Amsterdam: Mosques silent about Gay Pride decision

Amsterdam: Mosques silent about Gay Pride decision


Ahmed Marcouch, mayor of the Amsterdam Slotervaart district, decided that the Gay Pride parade will pass by the Sloterplas.

Amsterdam mosques are not happy about the decision, but are not publicly opposing it either.

"We have no opinion about it. It is a wish of a district mayor, we don't need to talk about everything," says Khalil Aitblal, spokesperson for the Union of Moroccan Mosque in Amsterdam and the area (Ummao).

He admits that the topic of homosexuality is sometimes an issue of discussion in mosques, "because it's an issue which people have difficulty with," according to Aitblal.  He think Marcouch "supports core values". He says that Marcouch is a district mayor and therefore wants to ensure equality for everybody, so that everybody will be treated with respect.  "But that doesn't mean that we must have an opinion about it.  You don't need to take a stand about everything."

Earlier this week Marcouch announced that he will bring the Gay Pride to the Sloterplas.  He says that homosexuality exists in Slotervaart just like everywhere else.

The administration of the El Tawheed mosque is also reserved, but for  another reason.  Spokesperson Fahred Zaari: "If we give our religious arguments, it quickly leads to the conclusion that Islam fosters certain aggressive feelings, against gays or against people who think differently.  That is quickly understood as a threat, that is difficult."  The problem, according to Zaari, is the violence against gays: "Practice shows that those who trouble gays, or attack, are almost never practicing Muslims.  We have religous objections against the homosexual act, that gives no right to injure, threaten or beat anyone.  We preach that too."

Non-formal educator and former neighborhood-father Abelrahim Arrihani sees advantages in Marcouch's proposal.  "You have gays in every community, whether you want to or not, therefore also (in) Slotervaart.  There are also Muslim gays.  There is therefore nothing wrong with doing something to promote the acceptance of that fact.  In Morocco the homosexuals also went out in the streets to claim their place."

He does seem them, those youth who carry on on the streets and in school: "It is still such a dominant macho culture.  There's a lot of fear there: the moment you don't go along with it, you're singling yourself out, then you're 'also one'"

The administration of El Tawheed will tehrefore, if the Gay pride passes in Sloterplas, not stand on the sidelines to watch, according to Zaari.  But, he says, that's not obligatory either.  

Will there be a fire-and-brimstone sermon in El Tawheed against anybody who does go?  "No, because threatening with hell and damnation, we never do that"

Source: Parool (Dutch)

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