in struggle to have government documents releasedJune 7, 2012 Breanna Manning, (also known as Bradley Manning) the US soldier accused of being the source of the biggest leak of state secrets in American history, has won a partial victory in her battle to force the government to disclose vital information that could help the soldiers’ defence. The judge presiding over the trial at Fort Meade in Maryland has ordered the US government to hand over several confidential documents relating to the massive leak to the whistleblower website Wikileaks.In particular, the Obama administration must now disclose to Manning’s lawyers some of the damage assessments it carried out into the impact of the leak on US interests around the world. Should those assessments reveal that the US government found that the fallout from WikiLeaks was limited, that could be used by Manning’s defence to argue innocence against some of the charges, such as aiding the enemy. If the soldier is found guilty, the information might then prove invaluable in reducing any sentence. Source

thepeoplesrecord:

Breanna Manning lawyer in struggle to have government documents released
June 7, 2012

Breanna Manning, (also known as Bradley Manning) the US soldier accused of being the source of the biggest leak of state secrets in American history, has won a partial victory in her battle to force the government to disclose vital information that could help the soldiers’ defence.

The judge presiding over the trial at Fort Meade in Maryland has ordered the US government to hand over several confidential documents relating to the massive leak to the whistleblower website Wikileaks.

In particular, the Obama administration must now disclose to Manning’s lawyers some of the damage assessments it carried out into the impact of the leak on US interests around the world.

Should those assessments reveal that the US government found that the fallout from WikiLeaks was limited, that could be used by Manning’s defence to argue innocence against some of the charges, such as aiding the enemy. If the soldier is found guilty, the information might then prove invaluable in reducing any sentence.

Source