Syria was the set of many gay love stories in old Arabic literature. Modern Syrian writers have written great stories with explicit sexual content. Though most Syrians now feel that homosexuality & sexuality are taboos, I felt that many straight men are curious to talk about sexuality, but they are afraid how may that make them look in the eyes of religion & the rest of society.

For most Gay Arabs, Syria is considered to be a gay paradise; handsome hot guys everywhere, & many many gay men. That’s somewhat true, but we still have the weirdest closeted cases as well. In Syria we have all the “common Gay Arabs problems.” Nevertheless, it’s better than most Arab countries. Lesser police interferences are taking place now, but the danger of being exposed to society as homosexual is still very high. My personal experiences & my friends’ have allowed me to be able to say that we have the highest number of “bisexuals” & “curious men” in the region. In some cases where some gay men were exposed to some straight men, those straight men did not feel like “trashing” them out, they just preferred not to talk about it. That’s a great improvement in the straight man mentality. We just hope many of them transform to more open people.

There have been many attempts to talk about homosexuality in the Media, but as gay people we still feel it’s dangerous for us to “highlight” the gay man’s “characteristics”; people are just not ready yet. Arabs do not like sudden changes in society. Talking about homosexuals rights still seems to many Arabs a conspiracy against religions; both Christianity & Islam. Most Arabs think that their attachment to religion is what makes them stronger & unique. The suppressive regimes in the Arab World tend to grant their people the right of defending their traditional values, which is the only right they are willing to give anyway.

At the end, I feel that I have to mention Lebanon’s best attempts to contribute to the Arab gay community. LEBTOUR & HELEM have been working on great issues, supplying consultation & dream events for Arabs. I have added a hyperlink to each one; you could look them up if you like.

Having talked about homosexuality in the Middle East & Syria, I can now add a few blogs as a guide to gay life in Syria. One is already added about Aleppo, more about other cities are soon to come.

Have a gay day.