Tunisia, Bizerte. 28 November, 2016. A posed portrait of 17 year old, gay man Mariah (+216 99755846, lgbt.veaffness@gmail.com, IG: beyonce.k.n). Mariah is a high school student and already an activist for LGBTQI+ rights. In school he has been bullied. In July of 2016 it became too much for him, he tried to kill himself: ÒIÕm still young and IÕve seen a lot through my high school years. I came out when I was a freshman. And I got a lot of discriminations. ItÕs true that life has been tough for me, but I got thick skin now, I learned that people will always talk, more importantly they will always be afraid of difference.Ó Photo Robin Hammond /NOOR for Witness Change.  The Tunisian Revolution, also known as the Jasmine Revolution, was an intensive campaign of civil resistance, including a series of street demonstrations taking place in Tunisia, and led to the ousting of longtime president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011. It eventually led to a thorough democratization of the country and to free and democratic elections. Tunisian LGBTQI+ community hoped that the revolution would usher in a more open society, and an end to homophobia and transphobia. This has not come to pass. The laws that target LGBTQI+ people remain, most notably article 230 which makes same-sex acts illegal, punishable by up the 3 years in prison. Transgender people are targeted under public decency laws. The general public is no more accepting of LGBTQI+ people than they were before the revolution. Despite the legal and societal discrimination, LGBTQI+ activists are dedicated to campaigning more openly.

Mariah /

“I’m still young and I’ve seen a lot through my highschool years. I came out when I was a freshman. And I got a lot of discriminations. It’s true that life has been tough for me, but I got thick skin now, I learned that people will always talk, more importantly they will always be afraid of difference.

What I gathered from my experience is no matter how much problems you have or how bad you feel, never waste time crying and feeling sad, put a smile on your face and walk with pride.”

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