Season 1
Pinkwashing, Haifa Wehbe, and Queer Arab Joy - with Hasan Kilani
Hasan Kilani is Palestinian-Jordanian, queer, and living publicly in a way that a lot of young Arab queers are told to think is impossible. He's also spent thirteen years working across Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan and Syria, and he lectures internationally on the use of queer rights as cover for political ends. In episode two of Fathet Nafs, Mohamad Ali sits down with Hasan to talk about what it feels like being Palestinian, what the West gets wrong about queerness in Arab contexts, organising support for queer Palestinians, and why he thinks acceptance might be the wrong goal entirely. From Haifa Wehbe, to Boy George, and the power of queer joy, Hasan gives a beautiful insight into his life. In this episode: Amman, London, and the order you name your own identities in What people misunderstand about being queer and Arab, depending who's asking Pinkwashing and homonationalism, explained plainly Haifa Wehbe and the impact of pop culture Being a visible model for people who can't be visible yet What queer Arab joy looks like when nobody's watching Guest: Hasan Kilani (@hasanofamman) Host: Mohamad Ali
Andrew Demetry grew up Coptic Egyptian in Copenhagen, and now runs NAFS in London, one of the few spaces built specifically for queer SWANA artists. When he started it, people told him he'd get death threats. In the first episode of Fathet Nafs, Mohamad Ali sits down with Andrew to talk about faith and queerness refusing to stay separate, what a dancefloor can heal that a panel discussion can't, the candy salesmen in Cairo, and whether diaspora is a wound, a superpower, or just another casual Tuesday. In this episode: Copenhagen, Cairo, London and belonging to none of them Coptic faith and queerness: war, truce, or something else Starting NAFS anyway Queerness as sacred, gender as always fluid Queer SWANA culture that we don't talk about فتحة نفس — يالله نفتح Guest: Andrew Demetry (@nafs.space) Host: Mohamad Ali (@kalassina__)