I asked my roommate here in Iraq last night what he thought of the 6 Iraqi gay guys that were killed a few weeks ago.  He had no clue that any such event happened.

I expected that response because it doesn’t seem like my unit pays attention to any local news outside of mass attacks and political events.  They are too busy taking their mind off of what we do here by playing games, watching movies, or chatting on the internet. There was also relatively little attention to the story generated here  – which rendered it hardly noticeable.

If it was noticeable I’m sure there would at least be some anti-gay snide remarks from my colleagues – but nothing.

We hear about the suicide bombers and assassination attempts, but this story of local homophobia eluded us – or maybe we just didn’t care to see or know what to look for. What our masculine patriarchal society would define as “gay” is normal here.

I don’t mean homosexual sex, but the close contact between men that can be seen everywhere.  Men rubbing other men’s arms, holding hands, hugging, kissing (on the cheek), rubbing hands thrrough each other’s hair – all of which I have personally seen.  It’s a lot of physical contact  – it might even be too much for me if I were on the receiving end.

My soldiers constantly report on seeing “gay” activity.  Most recently we were up at one base run by Iraqis and in one of the dorm buildings, an Iraqi man was sitting on another’s lap.  I thought I had good gaydar, but not in this country.  With all this ambiguity I would assume that a gay man would be able to fit in, but apparently this is wrong.

In a CNN report I caught, a local gay Iraqi boy and his friend speak about what it is like being gay in Iraq.  The boy also mentions the “gay tendencies” of the Iraqi people.

Apparently liberating Iraq from the Sadam dictatorship was also the start of hunting season on homosexuals.  In a report by Newsweek, the sad story of homosexuals in Iraq is examined.  Please take note that the stories are almost a year old, with hardly a word printed or said since last summer until this tragic string of murders.  Maybe these murders will spark a new flurry of interest in the plight of Iraq’s gay population – probably not.

I interact with Iraqis often in my work.  We have an Iraqi that has been given the nickname “hotpants” by soldiers in my unit because he is feminine, listens to Celine Dion while working, and wears women’s perfume.  They all assume he is gay, and I would believe it if he was, but now I wonder what he must go through when he leaves the relative safety of our base.  If honor killings and homosexual witch-hunts are becoming the norm here, what kind of fear does he and other seemingly gay Iraqis live in?

I have noticed that I never hear anything about women.  In a culture where women are treated slightly better than cattle it’s no surprise.  Are there any lesbians in Iraq, I wonder?  We hear about the danger that gay men are in, but what danger are gay women in?

Well, Iraq has a long way to go before any real social progress is made.  It seems that my desire to be openly gay in the military pales in comparison to those who desire just to be left to live.  Our presence failed to impress the deeply religious with our ‘western’ ideas.  Gays are murdered in Sader city and it appears no one really cares – the economy is more important.  Where have we heard that before?