By Jenni Chang & Lisa Lisa Dazols August 2011 It’s always hard to find lesbians, but it’s especially challenging in Java, Indonesia where ninety percent of the population is Muslim and women fight  against second class status. Amongst the jilbab dressing, we spot a fohawk and meet Ema. A university student who often gets mistaken around town for a boy, Ema challenges ideals of femininity in Indonesia. Ema meets us at a cafe with her girlfriend, and we recognize that the couple is reserved about displaying public affection. But speaking to them and learning about the sacrifices they’ve made for each other, we can tell they are deeply in love. While her girlfriend declines an interview for safety reasons, they’re very enthusiastic to meet with another lesbian couple and share their experience. As young activists and community organizers, we recognize that Ema (photo right) and her partner are the Supergays

From: Jakarta Post September 23, 2009 Despite living under the same roof for years, Fachri (not his real name) thought his father had no clue that he was gay. But around five years ago, when he borrowed his father’s Koran to research a project, he was surprised to find certain verses underlined in pencil. They were about God’s wrath toward people who committed acts of sexual deviance during the time of Prophet Luth (or Lot), the Islamic equivalent of the Sodom and Gomorrah text in the Bible. Growing up in a religious family that adheres to Islamic teachings, it was not the first time Fachri had come across the verses. It was sort of touching, he said, how his father seemed to want to know him better, although he wished it was not through the religious text he despised. (photo right: Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta) “The text was one of