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Podcast: The Queer Arabs

Episode 69 in English: Tarek of Helem!

 

We learned so much from Tarek Zeidan and are so grateful to have connected with him.  Tarek is the Executive Director of the organization Helem, a non-profit working on improving the legal and social status of LGBT folks.  Helem is in Lebanon, and the name translates to “Dream.”  In this episode, we discussed Stonewall and the vitality of remembering what Pride is about.  We also talked about our upcoming trips to NYC for World Pride.  We discussed the ban of Grindr in Lebanon as well; Tarek also talked about the ways that LGBT advocacy needs to happen in the context of Lebanon.  This episode is just one day before Tarek’s Arabic episode (keep an eye out for that one as well!).

To read more on Tarek: https://carrcenter.hks.harvard.edu/people/tarek-zeidan

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Episode 68 in English: Gems of New York City

We got to talk to the absolutely incredible comedians Eman El-Husseini and Jess Salomon!  As their website says, it’s most likely hummus that brings them together.  Eman (who’s Palestinian) and Jess (who’s Jewish) joined us to talk about how they met, their comedy both in Canada and the U.S., and their lives in New York City.  They also have gorgeous comics that are illustrated by the talented Jesse Brown; you can get more slice-of-life glimpses into the couple’s daily adventures together.  You will probably find yourself laughing during this episode, not surprisingly!  We were also thrilled to have our guest co-host (she has been a guest on an episode, as well as a guest co-host on other episodes), Nadia Khayrallah.  It is thanks to Nadia that we got connected with Jess and Eman.  Listen to the episode to hear how that happened!

Visit the following sites:

Shared website:  https://www.theelsalomons.com

Jess Salomon: www.JessSalomon.com

Eman El-Husseini: www.Emantertainment.com

Jesse Brown: www.BevanHoward.co.uk

Dance competition mentioned: Dancify That

Follow on Instagram:
@emanifique
@jess_salomon
@nadiainherownworld
@jessebevanbrown

As promised, here is the Halloween photo mentioned in the episode – it goes above and beyond what we could have even hoped for.

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