Uganda police blocked the country’s LGBTI community from holding its fifth annual Pride Parade yesterday. More than 100 people tried to convene on a beach in Entebbe on Lake Victoria but were ordered back into their minibuses by police and told to leave the area, human rights lawyer Nicholas Opiyo told BuzzFeed News. “The police … Continue reading
The remarkable work of Bombastic Magazine continues this week with the publication of its second issue. Along with its associated African LGBTI media site Kuchu Times, the Uganda-based magazine provides a place where the voice of sexual and gender minorities can be heard in a country, and continent, where they are often silenced or ignored. … Continue reading
When the journalists at the Hello tabloid of Uganda published the latest article in a hateful tradition of forced outings of alleged and actual LGBT citizens, they couldn’t know that they themselves would become the targets of a much more imaginative and enjoyable writer — Ugandan anthropology researcher Stella Nyanzi. As a straight ally of … Continue reading
East African tabloid newspapers returned last week to their hateful tradition of outing alleged and actual LGBT citizens, this time with a front-page article that listed alleged lesbians in Uganda. The article in the Hello tabloid of May 29 came less than two weeks after a Kenyan tabloid listed that country’s “top” 14 gays and … Continue reading
A new European ally for African LGBTI rights activists — International LGBTI Support (ILS) — will soon launch its Ugandan support program at the European Parliament in Brussels. As the group prepares to unveil its International Support Uganda (ISU) project, the executive director of ILS interviewed long-time Ugandan activist Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera, founding editor of “Bombastic” … Continue reading
The Ugandan LGBTI community has launched its own magazine to tell their stories to the nation. “Bombastic Magazine is a compilation of stories, testimonies and opinions by LGBTI Ugandans. The objective of this campaign is to end violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people countrywide,” the introductory press release states. Supporters of the magazine … Continue reading
LGBTI rights activists in Uganda cheered the United States for following their advice on how to avoid harming the Ugandan people while penalizing anti-gay Ugandan officials for the country’s harsh new anti-gay law. “In line with our guidelines. Very impressive. Thanks for the support,” tweeted Ugandan LGBTI activist Jacqueline Kasha Nabagesera after the U.S. announced its … Continue reading
Denis LeBlanc, Editor A new emergency fund is seeking contributions to help LGBT people and allies flee from “immediate threats of arrest, attacks, violence and persecution in countries where harsh laws have fostered a climate of extreme homophobia.” This global, United States-based fund joins several existing Uganda-based funds that are assisting LGBT people during the … Continue reading
A challenge to Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act began today in the country’s Constitutional Court. The suit argues that the law violates the constitutional right to equality before the law and rights to privacy, freedom of expression, and association. The challenge also protests that a quorum was not present when parliament voted for the bill on Dec. … Continue reading
Ugandan supporters of human rights, including LGBT rights, have published guidelines for their local and international allies on how best to fight against the country’s new Anti-Homosexuality Law. Travel advisories; advocacy by celebrities, businesses and churches; strategically targeted aid cuts, but not general aid cuts, are among the actions endorsed by the Civil Society Coalition … Continue reading
