Cape Town’s New Gay-Friendly ‘Open Mosque’ Welcomes All Religions, Genders and Sexual Orientations
The first outwardly gay-friendly mosque in Cape Town opened for afternoon prayers on Friday amid backlash from the local Muslim community.
The site, named ‘Open Mosque’, is the project of U.K.-based Muslim academic Taj Hargey who told BBC he intended it to be a place for “open-minded people” in an effort to counter Islamic radicalism. Hargey said:
“In South Africa 20 years ago, there was a peaceful revolution changing from apartheid to democracy and we need to have a similar development in the area of religion.”
In addition to welcoming worshippers who identify as gay, the mosque is open to Muslims of all sects as well as those from other faiths, and women will be able to lead prayers.
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