Bareed Mista3jil: True Stories By: Meem

Author: Meem

Bareed Mista3jil is a collection of true short stories from voices in Lebanon that we seldom hear. Their common thread is that they are all from people of non-conforming sexualities and gender identities.

What sort of diversities exist in human sexuality? How do bisexuals ‘come out’? What kinds of discrimination do lesbians face? How does it affect their self-esteem and their sense of community? What are their relationships with their families, friends, and each other like? How do people of different sexualities deal with religion and faith? Is it a struggle to identify as non-heterosexual? Or do people ‘just know’? Are there gender identities other than ‘man’ and ‘woman’? How has life for lesbians in Lebanon changed over the past 10 years? Is emigration their only choice?

This long-awaited publication comes to dispel the myths surrounding these questions and to reveal a glimpse into the lives of existing invisibly and silently in different Lebanese communities. The stories in this book are about love, pain, identity, suffering, overcoming, and the intricate complexities of the human heart.

And above all, these stories are about hope.