Imagine living a lie. A life of lies, secrecy and often depression only to conform to cultural norms so that you or your family isn’t endangered or murdered. This is the case for the LGBT community in Kurdistan. Many have gone through their life living under a veil of shame, pain, resentment and confusion because of who they are and not “what” they were taught to be. Many people in Kurdistan are often surprised to find out that an LGBT community exists here while others actually believe that there are “no gay people in Kurdistan”.