Death of activist Sarah Hegazy highlights struggle of Egypt's gay community
The death of activist Sarah Hegazy has renewed the debate over gay rights in Egypt amid an ongoing crackdown against the LGBTQI+ community.
CAIRO — “To my siblings: I have tried to find salvation and I failed, forgive me. To my friends: The journey was cruel and I am too weak to resist, forgive me. To the world: You were horrifically cruel, but I forgive.”
These are the last words that Egyptian queer activist Sarah Hegazy wrote down before she died by suicide on June 13. In September 2017, she was at a concert in Cairo where the Lebanese band Mashrou’ Leila — whose lead singer is openly gay — was performing. With a big smile on her face, she raised a rainbow flag.
Lobna Darwish, gender and human rights officer with the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, told Al-Monitor that the concert was followed by a smear campaign in the Egyptian media against those who attended the concert and a harsh crackdown during which at least 75 LGBTQI+ individuals were arrested. Sarah Hegazy was one of them.
She was imprisoned and tortured for three months on charges of debauchery, indecency and joining an illegal organization. Although homosexuality is not illegal under Egyptian law, LGBTQI+ individuals are often arrested on similar charges.
