queer issue

What if queer people aren’t the product of their own trauma—a broken part in an otherwise close-to-perfect system—but it’s actually the system that is broken, and queer people have merely found a way to thrive within it?

Imagine a space where all parts of your identity can be expressed, self-acceptance is encouraged, and a sense of community can be found. For queer Muslims, who often find themselves excluded at the crossroads of their multilayered identities, such spaces can provide an antidote to the discrimination and injustices they experience. This story is a part of our magazine—The Queer Issue.

“Integration has nothing to do with learning the Chancellor’s name.” Reflecting broader society, social spaces specifically conceived to welcome migrants and refugees are often marked by heteronormativity. Instead of finding a safe haven, queer migrants are once again forced to hide their sexual preferences and live in fear of being found out as they did back home. This story is a part of our magazine—The Queer Issue.

Adolfo Martínez was kicked out by his parents when he was only 18—because he liked boys. Eight years later, he set out to create an organisation that would help other LGBTQ+ youth who, like him, had been victims of physical attacks, or struggled financially. Respeta is a bottom-up organisation in Madrid that, for the past ten years, has been offering educational and sports training to LGBTQ+ youth. This story is a part of our magazine—The Queer Issue.