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queensplay 's review for:
Hijab Butch Blues
by Lamya H.
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
This was amazing. An incredibly powerful story of growing up as a queer, Brown Muslim.
Lamya’s story of coming to terms with her queerness is deeply impactful, where they had no role models, no one who understood her, in a place where people of the LGBTQIA+ community aren’t even mentioned.
She also talks about racism and Islamophobia, and the terror of immigration and feeling like you don’t belong there, that anything you do wrong can be taken the wrong way. There is so much in here that I have been, as a white woman, woefully ignorant about, things I didn’t know happened and still happen. The fact that they are constantly talked down or ignored, the processes and regulations of immigrants, the terror of being constantly stopped to be checked for IDs, and so much more.
This whole book brings to light issues that are faced by immigrants, people of colour, queer people, and any radicalized person, constantly, every single day, and that is still happening.
It brings to light the struggles of being queer in a homophobic community and country, and coming to terms with her identity. That sometimes you need to unlearn your own internalized homophobia and hate to heal.
And it shows that you don’t need to come out to everyone you love, that it’s okay to stay in the closet. And as a queer person who hasn’t come out to their family, this hit hard. I know that I could lose their love, the bonds we have, that so many others have, and it’s scary. So Lamya not coming out to her family shows that you don’t need to come out, that there’s love there and sometimes that’s all we need.
I strongly urge everyone to read this. To take your time with this book to fully absorb everything, because it’s an impactful story that you should know and think about it.
Lamya’s story of coming to terms with her queerness is deeply impactful, where they had no role models, no one who understood her, in a place where people of the LGBTQIA+ community aren’t even mentioned.
She also talks about racism and Islamophobia, and the terror of immigration and feeling like you don’t belong there, that anything you do wrong can be taken the wrong way. There is so much in here that I have been, as a white woman, woefully ignorant about, things I didn’t know happened and still happen. The fact that they are constantly talked down or ignored, the processes and regulations of immigrants, the terror of being constantly stopped to be checked for IDs, and so much more.
This whole book brings to light issues that are faced by immigrants, people of colour, queer people, and any radicalized person, constantly, every single day, and that is still happening.
It brings to light the struggles of being queer in a homophobic community and country, and coming to terms with her identity. That sometimes you need to unlearn your own internalized homophobia and hate to heal.
And it shows that you don’t need to come out to everyone you love, that it’s okay to stay in the closet. And as a queer person who hasn’t come out to their family, this hit hard. I know that I could lose their love, the bonds we have, that so many others have, and it’s scary. So Lamya not coming out to her family shows that you don’t need to come out, that there’s love there and sometimes that’s all we need.
I strongly urge everyone to read this. To take your time with this book to fully absorb everything, because it’s an impactful story that you should know and think about it.