[Imc-newsroom] April 13, LGBT rights documentary

[Nejan Huvaj]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
through April 13

CONTACT: Danielle Schumacher
dlschuma at uiuc.edu
815.375.0790

COMING OUT IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD:
FORMER EGYPTIAN PRISONER TO SPEAK AT UNIVERSITY Y

WHAT:  The UIUC chapters of Amnesty International and PRIDE 
are hosting a showing of the documentary 'Dangerous Living: 
Coming Out in the Developing World' narrated by Janeane 
Garofalo. Following the film, Wissam, jailed in Egypt for 
being homosexual, will speak about his experiences. Kim
Mongoven of Amnesty International's OUTFront program will 
talk about what AI does to promote and protect LGBT rights.  
She will also lead the audience in letter-writing and other 
actions. Popcorn and drinks will be provided.

WHO: Kim Mongoven, Amnesty International OUTFront Midwest 
Youth Organizer; Wissam, former Egyptian prisoner of 
conscious; UIUC PRIDE; Amnesty International Chapter 124

WHERE: Latzer Hall, University YMCA, 1001 S. Wright St., 
Champaign

WHEN: Tuesday, April 13 from 7 to 9 pm

WHY: The film has received acclaim from audiences and 
critics, and we wanted to take this rare opportunity to hear 
from Wissam. This event falls during LGBT Awareness Month 
and 8 days before the Day of Silence.

Dangerous Living: Coming Out in the Developing World, is a 
feature-length documentary that explores the immense changes 
that occurred for gays, lesbians and transgender people 
living in the Global South. In the last decade of the 20th 
Century, a new heightened visibility began spreading 
throughout the developing world and the battles between 
families, fundamentalist religions, and governments around 
sexual and gender identity had begun. But in the West, few 
people knew about this historic social upheaval, until 52 
men on Cairo's Queen Boat discotheque were arrested for 
crimes of debauchery. That explosive story focused attention
to the lives and trials of gay people coming out in the 
developing world and the film chronicles those events.  
Dangerous Living opens with one of the Cairo 52 defendants, 
Ashraf Zanati, who was tortured, humiliated, beaten and 
forced to spend 13 months in prison. His simple, but powerful
statement sets out the basic theme for the film: 'My 
sexuality is my own sexuality. It doesn't belong to anybody. 
Not to my government, not to my brother, my sister, my 
family. No.'

Directed by John Scagliotti and Produced by Janet Baus and 
Dan Hunt. Executive Producer is Reid Williams.


Amnesty International, Chapter 124 
http://www2.uiuc.edu/ro/amnesty/
UIUC PRIDE http://www2.uiuc.edu/ro/pride/