ALBAWABA - The latest anti-LGBTQ+ campaigns in Iraq and Kuwait stirred up controversy on the internet. First, people shared photos showing anti-LGBTQ billboards, claiming that they were in Kuwait, then a Shiite Iraqi cleric came out strongly against the LGBTQ community, labelling it a "divine afflication."
Billboards read: "'He's not like me, I'm a man and he is gay' and 'She is not like me, I'm a woman and she is a lesbian.'" Mixed reactions came out as some rebuked them, saying they incite violence toward LGBTQ+ members; while others encouraged billboards saying 'we should publicly talk about such sensitive topics in the country.'
صور متداولة للوحات ضد المثلية في الكويت. pic.twitter.com/phdNwZNoN7
— Celebs Arabic (@CelebsArabic) December 4, 2022
Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr tweeted that men and women should unite against the LGBTQ+ community, not by using violence or killing its members, but by using logic and spreading awareness.
The cleric continued saying that he hopes to curb LGBTQ+ in the country, branding it as a 'divine affliction'. He added that he wants to preserve and protect the human race from the imminent danger of extinction.
Dear #LGTBQ people, Al-Sadr expounds that we need to fight you, unite against you, and that y’all are sick and in dire need of mental treatment. Simultaneously, he’s not advocating violence. ? https://t.co/82xK6xlRVd
— Ali Al-Sudani (@S0DANI) December 1, 2022
The hashtag "#كلا_للمجتمع_الميمي — No to LGBTQ community" was launched on Twitter with people reacting to the political figure's controversial post. Some have supported al-Sadr's ideas of 'peacefully' curbing LGBTQ+, while other activists said that after Muqata al-Sadr's tweet, members of the LGBTQ+ in Iraq are in danger.
