Pride and Prejudice: Global Struggles for LGBTQ+ Acceptance
Amidst increasing anti-LGBTQ+ laws worldwide, we need to speak out now more than ever.
This Pride month, people around the world celebrate their fight against prejudice and the prospect of love (no matter how gay it might be) overcoming the most vile human emotion: hatred. For those of us living in socially progressive areas, it is easy to forget that, in most countries, rampant state-sanctioned persecution of LGBTQ+ individuals persists, and many queer people cannot live freely without fears of ostracization and violence.
Due to the widespread criminalization of queerness in all its forms, many are forced to leave everything they know behind. As they flee persecution and violence in their home countries in search of acceptance and safety, queer asylum seekers face extraordinary challenges, including hostile and unsafe environments in refugee camps, complex legal processes, and continued homophobic discrimination in host countries. For many, abandoning their home countries, families, and careers is not just about comfort and freedom; it is life and death.
Among the nations with the strictest laws are Nigeria and Uganda, where same-sex relations can result in life imprisonment and death.
Risk of Prison in Nigeria
One decade ago, Nigeria passed the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act. Due to the misleading nature of the bill’s name, many dismiss the plight of Nigerians facing threats to their livelihood in their home country. In reality, the law’s scope is much broader than the prohibition of same-sex marriage: it criminalizes cohabitation between same-sex partners, public displays of affection between same-sex partners, and participating in and supporting gay clubs, societies, and organizations. Punishments are usually severe and can include up to 14 years in prison.
According to HRW, “the passage of the SSMPA was immediately followed by extensive media reports of high levels of violence, including mob attacks and extortion against LGBT people.” Such is true for Anthony and her partner Doris Ezuruike Chinonso, who fled in 2014 following the law’s passing, first to Libya, then to Italy where they ultimately gained asylum on LGBTQ+ grounds. In Nigeria, “if you’re lucky you end up in prison. If you’re not lucky, they kill you,” Anthony told reporters. “Here, you can live as you like.”
For Anthony and Chinonso, it was the threat of prison that compelled them to take up a trafficker’s offer to pay for their risky passage across the Mediterranean Sea into Italy. In Nigeria, Anthony was sold by her family into an abusive heterosexual marriage. When she built up the courage to leave her abuser and return to her family home, her male relatives immediately threatened to turn her into the local police for being gay.
Refugee standards provide that petitioners seeking asylum may be given international protection if they are “members of a particular social group.” However, the procedure is much less straightforward than many imagine. Privacy issues limit the sorts of sexual orientation inquiries that refugees can be asked during the asylum interview process. According to the EU Agency for Asylum, which assists EU nations in implementing asylum standards, asylum seekers who are unaware of anti-gay laws in their countries of origin may file claims only for them to be rejected due to foreign ignorance.
An EU regulation provides additional protection to those who have become vulnerable as a result of sexual discrimination, requiring “special procedural guarantees” in the countries that receive them, but it does not explain what such assurances are, and implementation is inconsistent. As a result, LGBTQ+ asylum seekers do not always find safe havens once in the EU. In addition, “rainbow asylum seekers,” as they have been dubbed by media outlets, face the double-ended stigmatization of their status as both a refugee and a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
In Italy, where Nigerians Anthony and Chinonso found their safe haven, the possibilities vary greatly by location and funding. According to Antonella Ugirashebuja, an Arcigay activist, there are just 10 beds reserved for LGBTQ+ refugees in Rome. “Lesbians leaving Africa often, or more frequently, end up in prostitution and sexual exploitation networks because they lack (economic) support from their families,” Ugirashebuja stated. “The family deems these persons to be driven away and shunned… Especially in places where it is illegal by law.”
For Anthony and Chinonso, who arrived in Rome in 2015, it would be two more years until civil unions between same-sex individuals was legalized in Italy. “Certainly life here in Italy isn’t 100% what we want. But let’s say it’s 80% better than in my country,” Chinonso told reporters.
Anti-Gay Violence in Uganda
In a 2023 interview, Kimahli Powell, the chief executive of Rainbow Railroad, a leading non-governmental agency providing support to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, said that his organization received over 15,000 requests for assistance last year, 5,500 more than the year before. According to Powell, 10% of the requests came from Uganda, which, with widespread public support, passed an anti-homosexuality law that year that prescribes the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality,” and up to 14 years in prison for “attempted aggravated homosexuality.”
Pepe Julian Onziema, program director of Sexual Minorities Uganda, spoke with reporters after the bill’s passing. “We’ve seen our friends leave the country. We’ve seen people attempt to commit suicide. We’ve seen communities attempt what we call mob attacks.” According to Onziema, since the introduction of the law in early 2023, violence towards LGBT people has seen a rapid increase. Uganda’s long history of LGBTQ+ persecution goes back to laws imposed during the British Colonial period that have never been repealed.
As a result of the 2023 bill, many LGBTQ+ advocates and people suspected or accused of same-sex relations were arrested in Uganda. Among them was a 20-year-old man, charged with “aggravated homosexuality.” In police custody, the unidentified man was subjected to invasive procedures such as anal examinations.
In 2012, a local weekly tabloid published a list of the names, home addresses, and pictures of the “Top 100 Homos in Uganda.” Just three months later, one of the people whose private information was given out on the list, gay rights activist David Kato was beaten to death with a hammer in his home. “Police officials were quick to chalk up the motive to robbery, but members of the small and increasingly besieged gay community in Uganda suspect otherwise.” According to BBC reporters, even the priest presiding over Kato’s funeral made a point to publicly condemn gay people.
Frank Mugisha, the executive director of Sexual Minorities Uganda, additionally implicated Americans in Kato’s death. “The blood of David is on the hands of American preachers who came to Uganda,” said Mugisha, referring to the many American evangelical Christians who travel to Uganda to spearhead “anti-gay-workshops.” “They share much of the blame for presenting us as less than human.” Many people share the belief that David Bahati, the Ugandan legislator who introduced the initial bill in 2009, was influenced by American evangelical Christians, including those who claim to have been “healed” of gayness.
Ongoing Persecution Throughout Africa
Last year saw many individuals arrested across Africa, where same-sex relationships are criminalized in at least 31 of 54 countries, for their involvement in or support of the LGBTQ+ community. In Nigeria, over 60 people were detained after a gay wedding was raided by authorities and what would have been a loving couple’s most cherished memory quickly became a nightmare. Bright Edafe, a police spokesperson, proudly uploaded pictures of the ordeal on X (formerly Twitter). He told reporters that homosexuality “will never be tolerated” in the country and that authorities in Nigeria, himself included, “cannot fold their hands” while gay people openly express their sexual orientation.
In March of this year, the Ugandan government amended their already draconian anti-homosexuality law to include the death penalty for “repeated offenses” of the crime described as “same-sex relations.” The intentionally vague language of this bill and others like it serves as a gateway for arbitrary imprisonment and extrajudicial beatings and killings.
Many leaders in countries where same-sex relations are increasingly persecuted have blamed Western influence for promoting and normalizing LGBTQ+ people’s existence, characterizing it as a form of cultural imperialism. For example, former Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni referred to gay people as “disgusting” before adding that there is a conspiracy wherein queer people are recruited by Western countries to “deviate” Ugandan children.
Of course, this conspiracy is unfounded and usually not paired with evidentiary support. In fact, it is evidenced in many cases that European colonial rule brought homophobic sentiments and reforms to their foreign settlements, including in Uganda. Prior to the imposition of colonial laws and norms that later stigmatized and criminalized non-heteronormative identities and behaviors, many indigenous cultures (such as the Buganda kingdom) in Uganda recognized and respected diverse gender identities and sexual orientations, often incorporating them into social structures and spiritual practices. Further, it is now widely acknowledged that anthropologists have historically hidden African same-sex relationships.
Global Rise of Anti-LGBTQ Legislation
Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin officially designated the “global LGBTQ+ movement” as a terrorist organization, banning LGBTQ+ symbols and ‘related activities,’ including cross-dressing and public advocacy, effectively making Russia one of the worst countries in Europe to be queer. Among the resulting arrests were the manager and art director of a Russian gay bar, accused of “maintaining an establishment promoting extremist activities.” Their arrest followed a raid targeting queer spaces across the nation with the help of local right-wing activists.
Also this year in Saudi Arabia, a stricter reinforcement of anti-LGBTQ+ laws saw several arrests. Same-sex relations and their promotion are punishable not only by imprisonment, but also by public floggings. Iran similarly tightened its existing laws against homosexuality, where punishments range from long-term imprisonment to execution. In Ghana, parliament passed a strict new bill imposing a prison sentence of up to three years for anyone convicted of identifying as LGBTQ+.
What Can We Do?
In the face of such dire circumstances, many would prefer to maintain their ignorance for the bliss that it brings them. However, it is important to remember that an injustice to queer people anywhere is an injustice to us everywhere. In the past century, remarkable progress has been seen in countries across the globe. We must continue to fight for those in less fortunate situations than our own. It is additionally important for the heterosexual public to recognize that Pride is not just a celebration of our victories, it is a protest against ongoing persecution.
To ameliorate the situation for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, comprehensive policies must be implemented that recognize the unique experiences and challenges faced by queer people in socially conservative countries. This involves teaching immigration officers about LGBTQ+ policies, assuring access to secure housing, and providing customized mental health services. By developing a more compassionate and responsive asylum system, we can better protect and empower those seeking protection from persecution as a result of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
This Pride month, among both groundbreaking progress and growing homophobic sentiment, hate crimes, and anti-LGBTQ+ laws, remember those who risked everything to ensure our freedoms, such as Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, but also remember the lessons that their legacies teach. This involves creating inclusive venues that welcome and assist the community’s most vulnerable members, including homeless youth, sex workers, and migrants, as well as lobbying for legislation that addresses the whole range of LGBTQ+ experiences.
When we remember the struggles of those before us, we must remain cognizant of and speak out against the ongoing varied struggles faced by queer people universally, to guarantee that the equality movement stays alive, resilient, and inclusive of all who want justice.
