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Across vast Muslim world, LGBTQ people remain marginalized

Trans women and activists perform an early evening prayer at Al-Fatah Islamic school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. On the outskirts of the Indonesian city that's home to many universities, the small boarding school is on a mission that seems out of place in a nation with more Muslim citizens than any other. Its students are transgender women. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Trans women attend a Quran reading class at Al Fatah Islamic school for transgender women, in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. Compared to many Muslim nations, Indonesia is relatively tolerant. Scores of LGBTQ organizations operate openly, advocating for equal rights, offering counseling, liaising with religious leaders. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

A trans woman learns to read Arabic during a class at Al Fatah Islamic school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. The school whose students are transgender women is a rare oasis of LGBTQ acceptance – not only in Indonesia, but across the far-flung Muslim world. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Y.S. Al Buchory, a trans woman, smokes a cigarette during an interview, with Arabic calligraphy that reads "Allah" above an entrance at Al Fatah Islamic school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. Buchory, 55, struggled for years to cope with lack of acceptance by people around her, but now feels at home at the school. “Like a rainbow, if there are red, yellow, green colors combined, it becomes more beautiful, rather than only black and white,” she says. “We must be able to respect each other, tolerate, not interfere with each other.” (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Trans women and activists perform an early evening prayer at Al-Fatah Islamic school in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. On the outskirts of the Indonesian city that's home to many universities, the small boarding school is on a mission that seems out of place in a nation with more Muslim citizens than any other. Its students are transgender women. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Shinta Ratri, center, founder of Al-Fatah Islamic school, reads the Quran with other trans women in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. The school whose students are transgender women is a rare oasis of LGBTQ acceptance – not only in Indonesia, but across the far-flung Muslim world. Many Muslim nations criminalize gay sex. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Shinta Ratri, founder of Al Fatah Islamic school for transgender women, speaks during an interview in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022. The school whose students are transgender women is a rare oasis of LGBTQ acceptance – not only in Indonesia, but across the far-flung Muslim world. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Across vast Muslim world, LGBTQ people remain marginalized