page_title: LGBT in Islam
section_title: Active movements
hierarchical_section_title: LGBT in Islam / LGBT-related movements within Islam / Liberal movements / Active movements
caption_attribution_description: English: Pride London 2011, near Portland Place. English: "Some Muslims Are Gay", a float for gay Muslims. Taken near Portland Place
context_page_description: Attitudes toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people and their experiences in the Muslim world have been influenced by its religious, legal, social, political, and cultural history.
  The Quran narrates the story of the "people of Lot" destroyed by the wrath of God because the men engaged in lustful carnal acts between themselves. Some hadith collections also condemn homosexual and transgender acts, prescribing death penalty for male homosexual intercourse.
  Homosexual acts are forbidden in traditional Islamic jurisprudence and are liable to different punishments, including the death penalty, depending on the situation and legal school. However, homosexual relationships were generally tolerated in pre-modern Islamic societies, and historical records suggest that these laws were invoked infrequently, mainly in cases of rape or other "exceptionally blatant infringement on public morals". There is little evidence of homosexual practice in Islamic societies for the first century and a half of the Islamic era. Homoerotic themes were cultivated in poetry and other literary genres written in major languages of the Muslim world from the eighth century into the modern era.
context_section_description: The Al-Fitrah Foundation,  previously known as The Inner Circle was one of the first queer Muslim organizations founded in 1996 when its founder Imam Muhsin Hendricks publicly revealed his sexual orientation.  Imam Muhsin Hendricks is also considered as the world's first openly queer Imam.  His activism grew since then and the organization became public in 1998.  It soon grew into an international organization with annual international retreats of up to 120 international delegates meeting annually in Cape Town to discuss issues pertaining to LGBTIQ Muslims.  In 2018 after having served the organization for 20 years her resigned after detecting corruption in the organization and being maliciously and wrongfully accused of mismanagement of funds.  He, along with other queer Muslims who left the old Al-Fitrah Foundation founded a new organization in 2018 called Al-Ghurbaah Foundation. Imam Muhsin Hendricks also administers the Compassion-centred Islamic Network (CCI Network) which is a global network that seeks to connect and create a stronger voice for queer Muslims amongst activists, academics, Islamic scholars and religious leaders (Imams).  Currently, the organization's main focus is working with religious leaders (Imams) while serving the needs of the queer Muslim community globally.  Al-Ghurbaah Foundation also runs an inclusive mosque called Masjidul Ghurbaah which is open to anyone who wants to connect spiritually regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, religion or belief.
  In November 2012, a prayer room was set up in Paris by gay Islamic scholar and founder of the group 'Homosexual Muslims of France' Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed. It was described by the press as the first gay-friendly mosque in Europe. The reaction from the rest of the Muslim community in France has been mixed. The opening has been condemned by the Grand Mosque of Paris.
  In September 2019, a group of Muslims known as Imaan who identify and support LGBTQ+ members of Islam religion attempted to crowdfund £5,000 to host a festival for LGBTQ+ Muslims. Since homosexuality is against the law in some Middle Eastern countries, Imaan is taking a large stance against these laws and is attempting to change the way Middle Eastern countries look at LGBTQ+ individuals. Many LGBTQ+ Muslims are forced to choose between their sexuality and their religion, often forcing individuals to not express who they truly are.
  The Ibn Ruschd-Goethe mosque in Berlin is a liberal mosque open to all types of Muslims, where men and women pray together and LGBT worshippers are welcomed and supported.
  Imaan, a social support group for Muslim LGBT people and their families, exists in the UK. Imaan, like Al-Fatiha, was founded by gay Pakistani activists.
  Inclusive Mosque Initiative, a UK based grassroots activist organisation founded in 2012, which works toward "establishing a place of worship for the promotion and practice of an inclusive Islam".
  Nur Warsame has been an advocate for LGBTQ Muslims. He founded Marhaba, a support group for queer Muslims in Melbourne, Australia. In May 2016, Wahrsage revealed that he is homosexual in an interview on SBS2's The Feed, being the first openly gay Imam in Australia.
  The Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity (MASGD) in the United States began on January 23, 2013. It supports, empowers and connects LGBTQ Muslims. It aims "to increase the acceptance of gender and sexual diversity within Muslim communities." On June 20, 2016, an interview with Mirna Haidar (a member of the MASGD's steering committee) was published in The Washington Post. She described the MASGD as supporting "LGBT Muslims who want or need to embrace both their sexual and religious identities." Haidar said that the support the MASGD provides is needed because a person who is "Muslim and queer " faces "two different systems of oppression": Islamophobia and homophobia.
  Muslims for Progressive Values, based in the United States and in Malaysia, is "a faith-based, grassroots, human rights organization that embodies and advocates for the traditional Qur'anic values of soc
caption: Float for gay Muslims at Pride London 2011.
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