Underground Railroad for Gay Iraqis

Earlier this year, a wave of anti-gay violence spread through Iraq. Police increased their harassment of homosexuals and bodies of openly gay men were found mutilated on Baghdad streets as armed militias singled out gay men.

There are no confirmed statistics on the number of homosexuals harassed or tortured in Iraq, but human rights groups estimate that thousands have been tortured and hundreds have been killed.

Gay men and women looking to flee Iraq don’t have many options. Homosexuality is illegal in all of the countries surrounding Iraq except Turkey and Jordan, and homosexual acts are punishable by death in Iran and Saudi Arabia. In response, the non-profit group Human Rights Watch has created an underground railroad for gay Iraqis. The group covers airfare from Baghdad to an undisclosed city outside of Iraq where gay refugees can live without fear of violence and persecution.

Scott Long is the director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights program at Human Rights Watch. Matthew McAllester wrote about the gay underground railroad in a recent issue of New York magazine.

New York Magazine: The Hunted

Human Rights Watch: "They Want Us Exterminated" -- Murder, Torture, Sexual Orientation and Gender in Iraq

(Photo by Charles Roffey via Flickr/Creative Commons)