Warning: I am about to release my opinions very candidly and bluntly, and it might offend you. Sorry. Actually, no...I'm not sorry at all.
I need to say before you read this that I love Uganda. The cultures, the people, and the beauty. But sometimes, I really dislike certain parts of the population, whom you will read about below. All of my comments are directed towards the ones that insist on carrying on with extreme homophobia that results in disgusting violence.
I haven't thought about this topic in a while... mainly because it really infuriates me and it challenges my anthropological instincts to stay neutral.
But this is ridiculous. CNN just reported that a Ugandan gay rights activist was bludgeoned to death in his own home. Watching this video fills me with sorrow and anger to know that this man is dead because of ignorance and intolerance. With such a close connection to Uganda and such a belief in the tolerance and appreciation for diversity, I have to say that this story is the last straw. I am truly embarrassed and ashamed for the people that committed this atrocious act and for their supporters.
While it may not seem like much, I am shocked at the courage of this man to speak to a Western news outlet about his sexuality and his fears for his safety. The Ugandan gay rights community has truly lost someone very special. If you've never read anything about gay rights in Uganda, there basically are none. Gayness is viewed as an abomination in what is a predominantly born-again Christian nation. Recently, laws inspired by right wing American groups have been tabled in the Ugandan Parliament. These laws call for the execution of "repeat" offenders, meaning anyone who has been accused of being homosexual on more than one occasion or even someone who fails to tattle on their possibly homosexual neighbor or friend. I should mention that a homosexual could face imprisonment for up to 14 years under the current anti-homosexuality law.
Here's a link to an article from Human Rights Watch in 2009 when the bill was making the news quite frequently.
From my experience in Uganda, I know that even those who feel that executing homosexuals is extreme have little tolerance for what they deem to be unnecessary differentiation from other Ugandans. If you read the comments below the article I linked to above, you'll see that some people said it was his fault because he managed to land himself on the "top homosexuals" list, which obviously means he wasn't being discrete enough about his sexuality. Why should he have to be? I've been able to observe that, for the most part, Uganda can be a place of conformity and keeping your opinions to yourself, especially where politics are concerned. But when it comes to homosexuality, there is no holding back when it comes to spewing pure hatred.
Some Ugandans stand by this policy as an assertion of their cultural rights and as a middle finger to Western intervention, which is ironic because Uganda has long been in the back pocket of the United States. What really baffles me, is that this man was killed in the name of Christianity and the belief that homosexuality is an offense to to God. Is cold-blooded murder not offensive? Do these people think God will reward them for so violently killing a man who did them no harm? Also ironic is that the Uganda Christian identity formed from colonization by the British. Additionally, the British established the original anti-homosexuality law in Uganda a long time ago, presumably because homosexuality was already present. This history tells us that homosexuality has always been in Uganda, and that the law against it came with Western intervention. This is the exact opposite of everything that the bill's supporters currently claim. They say that homosexuality was introduced (and is still being introduced) by Westerners and that the law needs to be tougher in order to rid the nation of this "embarrassing" portion of the population.
All I can say is that to the rest of the world, this plays out like ignorance, misguided education, and dangerous Christian fundamentalism that takes us back to Old Testament times.
If these people are attempting to assert their "Ugandanness", I think it is a hugely misplaced topic with which to establish an identity, not to mention a false identity. For my Ugandan friends who might read this, I implore you to open your heart and your mind and allow people to live as they wish to live. Whether you agree with it or not, homosexuality has absolutely no affect on how you conduct your life unless you want it to, and this can be positive or negative. Please choose to accept your homosexual friends with kindness and openness because they will need the support if popular opinion in Uganda continues in this direction.
Showing posts with label Uganda. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Uganda. Show all posts
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
How do you keep up with the news?
Like I said in my last blog, I like to keep up with the news, particularly African news. I don't know how many of you like reading the news or like being in the know on world issues, but for those of you that do... do you ever find the constant stream of information overwhelming? You can study up on one issue and then the next day it changes or the next day something else happens. Should you be somewhat aware of a broad range of issues or highly knowledgeable about just a few issues? Or a little bit of both?
Here's a little overview of what I'm trying to keep track of right now, on top of remembering that yes, I am still a student with homework and yes, I could be working on writing my thesis at any given moment of the day rather than what I have chosen to do with my time - like eat, sleep, watch season 6 of Lost or... write this blog.
Uganda: Obviously, I read Ugandan news every day. Recently, it's been about little else other than the upcoming February elections. I'll probably write a more in-depth post on this topic soon, but it seems that Ugandan news outlets are writing about what the rest of the world expects or hopes to happen and not what really is happening.
For instance, this article was posted today: Police arm heavily ahead of elections
It covers a few different issues, namely the fear that there will be violence no matter which way the election goes, whether or not the opposition has a chance (which opposition, you might ask), and the preparedness of the police and army. Of course, I think people should be prepared for anything, but now everyone just expects violence. Maybe I'm looking too much into the supposed group psychology of the issue, but it seems like expecting violence will only encourage it.
Sudan: It would be foolish to not keep up to date with Sudan right now. After all, after the referendum vote, South Sudan could be the world's newest country (and it looks like it will be). It will probably also be the world's weakest country, but we'll have to wait to see how that pans out. This referendum is a huge achievement for this much-troubled nation that has been engaged in conflict for decades. It's also a benchmark for the rest of Africa - Southern Sudanese are democratically electing to change their border to something that makes sense for the geographical and cultural area, rather than what colonizers laid out decades ago. What if every conflicted African nation could redraw their borders this way? Would it help to alleviate some problems? Or does it simply create new ones? Also, it's not like it was an easy road to come to this point, and most Sudanese would have rather had peace all along rather than a secession vote.
Here's the latest on the referendum vote: UN Secretary-General announces the end of the polling period
Also, the underreported Northern Sudanese side. Many are genuinely concerned that the country is falling apart, not just for the oil, but for the well-being of South Sudanese.
Cote d'Ivoire: This place has definitely been interesting lately. November elections ousted the former President Gbagbo and elected Ouatarra.... or at least they were supposed to. When Ouatarra was announced the winner, Gbagbo decided he actually wasn't ready to step down. Both men have large armies at their backs, the only difference being that Ouatarra also has the international community on his side, along with a few thousand UN peacekeepers. The situation has been worsening, and Gbagbo has refused to give up, despite several sanctions placed upon him and his supporters. It is feared that this will erupt into a civil war, which would further devastate a country healing from a conflict in 2002, not to mention the refugee situation that the tension and fear of war along with early violence is creating.
There are so many aspects to this situation, it would take another blog to unravel, but here's the latest: Ouatarra aims to close 'financial windows'
Tunisia: Last, but not least, Tunisia seems to have had a revolution, French style. I'm not so up to date on this one as I would like to be, but I do know that the people scared the president into fleeing into Saudi Arabia. Pretty interesting situation to keep up with on the BBC website.
So you see, those are only tiny little blurbs, but it's SO much information to keep up with. And to really understand what's happening now, you need to understand at least a little bit of the history of the situation. Out of context, these are simply elections and coups, but it takes a good historical background to understand the ramifications of these actions. So how do you keep up with the news around the world and keep up with your own life?
Here's a little overview of what I'm trying to keep track of right now, on top of remembering that yes, I am still a student with homework and yes, I could be working on writing my thesis at any given moment of the day rather than what I have chosen to do with my time - like eat, sleep, watch season 6 of Lost or... write this blog.
Uganda: Obviously, I read Ugandan news every day. Recently, it's been about little else other than the upcoming February elections. I'll probably write a more in-depth post on this topic soon, but it seems that Ugandan news outlets are writing about what the rest of the world expects or hopes to happen and not what really is happening.
For instance, this article was posted today: Police arm heavily ahead of elections
It covers a few different issues, namely the fear that there will be violence no matter which way the election goes, whether or not the opposition has a chance (which opposition, you might ask), and the preparedness of the police and army. Of course, I think people should be prepared for anything, but now everyone just expects violence. Maybe I'm looking too much into the supposed group psychology of the issue, but it seems like expecting violence will only encourage it.
Sudan: It would be foolish to not keep up to date with Sudan right now. After all, after the referendum vote, South Sudan could be the world's newest country (and it looks like it will be). It will probably also be the world's weakest country, but we'll have to wait to see how that pans out. This referendum is a huge achievement for this much-troubled nation that has been engaged in conflict for decades. It's also a benchmark for the rest of Africa - Southern Sudanese are democratically electing to change their border to something that makes sense for the geographical and cultural area, rather than what colonizers laid out decades ago. What if every conflicted African nation could redraw their borders this way? Would it help to alleviate some problems? Or does it simply create new ones? Also, it's not like it was an easy road to come to this point, and most Sudanese would have rather had peace all along rather than a secession vote.
Here's the latest on the referendum vote: UN Secretary-General announces the end of the polling period
Also, the underreported Northern Sudanese side. Many are genuinely concerned that the country is falling apart, not just for the oil, but for the well-being of South Sudanese.
Cote d'Ivoire: This place has definitely been interesting lately. November elections ousted the former President Gbagbo and elected Ouatarra.... or at least they were supposed to. When Ouatarra was announced the winner, Gbagbo decided he actually wasn't ready to step down. Both men have large armies at their backs, the only difference being that Ouatarra also has the international community on his side, along with a few thousand UN peacekeepers. The situation has been worsening, and Gbagbo has refused to give up, despite several sanctions placed upon him and his supporters. It is feared that this will erupt into a civil war, which would further devastate a country healing from a conflict in 2002, not to mention the refugee situation that the tension and fear of war along with early violence is creating.
There are so many aspects to this situation, it would take another blog to unravel, but here's the latest: Ouatarra aims to close 'financial windows'
Tunisia: Last, but not least, Tunisia seems to have had a revolution, French style. I'm not so up to date on this one as I would like to be, but I do know that the people scared the president into fleeing into Saudi Arabia. Pretty interesting situation to keep up with on the BBC website.
So you see, those are only tiny little blurbs, but it's SO much information to keep up with. And to really understand what's happening now, you need to understand at least a little bit of the history of the situation. Out of context, these are simply elections and coups, but it takes a good historical background to understand the ramifications of these actions. So how do you keep up with the news around the world and keep up with your own life?
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