ABSTRACT

This study aimed to understand the interaction between individuals’ LGBT and religious identities and related coping strategies as well as their religion-based interactions with other Muslims and LGBTs in Turkey. Twelve Turkish LGBT individuals (three women, eight men, a transwoman) who identified as Muslim either currently or in the past, expressed their views regarding Islam via semi-structured interviews. Participants ages ranged between 19 and 30 and seven of them identified their sexual orientation as gay, one of them as lesbian, two of them as bisexual, one of them as pansexual, and one of them as heterosexual. The interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Three main themes that emerged from the interviews were Religious and Gender Socialisation, Conflict and Coping, and Discrimination. Most of the participants grew up in Muslim communities, adopting a Muslim identity. As they became aware of their sexual orientation/gender identity, they experienced a conflict and developed various coping strategies to deal with such conflict. Also, they faced discrimination both from Muslims and other non-religious LGBTs which affected their identity development and expression. This study was among the few studies investigating the interaction between religion and sexual and gender identity in a predominantly Muslim country. The findings were discussed in light of identity and coping models.

摘要

本研究旨在了解个人的 LGBT 和宗教身份和相关应对策略之间的互动，以及他们与土耳其其他穆斯林和 LGBT 的基于宗教的互动。目前或过去被认定为穆斯林的 12 名土耳其 LGBT 人士（三名女性、八名男性、一名跨性别女性）通过半结构化访谈表达了他们对伊斯兰教的看法。参与者的年龄介于 19 至 30 岁之间，其中 7 人将自己的性取向确定为男同性恋，其中一名女同性恋，其中两名双性恋，一名泛性恋，一名异性恋。访谈采用主题分析法进行分析。采访中出现的三个主要主题是宗教和性别社会化、冲突和应对，以及歧视。大多数参与者在穆斯林社区长大，具有穆斯林身份。当他们意识到自己的性取向/性别认同时，他们经历了冲突并制定了各种应对策略来应对这种冲突。此外，他们还面临来自穆斯林和其他非宗教 LGBT 的歧视，这影响了他们的身份发展和表达。这项研究是少数几项调查在穆斯林占主导地位的国家中宗教与性和性别认同之间相互作用的研究之一。研究结果根据身份和应对模式进行了讨论。