Unspeakable Love: Gay and Lesbian Life in the Middle East

I’ve reviewed books that addressed religion and homosexuality on this blog before. I’ve even previously recommended a book by Afsaneh Najmabadi, Women with Mustaches and Men without Beards: Gender and Sexual Anxieties of Iranian Modernity, that speaks to certain aspects of being lesbian or gay in an Islamic country. Things are much different in Arab countries where religion is law and law comes completely or almost completely from religion.

I’ve recently read another book by British journalist Brian Whitaker, surprisingly published way back in 2006 titled, Unspeakable Love: Gay and Lesbian Life in the Middle East. The synopsis of his book from the publisher:

Homosexuality is a taboo subject in Arab countries. Clerics denounce it as a heinous sin, while newspapers write cryptically of “shameful acts.” Although many parts of the world now accept sexual diversity, the Middle East is moving in the opposite direction. In this absorbing account, journalist Brian Whitaker calls attention to the voices of men and women who are struggling with gay identities in societies where they are marginalized and persecuted by the authorities. He paints a disturbing picture of people who live secretive, fearful lives and who are often jailed, beaten, and ostracized by their families, or sent to be “cured” by psychiatrists.

Whitaker’s exploration of changing sexual behavior in the Arab world reveals that–while deeply repressive prejudices and stereotypes still govern much thinking about homosexuality–there are pockets of change and tolerance. The author combines personal accounts from individuals in the region with a look at recent Arab films and novels featuring gay characters and conducts a sensitive comparative reading of Christian, Jewish, and Islamic strictures around sexuality. Deeply informed and engagingly written, Unspeakable Love draws long overdue attention to a crucial subject.
Copub: Saqi Books

Publisher’s Weekly review:

While the mainstream media cover Middle Eastern cultural tensions over the interpretation of Islamic law and the position of women, little attention has been paid to the complicated place of same-sex affection and relationships in these countries. Whitaker, Middle East editor for the Guardian, delivers a modest but informative primer on the complex historical, religious, social and legal status of same-sex acts and identities in the Middle East. Aware of the complexity of this undertaking, he points out that words such as “homosexual,” “lesbian,” “gay” and “queer” are Western constructs and can be misleading or dangerously inaccurate when applied to non-Western cultures. Whitaker is best when describing the lives of the dozens of women and men, some of whom he interviewed, such as a young Syrian man whose therapist outed him to his family and two Saudi men who killed a third man they feared would report their relationship to authorities. He also offers a larger view of the religious and political implications of homosexuality: there’s no uniform Islamic position about the legality of homosexual acts; the Iranian government will frequently use the charge of homosexuality to further stigmatize its Arab Ahwazi minority population. While Whitaker’s findings aren’t conclusive, this is an illuminating book on an important topic. (Nov.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

I found this to be an informative and enlightening book. While I agree with some reviews that say it could have been even more detailed, that could be said about most works of non-fiction. I feel this is a great primer for anyone who wants a basic understanding of gays and lesbians who live in the Arab world where everything is ruled by Islam.