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How The Islamophobia vs. Homophobia Debate Is Harming The Queer Movement

Sayantan Datta

In light of the Orlando shooting, I came across a post and the debate that followed in the comments section where people were debating over Islamophobia. While some people said that Muslims are at a benefit because ‘terrorism has no religion’ comes up everytime a muslim person kills people, the more rational side was talking of how that is sheer islamophobia. What struck me as an interesting aspect is that somehow, all current discourses were boiling down to a debate where islamophobia was being countered, but not sufficient discussion was happening about the intense homophobia that resulted in the shooting. It seems like Islamophobia and Homophobia have been pitted against each other in the race to attention, which should not be the case. This is just to remind all Vedanta-vadis, Manu-vadis and other hindutva-vadis that the nation still stands with Section 377 against the queer community, and the guns can turn towards you anyday.

Homophobia, or broadly, Queerphobia, is the root cause of all such incidents, where people have to give up their lives just because they were being themselves, and that is an extremely problematic situation. We should ensure that there is no shift in focus happening when we are dealing with issues which are very intrinsic to our personal functioning.

On another note, what has happened in Orlando is extremely sad, and condemnable. I can’t romanticise the incident unnecessary and call it a sacrifice, as a lot of people have been doing, but I can definitely call it a murder, and unforgivable so. Not just by one gunman, but by an uncountable number of hands behind him who have bred homophobia within themselves and the social functioning. We sitting at a distance can only speak and show solidarity, and our hearts reach out for the actual sufferers of the murder incident.

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