We find ourselves in the midst of a wild bout of Islamophobia that seems to have infected not only a large sum of confused individuals in my birth country (Pegida, I'm looking at you!) but indeed quite a lot of people across all of Western Europe - France with Je Suis Charlie and the Front National, Great Britain with its IS runaways and UKIP, Danmark and Sweden, to name only a very few. The tone is agitated, if not hysterical; the news scream at you with headlines and images, heated over the fire of prejudice and ignorance. In fact, the moment could hardly have been any more poignant when I rediscovered Karolus Naga, and his beautiful project Trans Islam.
It's a fresh breeze, this project. Naga has uncovered the life at Pesantren Senen-Kamis, a Koran school for transgender and transvestites in Notoyudan, Indonesia. The classic black and white photojournalistic images are as adamant as they should be: persistently they remind the viewer that religion should be a place of communal joy and peace, and that the Islam is no exception to this. "People will find this place silly and nonsense", Naga quotes Maryani, founder of the centre, in his synopsis; but there is nothing silly in Naga's still, unbiased look. In the accompanying video the ambient noise of the school draws you in, alluring, almost hypnotising, into peaceful moments of prayer and conversation, shared by young and old, lovingly reflected in the calm monochrome pictures.
But Naga's view does not remain in the school; his eye wanders out to the community, to blazing sunshine and rainy streets, into dark alleyways and crammed back rooms, beauty salons and street markets, onto tattooed upper arms, heavy eye lashes, and happy smiles. In its best moments, the project is reminiscent of Christer Strömholm and his amies de place blanche, in their silent appreciation and admiration of vibrant characters, beauty and life itself. It transcends the subject of religion, captured in the title, and opens up to a fragile community. The perils of harassment and discrimination, sex work and self-destruction are not spared from the viewer, but neither are the cheerful faces, the pretty dresses, the guidance, strength and optimism of the portrayed persons. Every now and then a headscarf or a hand raised for prayer will lead you back to the central point of discussion, with the gentle reminder that you should never, ever judge a person solely on their religion, their profession, their appearance. (So deep, eh?!)
I like to imagine all the bigots crumbling when they see this project, slowly choking with their hate of Moslems, people of colour, trans people, sex workers; or possibly their heads exploding over the idea of a transgender Koran school: Diversity within a world religion, who would have thought? Maybe such a project will change some minds. Maybe it just makes the problem worse. Personally, I will hold on to the serenity and joy of Naga's images, and hope that I don't explode the next time I see a stupid headline, hear a stupid word, have to face all this weird hate. Hey, Europe, get a grip.
