Caste systems in other parts of the world (eg. US South, Brazil, Islamic
millet systems in the Ottoman Empire and the Delhi Caliphate etc.) were
by contrast far milder, permitting the co-existence of different races
and discouraging miscegenation without extermination in mind.

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The Qur'an and Homosexuality:
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There are five references in the Qur'an which have been cited as
referring to gay and lesbian behavior. Some obviously deal with
effeminate men and "masculine women." The two main references to
homosexual behavior are:
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"We also sent Lut : He said to his people : "Do ye commit lewdness
such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you? For ye
practice your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a
people transgressing beyond bounds." Qur'an 7:80-81
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"What! Of all creatures do ye come unto the males, and leave the
wives your Lord created for you? Nay, but ye are forward folk."
Qur'an 26:165
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Both references relate to gay sexual activities; lesbian practices
are not mentioned in the Qur'an.
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Lut is referred to as "Lot" in the Hebrew Scriptures. This passage is
an apparent reference to the activities at Sodom and Gamorah. It
seems to imply that there was no homosexual behavior before it first
appeared in Sodom. This is a uniquely Islamic concept; it does not
appear in Jewish or Christian beliefs. The passage also links the sin
of Sodom (the reason for its destruction) to homosexuality. That
linkage is contradicted by other verses in the Hebrew Scriptures.
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The Hadith and homosexuality:
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The Hadith are collections of sayings attributed to Muhammad. Many
Hadiths (ahadith) discuss liwat (sexual intercourse between males).
Two examples are:
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"When a man mounts another man, the throne of God shakes."
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"Kill the one that is doing it and also kill the one that it is being
done to." (in reference to the active and passive partners in gay
sexual intercourse)
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There is at least one mention of lesbian behavior mentioned in the
Hadith:
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"Sihaq (lesbian sexual activity) of women is zina (illegitimate
sexual intercourse) among them."
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Traditionalist orthodox Muslims generally claim that the Hadith
literature contains the authentic sayings of Muhammad. Many liberal
Muslims doubt the authenticity of at least some of them. The latter
might point out that during the times of the first Caliphs, Muslims
did not know what to do with individuals guilty of "liwat/lutiyya".
No sahabi (companion) of Muhammad could quote a saying or decision of
Muhammad relating to this question.
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Treatment of homosexuals within Islamic countries: According to a
pamphlet produced by Al-Fatiha, there is a consensus among Islamic
scholars that all humans are naturally heterosexual. 5 Homosexuality
is seen by scholars to be a sinful and perverted deviation from the
norm. All Islamic schools of thought and jurisprudence consider gay
acts to be unlawful. They differ in terms of penalty: The Hanafite
school (currently seen mainly in South and Eastern Asia) teaches that
no physical punishment is warranted. The Hanabalites, (widely
followed in the Arab world) teach that severe punishment is warranted
The Sha'fischool of thought (also seen in the Arab world) requires a
minimum of 4 adult male witnesses before a person can be found guilty
of a homosexual act.
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Al-Fatiha estimates that 4,000 homosexuals have been executed in Iran
since their revolution in 1979. 10 public executions of homosexuals
have been performed in Afghanistan by the Taliban army.
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Statment by the Islamic Society of North America:
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Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi of the ISNA said: "Homosexuality is a moral
disorder. It is a moral disease, a sin and corruption... No person is
born homosexual, just like no one is born a thief, a liar or
murderer. People acquire these evil habits due to a lack of proper
guidance and education.""
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"There are many reasons why it is forbidden in Islam. Homosexuality
is dangerous for the health of the individuals and for the society.
It is a main cause of one of the most harmful and fatal diseases. It
is disgraceful for both men and women. It degrades a person. Islam
teaches that men should be men and women should be women.
Homosexuality deprives a man of his manhood and a woman of her
womanhood. It is the most un-natural way of life. Homosexuality leads
to the destruction of family life."
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Beliefs of www.islamic.org.uk:
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They hold views which are very similar to those held by conservative
Christianity: Homosexuality is considered sinful within Islam=20
Homosexuality is a profound mistake Humans are all naturally
heterosexual Homosexuality is caused by environmental factors,
particularly near the time of puberty. People can control their
thoughts and steer themselves away from homosexuality Homosexuality
is a chosen sexual orientation. Any homosexual can become a
heterosexual. 1
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British Muslim group Al-Muhajiroun
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According to RainbowNetwork.com, the British Muslim group
Al-Muhajiroun issued a fatwa (religious decree) on 2001-JUL-16
against a Muslim homosexual rights group Al-Fatiha. The alleged fatwa
said:
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"The very existence of Al-Fatiha is illegitimate and the members of
this organisation are apostates. Never will such an organisation be
tolerated in Islam and never will the disease that it calls for be
affiliated with a true Islamic society or individual. The Islamic
ruling for such acts is death. It is a duty of the Muslims to prevent
such evil conceptions being voiced in the public or private arena."
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A spokesperson for Al-Fatiha said: "Al-Fatiha has concluded that the
statement from Al-Muhajiroun is only an alleged fatwa. We believe
that it was only sent to press in the United Kingdom in reaction to
the Al-Fatiha conference that was held in San Francisco, and
Al-Fatiha's participation in the San Francisco LGBT Pride Parade. But
whether it is an official fatwa or not, the rhetoric used in the
statement was extreme, and cause for concern." 7
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Essay by a Canadian group - Ahmadi Muslim Jama'at'
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Ahmadi Muslim Jama'at' was a Canadian Muslim group. They once
published an essay "Homosexuality & Islam" which views homosexual
behavior as a symptom of the decadence of society. "As this process
continues, people find and invent even more bizarre and perverted
means to satisfy natural urges, and trends like child and adult
pornography, bisexuality, homosexuality and bestiality appear." They
make a number of points: 3 "either the sexual license will cure
itself through its own excesses (as it is doing now in the shape of
numerous venereal diseases) or the wrath of God will fall in shape of
multitudes of Sodoms, Gomorrahs and Ubars." homosexuality has been
considered deviant behavior throughout human history. homosexuals
have redefined sexual abuse of children as "natural and

practical meaning of freedom of speech in the United States. Is the
First Amendment nullified because some say a book "is obscene,
blasphemous, sinful, controversial, and in poor taste"? Despite
threats from the late Ayatollah Khomeini and a $6 million price tag
on the head of its author Salman Rushdie, the book The Satanic Verses
remained on the New York Times list until the fall of 1989. It is
well into its fourteenth hardback printing which is an impressive
feat for any modern fiction novel. Salman Rushdie to date remains
unrepentant, insisting that his contemporary allegory of good versus
evil was not designed to offend Moslem fundamentalists. The book,
with its attractive red, black and silver cover, is now openly sold
in most chain bookstores, and the threats of violence by groups such
as the Islamic Revolutionary Army are, perhaps quite deliberately,
forgotten.
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The ayatollah moved on to discover and create new excuses for raising
the fervor of his Islamic fundamentalist counterrevolution. The head
of the Iranian parliament has called for the murder of Britons and
Americans, presumably because it would aid the uprising on the West
Bank of the Gaza. It is difficult to comprehend how (a) Iranian "hit
squads" leaving Tehran and flying to, say, (b) London or (c) Boise,
Idaho, can substantially affect the well-being of persons on (d) the
West Bank in Gaza by murdering other persons in (b) or in (c).
Fundamentalists had long believed that the earth, besides being
"young" (i.e., less than 10,000 years of age) could also be somewhat
flat. Islamic geography apparently employs a different notion of
space-time. In fact, Rushdie's novel speaks of freezing time and
history; "all that matters" are events and persons after the time of
The Prophet. All else is profane, or does not matter. The same may be
said of geography, and all those infidel persons inhabiting infidel
and strange lands, and having infidel and strange ideas. Indeed,
Khomeini was attempting to freeze history, to interpret all events in
space-time through the narrow focus of the Koran.
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Perhaps in a few years, people will discover Rushdie's
once-controversial tome on the shelves of used bookstores and
remember a senile, sclerotic religious bigot demanding the death of
its author. Typical of Khomeini, they will mumble. Few people might
recall the plot or its characters like Gibreel Farishta, or Saladin
Chamcha; they will instead see in their mind's eye television images
of mobs storming an embassy in Pakistan, or a rag effigy of Rushdie
being burned in Tehran.
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Forgotten, too, will be some of the other outrages against The
Satanic Verses, perpetrated not by fanatics in the Middle East, but
by social, political, and economic figures in the West. An Islamic
fundamentalist 7,000 miles from our shores can do little to threaten
our Bill of Rights; a corporate executive ensconced in New York --
well, that's a different story.
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Of fear and loathing One would expect that in the face of such
threats by a religious hoodlum like Khomeini, the entire political
and literary establishment of the Western world would defiantly
resist, and embrace Rushdie's book as a symbol of principle
(regardless of its literary merit). After all, here is a theocrat --
and not even a good Christian one at that! -- telling people thousands
of miles from the border of his Islamic dictatorship what they may or
may not read, publish, believe -- all based upon what happens to
offend Moslem dogma and sensibilities. Indeed! One would expect
outrage, defiance, resistance. In the United States (after all!), a
nation which explicitly supports freedom of expression, one would
expect to see Moslem religious propaganda outlets to be, literally,
under siege by picketers. One would expect the publishing and
bookstore industry to stand behind Viking Press, eagerly awaiting
shipments of The Satanic Verses proudly and defiantly displaying them
in front windows and advertising them in newspapers.
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One would expect major political figures to unconditionally support
the right of people to read this book, regardless of their own
religious or social biases, and regardless of any religious or social
message Mr. Rushdie might be conveying in the pages of his novel.
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One would expect the bevy of "new age" political celebrities, so
eager to often embrace bizarre philosophies or fads, to at least
issue a statement of support in favor of freedom of expression.
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One would expect a declaration from the Congress of the United
States, indeed a blizzard of resolutions from unions, trade
associations, educational groups, civic organizations, lodges, clubs,
assemblies, anywhere people congregated for just about any purpose.
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And from the British -- who stood up to Adolf Hitler, who in a moment
of jingoistic fury would send their aging fleet halfway around the
world to recapture an island of sheep claimed by generals from
Argentina -- one would expect even more outrage.
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Or from France, Germany, Italy, all of those European countries we
consider to be part of the enlightened "democratic" West for whom we
fought against the Nazi horde so they could be "free" -- could we not
expect at least a trifle of support for Mr. Rushdie?
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Islam & Koran
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Islam Home
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An Atheist's Guide to Mohammedanism
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Blasphemy is Enlightenment
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Cowardice of the West
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Frankfurt Book Fair
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Lessons from The Satanic Verses
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Mohammed
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Moslem Violence In Britain
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Red Herring Rushdie Pt. I
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Red Herring Rushdie Pt. II
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Theopolitics of the Rushdie Case
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We could expect . . .
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What we have discovered instead is a deeply ingrained timidity when
the issue of fundamental civil liberties is raised. One is not
talking about figures so loathed in our history; we are not talking
about communists, pornographers, or the targets of "tabloid
television." We are not dealing with a fringe political idea or so
unpopular a concept as, say, our own Atheism. We are instead dealing
with a novelist, somebody most people would never hear of in the
course of their daily lives were they not part of that insular group
which consumes "modern fiction" with the appetite of a glutton. After
all, Viking printed only 50,000 copies of The Satanic Verses in first
edition hardback, knowing that a goodly portion of them might be sold
to remainder houses, or sent to the "bargain table" of chain
bookstores. Rushdie had already written other novels like Grimus,
Midnight's Children (winner of the 1981 Booker Prize), Sham