America’s Role in the Criminalization of Homosexuality in Uganda by Emmaline Winter
Many would agree that a nation’s government has no authority to tell its citizens what they can and cannot do in the bedroom. However, Uganda’s government does not agree. The nation still has sodomy laws in place, stating that participating any non-vaginal intercourse will result in legal punishment. Uganda’s government deemed homosexuality punishable by death in 2009. It is now punishable by life imprisonment. In 2009, the Obama administration threatened travel and trade bans with the nation to scare them into not passing the bill. However, after Uganda imposed the Anti-Homosexuality Act, the United States government did not follow through with their threats. To this day, the United States still trades with Uganda and allows travel to and from the country. Recently in 2019, Ugandan Members of Parliament and some citizens were still pushing for the death penalty to be reinstated as the punishment for homosexuality and sodomy. Due to the United States’ role in the passage of these laws and the tolerance of this behavior, the United States should do what they can to help the LGBTQ+ community in Uganda. The United States government should impose travel and trade bans with Uganda to combat the homophobic legislation in the country.
Uganda’s government has sodomy laws in place in order to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community. Sodomy laws state that it is illegal to engage in nonvaginal sexual intercourse. These laws were passed during British colonial times and remain legal to this day because of the country’s very Christian roots. According to a 2012 PBS report, “polls have shown that 95% of Ugandan’s favor criminalizing homosexuality.” While watching the report, there are crowds of Ugandan citizens shown hold signs that bash sodomy and show support for the Anti-Homosexuality Act. The reason so many Ugandans support sodomy laws is because of their use to single out and discriminate against members of the LGBTQ+ community.
After the sodomy laws became inadequate, Uganda took the issue a step further. In 2009, Uganda passed the Anti-Homosexuality Act. This version of the bill was passed with capital punishment as the penalty for homosexuality. However, the bill was ratified to make the punishment for homosexuality life imprisonment in 2014, in order to appease their western allies. This same year, the Obama administration threatened Uganda with a travel and trade ban if they passed the second version of the Anti-Homosexuality Act. This is because Uganda’s economy is largely dependent on foreign aid. However, after the bill was passed, the United States did not follow through with their threats. Also, in 2014 the bill was deemed null and void on a technicality. According to a Vox article published by Brandon Ambrosino, “Uganda’s Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga, ‘acted illegally’ … by allowing the [Anti- Homosexuality Act] to be voted on despite lacking a quorum— the minimum number of required members for a vote.” Therefore, the ruling was not legally binding for the entirety of its existence. Currently the nation’s government is still trying to criminalize homosexuality.
The United States did in fact play a role in the criminalization of homosexuality in Uganda. A United States based organization called the National Christian Foundation sent Scott Lively, an American pastor from Massachusetts, to Uganda in 2002 to preach about the sin of homosexuality and how to fix it. His purpose was to make the government and the people turn against homosexuals in an aggressive manner. He held seminars where he taught the Ugandan people that homosexuality was a learned behavior that could be un-learned. He gained support by targeting Uganda’s very Christian nature. According to Mariah Blake, Scott Lively “had cultivated ties to influential politicians and religious leaders at the forefront of the nation’s anti-gay crusade.” Lively used these ties to steer the nation in the direction of discriminatory, religious driven legislation.
The criminalization of homosexuals in Uganda became an American issue because of this. The National Christian Foundation is the United States’ eighth largest public organization. They donate millions of dollars to anti-LGBTQ+ organizations every year. The National Christian Foundation is backed by American businesses to which the American people give their money. For example, Christian businesses like Chick-fil-a have a history of donating to the National Christian Foundation. So, every time someone stops for a chicken sandwich, their money goes to aiding in the criminalization of homosexuals in third world countries.
The National Christian Foundation aided in the passing of the Anti-Homosexuality Act by sending Scott Lively to stir up homophobic feelings in the nation. Gay rights activists in Uganda say, “Lively has played an unparalleled role in fostering the climate of hate that gave rise to Uganda’s anti-gay laws.” The LGBTQ+ community largely blames the American based pastor for the condition of their country. They even went as far as filing a lawsuit against Lively for international crimes against humanity because of the damage he caused for the gay citizens of Uganda. Therefore, the United States is partly at fault for the issues that the LGBTQ+ community in Uganda face every day.
The issues homosexuals in Uganda face are damaging and horrible. According to an article written in The Guardian, “Hate crimes against gay people, including physical and sexual assault, blackmail and extortion, are common in Uganda but most victims are too fearful to go to the police, according to rights groups.” The conditions in Uganda are not only a societal issue, but a legal issue. The nation’s government still has sodomy laws in place from the British colonial times to discriminate against the LGBTQ+ community. From 2009- 2014 homosexuals were sentenced to death, then they were sentenced to life imprisonment. Even after the Anti-Homosexual Act was deemed null and void, the government is still trying to pass laws that allow homosexuals to be condemned. These issues are also American issues because the US government threatened to step in, then did not follow through. The United States’ eighth largest public organization sent an American pastor to turn Uganda completely against the LGBTQ+ community. The United States is partially to blame for the discriminatory legislation in Uganda. Therefore, the United States government should impose travel and trade bans with Uganda to combat the homophobic legislation in the country.
Works Cited
Ambrosino, Brandon. “Uganda’s Anti-Gay Law Was Overturned. Now What?” Vox, Vox, 1 Aug. 2014, www.vox.com/2014/8/1/5958791/uganda-court-anti-homosexuality-bill-is-null-and-void.
Blake, Mariah. “Meet the American Pastor behind Uganda’s Anti-Gay Crackdown.” Mother Jones, 31 July 2019, www.motherjones.com/politics/2014/03/scott-lively-anti-gay-law-uganda/.
Burke, Jason, and Samuel Okiror. “Ugandan MPs Press for Death Penalty for Homosexual Acts.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 15 Oct. 2019, www.theguardian.com/world/2019/oct/15/ugandan-mps-press-for-death-penalty-for-homosexual-acts.
Lazaro, Fred de Sam. “In Uganda, Gays Face Growing Social, Legal Hostility.” YouTube, PBS NewsHour, 6 Apr. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKHApaNDEaQ.
Photo by Teddy Österblom on Unsplash
