Shows
A Way Beyond the Rainbow#76 - On Gender Dysphoria and Transgenderism: Contemporary ChallengesSend us a textIn this episode, Br. Mobeen Vaid and I discuss the Islamic perspectives on gender-reassignment surgeries as well as the ripple effects of the modern day transgender movement.What are the major Islamic fatawa regarding sex-reassignment surgeries within Sunni and Shi'a Islam? On what grounds were such fatwas issued to begin with? Do communities like the Hijras in Pakistan and Bangladesh as well as the Warias in Indonesia represent legitimate "third gender" communities? What are the ripple effects of the modern trans movement on family units, schools and academia, Muslim scholarship, as...2022-02-111h 38A Way Beyond the Rainbow#75 - On Gender Dysphoria and Transgenderism: Medical PerspectivesSend us a textIn this episode, we dive deep into the topics of gender dysphoria and transgenderism from scientific and medical perspectives, by exploring the most recent research and developments on the topic.Are there biological factors that contribute to transgenderism? Is gender dysphoria one entity or are there different kinds of it? What is the genesis of gender dysphoria and how is it treated nowadays? Is the “affirmative model” healthy and appropriate for individuals struggling with gender dysphoria? These and other questions are explored in this episode.References used in this epis...2022-02-071h 48A Way Beyond the Rainbow#74 - On Gender Atypical Individuals and IntersexSend us a textIn this episode, we continue our discussion of gender nonconformity with Br. Mobeen Vaid, and we discuss the notions of gender atypical individuals from an Islamic perspective, as well as the concepts of intersex/disorders of sexual development from a medical perspective.What are the differences between al-khunthā al-mushkil (ambiguous khunthā), al-mukhannath al-khilqī (congenital mukhannath) and al-mukhannath ghayr al-khilqī (affected or non-congenital mukhannath)? Does khunthā represent a third gender? To what extent does Islam accommodate gender atypical individuals and guarantee their legal rights under Shari'a? Who is the verse in the Qur'a...2022-02-041h 50A Way Beyond the Rainbow#73 - On Gender and Gender NonconformitySend us a textWith this episode, we begin a series of episodes addressing the topics of gender, gender nonconformity, gender dysphoria and transgenderism.In this episode, Br. Mobeen Vaid joins me in a discussion on gender and gender nonconformity in the modern world and from an Islamic legal perspective. Why are we witnessing an explosion of gender and sexual identities nowadays, and where is this expansion heading? Does Islam have a constructionist or essentialist view when it comes to one's gender? Does Islamic Shari'a allow flexibility in terms of our gender expression, or are...2022-01-311h 22A Way Beyond the Rainbow#70 - On Revisionist Arguments (Part II)Send us a textThis is part II of a 2-episode series with Br. Mobeen Vaid addressing revisionist arguments pertaining to homosexuality within Islam.In this episode, Mobeen and I discuss the punishments of sodomy according to Islamic Shari'a, to what extent Islam can be considered a "sex positive" religion, as well as the notions of marriage and celibacy for men and women who experience same-sex attractions. Under what conditions is sodomy punished by Islamic law, and why is there no consensus on this matter? Since a lot of homoerotic prose and poetry were written...2022-01-211h 23A Way Beyond the Rainbow#69 - On Revisionist Arguments (Part I)Send us a textThis is part I of a 2-episode series with Br. Mobeen Vaid addressing revisionist arguments pertaining to homosexuality within Islam.In this episode, Mobeen and I discuss the sociocultural backdrop of this kind of revisionism, particularly within Islam, and we address relevant arguments related to terminology as well as the story of the people of Prophet Lut (PBUH). What are the broader assumptions taken for granted by revisionist narratives? Does the Qur'an explicitly and unequivocally prohibit same-sex sexual acts? What were the people of Lut (PBUH) condemned and punished for according...2022-01-171h 09A Way Beyond the Rainbow#67 - On Politics, Genderspeak and a Queer New World (Part II)Send us a textThis is part II of a 2-episode series that addresses the history and politics of the gay liberation movement, the influence of the LGBT movement on countless aspects of everyday life and how far things have progressed in a few decades.How has the LGBT movement influenced media outlets, religious discourse, school curricula and global corporations over the past few decades? Why and how did the American Psychological Association (APA) remove homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)? How did we get to a point where any...2022-01-101h 37A Way Beyond the Rainbow#29 - On Support Systems: "Straight Struggle"Send us a textIn this episode, Br. Yousef Salam from Canada joins me as a guest speaker and talks to us about the online support group Straight Struggle. How did Straight Struggle evolve throughout the years from the "Yahoo!" to "Discord" platforms? What are the services that the online support group provides? What are the demographics of members who benefit from such services? These questions and others are explored in this episode.Links to resources mentioned in the episode:- Br. Yousef’s article, “From a Same-Sex Attracted Muslim: Between Denia...2020-10-161h 05