But I had no reference for an emotional life with another man. All I knew was sex. I didn't know what was required of me to be, and keep, a boyfriend. No doubt that was the cumulative effect of more than two decades of homophobia in the Arab world and the complete absence of any discussion of emotions when you're a man.... I could enjoy the sex and the gay identity but not the emotional life and responsibility that came with it.
(From Kamal Al-Solaylee's Intolerable: A Memoir of Extremes, pages 139 and 140)
You don't need to originate from the Middle East, Kamal, to know this experience.
No comments:
Post a Comment