RAHA International

Come to our Beach Pride event right now and let your souls soar!!! We're here until 4:00pm. #gaypride #persianpride #gingerrogersbeach #pacificpalisades

Looking ahead to our programming for the upcoming year. We can’t wait to see and reconnecting with all of you again.

Happy Nowruz everyone! Join us for our upcoming therapeutics support group sessions in the new year. Wednesday, April 14... Wednesday, May 12 Wednesday, June 16 Our session start at 7 PM Pacific time (PDT)

Happy Nowruz everyone!! Join us for our upcoming therapeutics support group sessions in the new year. Wednesday, April 14... Wednesday, May 12 Wednesday, June 16 Our session start at 7 PM Pacific time (PDT)

SMC Global Citizenship Award is given to Raha Shervin will be speaking at this zoom event. Please join in tomorrow Wednesday October 21st, 2020 ... at 10:00am-11:00am with q&a 11:00am-11:30am PST. Click on the zoom link provided in the comments (or on the flier). See you there! #queeriranian #iranianqueer #iranianlgbtq #lgbtq #lgbtq #lgbtqally #queer #gay #lesbian #transgender

Working Through Our Fears, Part II Typically, in our support group meetings, we chose a topic and explore it in depth. Our topic for the next few months will be "Fear". Fear plays a major role in our lives from our career choices to the risks and challenges we accept to the personal relationships we form with others and ourselves, but fear also has some positive effects. It motivates us and pushes us forward. We will be discussing these aspects and much more as we dive in...to the topic of fear and explore how it shapes and, taken to an extreme, distorts the way we see the world and ourselves. Our group is open to all LGBTQ Iranians. Each of our meetings is a stand-alone, so feel free to attend any of the meetings anytime from anywhere in the US or in the world. Wednesday October 14 7:00-9:00 PDT, US Fee $25 (Financial assistance is available upon request, just ask in advance). Zoom link and instructions provided upon RSVP at either: [email protected] or 818-933-1148 #gaypersian #persiangay #gayiranian #iraniangay #iranianlgbtq #iranianqueer #queeriranians #lgbtq #lgbtqally #iranianlesbians #iraniantrans

National Coming Out Day. Message from Omid. #nationalcomingoutday #nationalcomingoutday #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq

National Coming Out Day. Message from Mahdis R. #nationalcomingoutday #nationalcomingoutday #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq

National Coming Out Day. Message from Shervin K. #nationalcomingoutday #nationalcomingoutday #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq

National Coming Out Day Message from Joseph H. #nationalcomingoutday #nationalcomingoutday #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq

Happy Mehregan everyone!! Here is a bit of the origins of Mehregan: Mehr was a goddess and symbol of a religious belief in Indo-Iranian culture, which was associated with the creation of the world. This religion is called Mithraism in Mitraism, which was the religion of Iranians before Zoroaster in the 6thcentury BC. In fact mitra or mithra are the Old Persian forms of modern Mehr.... The time of beginning of this religion is not known, but it was the main religion of Iranians up to 6thcentury B.C. Mithraism has also an undeniable share inZoroastrianism.Avestathe religious book of the Zoroastrians has a part called Mehr-Yasht, which is a poetic worship of this great Persian goddess. This phenomenon was combined with respect to sun as a sign of Mitra. In 3rdand 4thcentury ADMitrahismspread through the Roman Empire through the Hellenic World. In many parts of Europe like Britain, Spain, Germany, and lands near Danube, Mithraism was the official religion. When Constantine accepted Christianity, Mithraism was forgotten but its impact on Christianity still exist. Many Christian notions which are now believed by Christians are dervived from Mithraism. For example, Christmas Day is the same day as the birth day of Mehr (Mitra). Also the day Sunday is believed to be derived from Mehr or the Sun.Today in modern Persian language the word Mehr has the meanings of sun, kindness and love. /Mehrdad Parsipour #mehregan #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq #persianqueer #iranianqueer #iraniangay #persiangay #persianlesbians #iranianlesbian #iraniantrans #persianbisexual #iraniancelebration

The Qabus Nameh (1082-1083), in which a father advises a son: "As between women and youths, do not confine your inclinations to either sex; thus you may find enjoyment from both kinds without either of the two becoming inimical to you... During the summer let your desires incline toward youths, and during the winter towards women." Scholar Janet Afary dissects how "classical Persian literature (twelfth to fifteenth centuries)...overflowed with same-sex themes (such as passion...ate homoerotic allusions, symbolism, and even explicit references to beautiful young boys.)" This was true not only of the Sufi masters of this classical period but of "the poems of the great twentieth-century poet Iraj Mirza (1874-1926)... Classical poets also celebrated homosexual relationships between kings and their pages." "homosexuality and homoerotic expressions were embraced in numerous other public spaces beyond the royal court, from monasteries and seminaries to taverns, military camps, gymnasiums, bathhouses, and coffeehouses". "Persian Sufi poetry, which is consciously erotic as well as mystical, also celebrated courtship rituals between [men] of more or less equal status... The bond between lover and beloved was... based on a form of chivalry (javan mardi). Love led one to higher ethical ideals, but love also constituted a contract, wherein the lover and the beloved had specific obligations and responsibilities to one another, and the love that bound them both... Sufi men were encouraged to use homoerotic relations as a pathway to spiritual love." Unmistakably lesbian sigeh courtship rituals, which continued from the classical period into the twentieth century, were also codified: "Tradition dictated that one [woman] who sought another as 'sister' approached a love broker to negotiate the matter. The broker took a tray of sweets to the prospective beloved. In the middle of the tray was a carefully placed dildo or doll made of wax... Continue reading on https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/64507 Image: Shah Abbas and the Wine Boy #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq #iraniangay #persiangay #iranianlesbian #persianlesbian #persianqueer

Tehran: City of Love DIRECTOR: Ali Jaberansari 2018 | Iran, UK, Netherlands | 102m Three misfits disappointed in love and lifean ex-champion bodybuilder passing his prime, an ice-cream-loving receptionist at a beauty clinic, and a professional funeral singer with the gloomy mien to matchyearn to connect in this darkly funny and subversively queer take on contemporary Iran. The titular city of love must be located in the county of loneliness and absurdity: Mina is catfishing... patients, Hessam is spotting his handsome weightlifting trainee a little too intently, and Vahid’s girlfriend just dumped him because he’s too much of a downer. But with some Botox here, a relationship seminar there, a cheerier color of suit, maybe this lovably hapless trio can transform themselves and get their love requited. Containing all this messiness is the sublime symmetry of director Ali Jaberansari’s compositions, which also serve as a metaphor for the censorship he faces. He may be artistically boxed in, but his brilliant, balanced frames and deadpan dialogue amplify undercurrents of power and rebellionphysical, sexual, and emotionalthat are swirling within this darkly funny anti-romcom that heralds a subversively queer new wave in Iranian cinema. LUCY LAIRD LANGUAGE:In Persian with English subtitles #iranianqueer #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq #iraniangay #persiangay #iranianlesbian #persianlesbian #iraniantransgender #iranianbisexual

Another brilliant photo from Laurence Rasti's project There Are No Homosexuals In Iran. This photo depicts the reality of so many who have to hide their LGBTQ identity. That is why those who are able and want to be visible are so important for those who can't. We think that an instagram photo of being openly queer is not a big thing, but to those that never have access to that opedness, it is a great thing. We hear the stories from those in Iran who reach out to us and say ho...w they feel lonely and that they don't know anyone else who is like them. We hear you and you are seen by us. We will fight together for the basic human rights of being allowed to be who you are, to be free to express who you are and to be proud of who you are. Soar, soar high! #iranianlgbt #persianlgbt #iranianqueer #iranianlgbtq #lgbtq #queer #queerart #gayiranian #gaypersian #persianlesbian #iranianlesbian #iranianbisexual #persianbisexual #iraniantrans #persiantransgender #transgender #proud #humanrights #bewhoyouare

I could have lived in this moment forever. Over the Fourth of July weekend I had a chance to meet with Iranian Queer activists from around the world who are committed to the well-being and freedom of Iranian Queers inside and outside Iran. It was so inspirational and motivational to hear the work they are doing. Our march towards equality became a little bit bigger and little bit closer. I want to thank Cyrus @persiantransdude For organizing this meeting. A shout out to ...all my Iranian queer family members and allies who couldn’t make it to this meeting but are out there making a difference in our movement and creating space for all of us. And we will never stop till we have complete equality, because we are all entitled to the spirit of queer freedom and true happiness. Cheers to you all and the years ahead. #IranianQueerFreedom See more

Today, June 20th, 2020 3pm PST on Zoom To receive link, email: [email protected] Iraniana mark milestone in diaspora with LBGTQIA Pride event... ‘Out in the Diaspora’ builds representation for future generations Written by IDA MOJDAD Jun. 18, 2020 sfexaminer.com Dena Rod’s longstanding dream to visit Iran, their parents’ homeland, feels incredibly far away. Heightened tensions with the United States aside, they’re married to a woman and writes about both their queer identity and the government’s persecution of people like them, in the country. At the same time, the Bay Area writer has grappled with what it means to have their parents feel like they had to tolerate their sexuality due to being in a different country, as if it were a Western influence. Rod was encouraged to not tell their extended family before they were married, who already knew through what they called the Persian phone tree. But these are the kinds of experiences and conversations Iranian Americans are increasingly able to have as the community deepens its roots in the country. On June 20, it will be front-and-center as Rod and three other writers conduct LGBTQIA-centric readings and storytellings for a Pride event-turned-online dubbed Out in the Diaspora. There’s no singular space for us unlike other groups who have entrenched histories in the area, said Rod. We’re creating the representation that we didn’t have growing up. That’s creating a space for the generation behind. Iranian American writer Dena Rod focuses on diasporic experiences of Iranian heritage and queer identity in their work. Rod and fellow local writer Daniel Rafinejad both contributed to My Shadow is My Skin: Voices from the Iranian Diaspora, an anthology released earlier this year. They’ll be joined by Nina Mir, a trans writer and San Francisco State University student, and Mokhtar Paki, a visual artist, and writer who will do a traditional Iranian oral storytelling form called naghali. Continue reading on sfexaminer.com Link below in comments. #iranianlgbtq #lgbtqart #pridemonth #pride2020 #persianlgbtq #iranianqueer #persianqueer #iranianartist #iranianart #queerart #queerartists

Hollywoodreporter.com 6/15/2019 By Jackie Strause YouTube Star Eugene Lee Yang Comes Out in Music Video... "I created this music video as my personal way of coming out as a proud gay man who has many unheard, specific stories to tell," says the Try Guys artist. Eugene Lee Yang has come out in a music video titled "I'm Gay." The five-minute contemporary dance piece, posted Saturday during Pride Month, was shared via The Try Guys official YouTube account and is described as an original, deeply personal music video. "I created this music video as my personal way of coming out as a proud gay man who has many unheard, specific stories to tell," wrote Yang in a Twitter post when sharing the video. "I withheld because of fear and shame shaped by my background but I promise to give my full truth in the rest of my life's work." The powerful story, which was written, directed and choreographed by Yang and features music by Odesza, follows Yang through different stages as he discovers, fights for and celebrates his sexuality. The piece ends with a title card that reads, "For the LGBTQIA+ community." The video stars Grace Yoo, Intae Kim, Terumi Shimazu, Gary Murakami, Sophia Oddi, Joshua Blaine, Kim Chi, Jazzmyne Jay, Rhea Litre, Mayhem Miller, Curly Velasquez and Arisce Wanzer. Yang is part of the viral video quartet that makes up The Try Guys, along with Keith Habersberger, Ned Fulmer and Zach Kornfeld. The foursome began posting videos while working together at BuzzFeed at 2014 and have since launched a production company. Their online comedy series streams on YouTube. The 33-year-old is a vocal member of the LGBTQ community but had not previously put a label on his sexuality.

Writer Alok Vaid-Menon: 'What Feminine Part of Yourself Did You Kill?' "As queer people, one of the ways that we're oppressed is we're denied our history and formal education. It makes us feel like we're impossible and like we're unprecedented. And that's just not true," Alok Vaid-Menon says. "We've actually been here for thousands of years and we've actually created incredible networks of resistance."... Vaid-Menon's life and work are contextualized amongst the long history of gender-nonconforming people in their new book, Beyond the Gender Binary. Though not included in history books, people living outside the binary have always existed. Beyond the Gender Binary challenges the world to be a kinder, safer place, and encourages anyone with questions about their gender to not shy away from them. Continue reading and listening to the Podcast, go to link: https://www.advocate.com//writer-alok-vaid-menon-what-femi Alok Vaid-Menon #iranianlgbtq #persianlgbtq #lgbtq #feminine #masculine