Helem, the first Arab non-governmental organization openly fighting for the rights of homosexuals in Lebanon is now publishing Barra (Arabic for Out), a magazine for gay Arabs.

Currently releasing its second issue, Barra incorporates several features and news articles written by Helem activists or independent homosexual writers from all over the region.

Helem’s coordinator Georges Azzi said his group tries to raise awareness by speaking at colleges.

“There are increasingly more gay-friendly bars, also, for instance the International Day Against Homophobia (last May) was observed for the first time in Lebanon,” Azzi said, “with Helem marking the occasion with a gathering of about 200 people, straight and gay, at a seaside hotel in Beirut.

“It also organized a screening of ‘I exist,’ a documentary on homosexuals of Middle Eastern decent living in the United States, and distributed buttons and pamphlets with the slogan, ‘You drink coffee, I prefer tea. Does that mean one of us is abnormal?'”

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