#wana

When I was initially doing research to plan my posts for this month I stumbled on WANA Lesbian and Queer Women's Pride Day. However, upon trying to do further research on it today, I have come to the realization that it only seemed to happen twice. Once in 2021 and again in 2022.

So instead here's a small history on it!

WANA LQWPD is honor of Sarah Hegazy (also spelled Hegazi or Higazy). Hegazy was an Egyptian activist, writer, tech professional, daughter and sister. In 2017 she was photographed at the concert of a gay musician waving a rainbow pride flag. As a result, Hegazy was detained and tortured for three months. The mental effects of this was tremendous. She suffered from PTSD, depression, anxiety, hallucinations and tremors among other things. Upon release Hegazy was granted Asylum in Canada. Shortly after arriving in Canada Hegazy's mother, who she cared very much for, passed from cancer in Egypt, but Hegazy was unable to return. Whilst in Canada, Hegazy remained a political and social activist. (You can read my full essay on Hegazy here)

During this time, Hegazy attempted suicide twice. Unfortunately, in June of 2020, she attempted a third time and succeeded.

This day was created in remembrance of Hegazy and as a way to highlight the struggles of lesbian, queer, and transgender women in the Middle East (later changed to West Asian) and North African regions.

On this day, it is asked that we remember and honor the lives of all of the women who fought for rights in the MENA and WANA regions.

Please take the time to look through the following sources and learn more about the who have, and who continue to fight.

If you would like to read the joint statements from the first and second years of WANA LQWPD you can find them here:

They had a video where they went through the disturbing book iceberg and created wholespme versions based on the titles. I did a little bit of it and wrote my own versions for a few of them. Probably going to go back to it eventually but this is what I had.

The Boy In Striped Pajamas - a boy is visited in the night by his imaginary friends who teach him life lessons over the course of his 3rd grade experience, accumulating into standing up to the bullies and befriending the weird kid he thought was scary at first.

A Clockwork Orange - A master clockmaker is exiled from his place in the royal courts after an incident with one of his clocks malfunctions and injures the king. From there he arrives at the village of Orange and uses his mechanical mind to help them with their agriculture, and gives the children of the town toys that are clockwork oranges.

A headful of ghosts - the main character is a down on his luck man who is evicted from his apartment, but luckily his aunt’s friend is renting out a house for very cheap. It’s too big and nice for it to be this cheap. So what's the catch? It’s haunted by the ghost of a therapist, a boxer, a wildlife photographer, and cultist, who offer to possess him in order to help him overcome his challenges and live a better life.

A modest proposal - two strippers in an over the top sex dungeon just want to do one normal, non freaky thing for once (they’re not against freaky stuff but just for a change of pace) and they’re both trying to do the classic proposal to each other, but they’re not how to do it on this very modest, normal, vacation.

As I lay dying - A man is dying and his life flashes before his eyes, recounting it to the reader and trying his best to give advice to the reader that he wishes he had at the age he is at any given time in the story.

Books of Blood - a hemomancer who really doesn’t know what she’s doing, is trying to impress her girlfriend with a proposal so she consults her books of blood for romantic advice leading to some very bloody but romantic endeavors all ending in a proposal with a ring of her own blood magically turned into a diamond.

Brave New World - the first mission to mars was a success! But it revives the hibernating Martian peoples, and when the first human teams become stranded they must navigate this new revival of martial culture and get their help to return home before an interplanetary war ensues because government.

Carrie - Carrie is a girl who is an orphan, left at an orphanage in the 20s while her older brother goes off to fight in the war. The caretaker of the orphanage is a sweet old lady but can’t afford the rent so Carrie rallies the kids in her neighborhood and the orphanage to fight the power and buy the building for the caretaker.

Communion - a book about someone going through RCIA, figuring out their place in the world and the church, making friends with a guardian angel (not his), a nun with a drinking habit and the priest who was an arsonist, ending where he takes his first communion all while navigating a person’s first crisis of faith.

Coraline - Coraline is the story about a single mother, down on her luck, several failed business ventures and novels, making friends with the women at her daughter’s preschool and learning how to be a mother.