Rainbows, school books, movies and drag shows have all been targeted in Lebanon in recent weeks as politicians, religious leaders and vigilante groups step up a campaign against the LGBTQ+ community in a country that has long shown relative tolerance.
At a time when Lebanon is in the grips of one of the world’s worst economic meltdowns in more than a century, the country and its leaders have been deeply split on how to deal with the crisis.
Political factions have been so divided they haven’t been able to choose a new president for 10 months.
But in recent weeks they united to fight the LGBTQ+ community. Politicians and religious leaders have intensified a campaign that in many ways mirrors the culture wars in the United States, raising alarm over symbols and trends that might normalise queerness as an existential threat to society.
It comes at a time when an escalating crackdown on the LGBTQ+ community is also underway elsewhere in the region.
In some cases, the targeting comes after a spate of recent Quran burnings in Europe, which sparked angry protests in Iraq and other Muslim-majority countries.
Local religious and political leaders have painted the LGBTQ+ community as part of Western attacks on Islamic values. In these demonstrations, many protesters burned rainbow flags.
