'Pervert' Travels in the Muslim World - Michael Luongo's Book is translated into Arabic

Michael Luongo's 2007 anthology, Gay Travels in the Muslim World has just been translated into Arabic by the Beirut-based publisher Arab Diffusion and is being distributed in the Middle East. However, much to the shock of the author, the word used to translate "gay" is an old word in Arabic that means "pervert."

As Luongo told the The Advocate:

"It literally means 'different.' But it can also mean 'pervert.' It depends on whom you talk to...All of the gay rights organizations in the Middle East that I was planning to do events with, once they saw the word, were horrified."

Yikes! Well, at least the book has been translated into Arabic, the first of its kind from English, and let's remember that in the United States, during Stonewall times only 40 years ago, the word "pervert" was in fact widely used to describe gay men. Global timelines of progress don't always correspond.

Ahh, if only we all spoke the same language...

Read more about the mishap at The Advocate.