World Pride 2025 Profile: The Queen of Karachi
metroweekly.comIn the nearly inexhaustible catalog of D.C.-based mission-driven organizations, AsylumWorks is a noble entry for assisting asylum seekers and other “newcomers” in the D.C.
metro area and beyond.Their LGBTQ component, PRISM (Pride Refugee & Immigrant Support Meet-up), grew out of similar work being done by a group at The DC LGBTQ+ Community Center, Center Global.
And atop PRISM’s Facebook page is a photo from the 2022 Capital Pride Parade. There are many beaming faces, including Ali Saleem’s, front and center.Front and center suits Saleem perfectly.
He’s not merely at home in the spotlight. Arguably, he was born for it, 45 years ago in Pakistan. There, Saleem reached the most dazzling heights of celebrity, through a journey that began in his mother’s closet.“I was completely in awe of all the gorgeous women, all the divas,” says Saleem, reaching back to childhood. “We had a lot of Indian movies — ‘Bollywood,’ as you call it….
