ABSTRACT
This chapter tells stories about LGBTQI Muslims not only as sexual citizens or beings, but as whole human beings whose everyday experiences cannot be fully captured by turning the spotlight on the sexual/gendered dimension of their lives alone. It explores the participants' experiences and views in relation to the development of LGBTQI Muslim politics, specifically in the form of support networks, such as support groups like Imaan, Naz Project, and Safra Project. Occupying multiple marginal spaces, LGBTQI Muslims testify to the intersectionality of sexuality, religion, politics, ethnicity, and culture that affect all aspects of their lives. They also offer significant insights into how social actors exercise agency to negotiate and contest structural constraints, whose prominence is real and unavoidable. Equipped with the self-assuredness built on the conviction that their sexual and gender identities are divinely willed and sustained, LGBTQI Muslims embark on a creative and self-reflexive journey of life, with far-reaching implications for personal and socio-political lives.
