As a gay American Muslim, I feel especially vulnerable in a society infected both by homophobia and a highly racialized Islamophobia, constantly trying to encourage the gay community to be more accepting of Muslims while urging the Muslim community to be more accepting of LGBT folk. Sadly, this message of acceptance never reached Mateen.
It must be said that while Mateen was likely inspired by ISIS’s extremist and virulently homophobic ideology, it’s hard to believe that this ideology is the true source of his homophobic bigotry — his revulsion, for instance, at the sight of men kissing in Miami, and his own thoroughly conflicted relationship with gay social spaces. Thankyou)(&
This dude gets it. On every level. He's a voice that should be heard by everyone.