Legislators beg Biden administration to evacuate LGBTQ Afghans before the Taliban kills them

[Behind the Aegis]

Gabir, a 26-year-old gay man living in Afghanistan, was dining at a restaurant with his boyfriend of eight months. The two met at university, became friends and dreamed of moving to Europe to get married. But a few hours after their meal together, Gabir learned that the Taliban had picked up his boyfriend.

The Taliban beat his boyfriend bloody, killed and dismembered him, and then threw his body parts in the street as a warning of how the Islamic militant group handles LGBTQ people. His boyfriend was 24 years old.

Later, a person claiming to be with the Taliban called Gabir.

“I know you are gay,” the caller told Gabir. “Before capturing Kabul, we knew everything about you. You have three or four friends who are gay. You have a boyfriend. Once we settle here in Kabul, we will not let you live. If we find you, we will kill you.”

Gabir has since gone into hiding, dropping out of university and cutting off all contact from his friends and family to avoid being caught.

more...

This shouldn't just be Biden's concern!!! ANY fucking democratic nation with even a shred of decency should help the LGBT flee if need be.

[snowybirdie]

1. We have to stop

Moving goalposts. The United States can not help everyone. Our Military Personnel are at risk.

[BeyondGeography]

3. This is what they're asking for

On Wednesday, Democratic New Hampshire Representative Chris Pappas led 63 lawmakers in pleading with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to help LGBTQ Afghans leave the country. Pappas and his fellow lawmakers called on the State Department to extend its recently announced refugee admissions program to LGBTQ Afghans.

Additionally, the lawmakers asked the Department of Defense to ensure that LGBTQ Afghans receive uninterrupted access to the Kabul International Airport so they’re not harmed while trying to flee.

“While we appreciate that the situation in Afghanistan is fluid, you have the power to protect the lives of countless LGBTQ+ Afghans from the horrors they face living under a regime that threatens their very existence,” Pappas’ letter to Blinken stated.

What is the problem?

[snowybirdie]

5. We are putting

Americans in jeopardy. Enough!

[FloridaBlues]

7. The goal post will never stop for the administration until another major crisis occurs

Due to trumps malfeasance.

[FreeState]

12. So just let the gays die?

Really? Because that is 100% what will happen to them.

[Behind the Aegis]

8. It isn't "moving the goalposts".

It is asking for humanitarian relief.

[SMC22307]

11. So are innocent Afghans whose country we invaded and occupied.

We have a moral responsibility to evacuate as many as possible.

[Aristus]

2. So what do we do? Fly a rainbow-striped plane into kabul and announce:

"All Afghan LGBTQ people! Here! Right here! Get your ticket out of this bullshit country right here!" - ?

I really don't think members of Afghanistan's LGBTQ community are wearing signs, so we know to get them out of there...

[Behind the Aegis]

9. What a disgusting reply.

Mocking a humanitarian situation with flip rhetoric.

[Aristus]

16. I'm not mocking the situation or the victims.

I'm pointing out the very difficult obstacles to evacuating a portion of the populace that not only are not wearing signs, they don't want to attract attention to themselves.

Practical reality suggests that that it would be almost impossible to mount an effort to evacuate specific individuals for specific reasons.

I think, in an effort to point accusing fingers, you missed the point of my post and pointed one at me.

[Duncan Grant]

22. Rainbow striped plane? Ahhh yeah, that's mockery.

Your defensiveness is a “tell”. We see you, baby.

[Aristus]

23. No. It's not mockery. It was meant to point out the fact that flying in special planes for

a certain specific subset of the populace will attract huge amounts of unwanted attention. Keeping as much of the evacuation on the down-low as possible is the best thing we can do for LGBTQ Afghans.

[leftstreet]

28. I think the poster just didn't read the article

Godz knows I'm done that myself here

There's nothing in the snips you posted that pointed to the remedy called being called for. So it could appear there was a plea to remove a sensitive population without knowing who/where they are.

On Wednesday, Democratic New Hampshire Representative Chris Pappas led 63 lawmakers in pleading with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to help LGBTQ Afghans leave the country. Pappas and his fellow lawmakers called on the State Department to extend its recently announced refugee admissions program to LGBTQ Afghans.

Everyone would agree to that as an excellent solution, probably also the poster

[SMC22307]

10. "When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time."

Only this isn't the first time.

[FreeState]

13. You should erase this

Gay rights are human rights.

[Aristus]

17. Nobody needs to tell me that.

Please see my post above. It plainly wasn't in opposition to gay rights. It was a practical reminder of how difficult it would be to evacuate Afghanistan's LGBTQ population with the entire Taliban standing by and watching.

"We're opposed to the Taliban and we want out" is going to have to be the reason. As if that by itself wasn't going to put a huge target on their backs.

[Duncan Grant]

25. You're right, it's not overt opposition to gay rights but it's so uninformed.

And here’s where your lack of sensitivity collides with your rainbow striped plane: Rep. Pappas is asking that LGBTQI+ people be included in the State Dept.’s refugee admission program. That’s it.

There’s no request for special rainbow striped planes or queer detection/screening protocols at the airport. These are terrorized and traumatized people. Frankly, I’m surprised to see you taking this tone. I thought you were more enlightened than this.

[Aristus]

27. I wouldn't want anyone to mistake confusion over how to evacuate a specific subset of people

from a highly dangerous region with lack of enlightenment. If there are no screening protocols at the airport, that's going to have to be the way it is.

I'm finding it hard to articulate my point of view without sounding like "All Lives Matter" (because fuck those guys). It's just that the OP sounded a lot like "Let's make a highly-visible, attention-drawing effort to evacuate at-risk people who are really better off concealing their sexual orientation until they reach safe ground."

Obviously, I stirred up a hornet's nest, which was not my intention. It was just my intention to point out that right now, everyone is better off if the Taliban doesn't know who's gay and who's not.

[NickB79]

4. The US has been allies with Saudi Arabia while they've done this for decades

When it comes to LBGT freedom, the US foreign policy is to turn a blind eye if it's inconvenient.

[chowder66]

6. I totally agree that every nation that supports LGBT should join in this effort. nt

[FreeState]

14. +1 n/t

[rockfordfile]

15. They should get to the airport.

[Johnny2X2X]

18. This is why Biden is holding the 8/31 withdrawal date

If he moves it, people will just think they have more time.

Now I believe we'll hold that date until the last moment and then extend it a few days if needed.

I feel for the LGTBQ community in Afghanistan, I really do, if it was up to me we'd go to war simply for their rights, but no administration is going to start bombing countries to save LGTBQ people alone. And that's what it would take right now to help them.

Right now, we're still getting a ton of Afghanis out of the country, let's hope most of the LGTBQ citizens there are among them.

[marie999]

19. 75% of Afghans live in rural areas.

There isn't anything we can do for them without invading the country. This will not happen and shouldn't happen.

[Sympthsical]

20. Well, this thread is wow

Show of hands. Who is surprised?

[Duncan Grant]

26. Not surprised.

The inhumanity and ignorance on display in a few posts of this thread is despicable.

[bluedigger]

24. 10-15% of the population?

That's nearly 6 million people...

[JudyM]

29. Beyond horrific.

No words.