In Dubai, everyone is bisexual. But it’s such a different scene there. … [Habibi is] kind of trashy compared to what most Arabs, at least in Dubai, are used to. I mean, there are street vendors here. [Nods toward a nearby man] You can spot the ones who sell kebabs on the street. It’s not difficult.
—A 22-year-old Columbia University accounting student, speaking about the monthly Arab dance party Habibi, in New York City [via]
tallskin2
I read the NY Times article
They seem so fucked up by their adherence to their nasty sky pixie religion.
Why do gays choose to stay with beliefs that oppress them??
Saywhatnow?
I read the NY Times article too… as anyone who clicks on the link to this page should. It’s a relatively positive look at how NY gay Arabs are able to come together in unity despite their differences… the quote, however, is unfortunate… but there’s always one in every crowd… IN EVERY CULTURE.
Spike
HAWTE, middle eastern gay guys!
RomanHans
Before anybody claims this is a gay thing, read this news story from last week. Lenny Dykstra — some athlete/sportscaster/failed investment advisor — explains why he must be innocent of sexual assault:
“[The accuser] is a maid. That’s not even worth commenting on, are you kidding me?”
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2011/01/lenny-dykstra-accused-of-sexual-assault-by-housekeeper.html
DR
If this is all Queerty got from the article, then it shouldn’t have bothered posting it. Shame, really.
Lefty
Mmmm, sexy arabs.
Charlie Jackpot
I’ll have 2 of the one lying down
Alan
Yeah I saw that too but let’t not stereotype people based on one stupid comment, I feel like we should know better.
cooper
again… this is HARDLY an article Queerty! Why can’t you actually write something that has a point to it? As someone not from New York, it’s not until the very last line that i find out that Hibibi is a gay dance party, and one quote from one guy hardly means that there is a gay caste system in place. That’s like me saying “The sky is purple” and you running a story saying that in San Francisco, all gays claim the sky is purple, backed up by a single quote from one person claiming the sky is purple.
If you can’t be bothered to write something remotely approaching journalism, then just link me to the original source that you culled your quote from and don’t make me waste time reading and wondering what the hell you are talking about.
B
No. 1 · tallskin2 wrote, “I read the NY Times article. They seem so fucked up by their adherence to their nasty sky pixie religion. Why do gays choose to stay with beliefs that oppress them??”
I read the article too. It said one person (the party’s founder, was a practicing Muslim), but he obviously wasn’t letting his religion get in the way of having a good time. It said they were closed for Ramadan (i.e., they skip one month – it’s the equivalent of being closed for Christmas). Don’t assume this is a religious thing on the part of the club – it could just be that enough people are making an appearance with their families that the place wouldn’t be full enough to justify the cost of renting the space.
The article also mentioned Mohammad Shamsi Al, the Imam of the relatively progressive “Islamic Cultural Center of New York” as saying that the center has a “don’t ask don’t tell policy”, so gay Muslims show up with their partners but are expected to not provide any details about their sex lives. The more conservative members can pretend they are “just friends” while anyone with half a brain knows the score.
Finally, I’ve met gay Muslims in San Francisco. One said he was overjoyed when he discovered pork and alcohol (banned at home when he was growing up) and joked that it didn’t matter because he was in enough trouble for being gay! “Muslim” in this case seems to mean, “my parents took me to a mosque regularly as a child and I only go to one when visiting my mother, who would be upset if I didn’t go along with her.”
Adonis-of-Fire
LMAO, Dubai people are so fuckin’ pretencious
Most Arabs I’ve met are quite ugly, doesn’t matter if they are rich or poor, they have huge ugly hook noses, hairy backs, eww eww eww.
Gigi
@Adonis-of-Fire:
Really? That’s the best comment you could come up with? That “most” Arabs you’ve met aren’t your cup of tea. And? Who cares!