This Queer Arab Family: An Anthology by LGBTQ+ Arab Writers

In Arab culture, tradition often dictates an individual’s role in a family, with personal desires subsumed in favour of unity. So, what happens when Queer Arabs challenge and re-imagine these expectations?

This Queer Arab Family celebrates the beauty of chosen kin and the everyday acts of care and survival that bind Queer Arabs to each other. Here, ten LGBTQ+ writers from across the Arab world and diaspora redefine what family looks like. From raising children with mum and mum, to becoming an OnlyFans star and building a non-binary belly dancing robot, these writers illuminate, through their own lived experiences, how queer joy and community can be found in the most unexpected places.

Fierce, vibrant and unapologetic, This Queer Arab Family honours the spirit of those who, despite challenges, build community and family on their own terms.

Elias Jahshan (he/him) is a Palestinian-Lebanese-Australian journalist and writer. He is a former editor of Star Observer, Australia’s longest-running LGBTQ+ media outlet, and a former board member of the Arab Council Australia. His short memoir ’Coming Out Palestinian’ was anthologised in Arab Australian Other: Stories on Race and Identity, and he has written freelance for outlets including The Guardian, SBS Voices, My Kali and The New Arab. Born and raised in western Sydney, he now lives in London. Jahshan edited the anthology This Arab Is Queer (Saqi Books), a ground-breaking anthology features the compelling and courageous memoirs of eighteen queer Arab writers.