News Briefs

Muslim LBGT Leader to Speak

On Monday, Nov. 11, Faisal Alam, founder of the international LGBT Muslim group Al-Fatiha, will speak at Oberlin. His talk, “A Living Oxymoron: Being Queer and Muslim” will address issues that queer-identified Muslims face in the U.S. and around the world.

Faisal Alam is a queer-identified Muslim activist of Pakistani descent who has been prominently involved with groups including Amnesty International and the National Minority AIDS Council.

He founded Al-Fatiha in 1998 to respond to the needs and concerns of LGBT Muslims and their allies, which he felt were inadequately addressed by many LGBT and Muslim communities alike.

Al-Fatiha now includes chapters in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, and has sponsored several worldwide conferences.

The talk will be held at 8 p.m. in West Lecture Hall in the new science center. It is free and open to the public. -Rick Hoffman