"I am able to say this is who I am."

July 29, 2016 1:24 AM

On being lesbian in a straight marriage (approx. 26 mins podcast) A conversation between two friends.

Malaysia remains one of the countries in the world where homosexuality is illegal.

posted by cendawanita (3 comments total)

“There's no black and white answer to this. Because of the risk of stigma, discrimination and violence, understandably there will be young people who will suppress their homosexuality. Can it be harmful? Yes, but it can also be equally harmful, if not more harmful, if they were to come out. So it's really for them to see how best to balance the risks that they face directly as it is their context that they live in, not yours or mine even if we may live in the same country.”

This. So much this.
posted by Fizz at 4:19 AM on July 29, 2016 [7 favorites]

I can't listen now, but the supplemental reading below was really interesting and thoughtful.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:03 AM on July 29, 2016

As queer woman living in Penang for the summer, this was very interesting. Thanks! I was surprised at how much it sounded just like something by someone from the US might have said, with all the modern, queer, feminist language. This despite the fact that it is illegal here and so difficult for so many.

Today my wife and I mentioned that we were married to our Uber driver. He was surprised and a bit embarrassed, but also seemed to think it was interesting. We "the first gay people he had ever met" -- we told him that we were just the ones brave and foreign enough to tell him.
posted by mkuhnell at 7:46 PM on July 29, 2016 [2 favorites]