In Morocco, being homosexual is still a criminal offense worth some serious jail time, however, Mithly is the first homosexual magazine to be sold under the counter there. The magazine has recieved partial funding from the European Union to print their issues, it gained some of it's influence from Bekhsoos, which was an online gay magazine coming from Lebanon. Morocco is one of the most tolerant of gays in the Arab world, but the Islamists are still fighting hard against it. They are calling a ban of the Mithly magazine as well as Elton Johns coming concert, claiming it is part of a plot to "homosexualize" Morocco.
"So far the reporting about homosexuals in Morocco has been the monopoly of the mainstream media, most of which describe us as perverts and a menace to society," said a journalist for Mithly who identified himself only as Mourad. "Mithly is a chance for homosexuals to give their side of the story. We wanted to give homosexuals in the Arab world a voice."
Submitted by Tieren Dokes
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2010/04/morocco-draft-new-magazine-gives-voice-to-arab-homosexuals-.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+BabylonBeyond+%28Babylon+%26+Beyond+Blog%29
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