Africa

I have a lovely friend. She is a transgender woman who lives in Nigeria. Her dream, at present denied her, is to be a professional dancer and actress. In her heart and in her spirit, she is both. As I think about her, I imagine the words and music from the song “Mirror and the Music” from the show A Chorus Line encompassing her as she goes to sleep each night... [ Read more → ]

Wednesday marks the two year anniversary of the brutal death of Noxolo Nogwaza, a South African lesbian and LGBT rights activist. In 2011, 24-year-old Noxolo, organizer of the Ekurhuleni Pride Committee, was murdered in South Africa, while on her way home from a night out with friends. Her attackers raped, repeatedly beat and stabbed her, apparently because of her sexual orientation, before dumping her body in a drainage ditch. Two years after her death, no progress has been made into the investigation of her murder... [ Read more → ]

Reports by an LGBT activist group in Africa that a gay Somalian teenager was stoned to death last week as a punishment for the crime of homosexuality, and widely reported by LGBT bloggers on Wednesday, may prove to be false. [ Read more → ]

An appeals court in the African nation of Cameroon on Monday upheld a three-year sentence against a man found guilty of homosexual conduct for sending a text message to another that contained a photo of himself holding a sign that said, “I’m very much in love with you.” [ Read more → ]

The top U.S. diplomat in Africa met over the weekend with leaders in Uganda to express concerns about an anti-gay bill pending before the country’s parliament that could be headed for a vote as soon as this week, according to the State Department. [ Read more → ]

KAMPALA — Uganda’s speaker of parliament has promised that the controversial anti-homosexuality bill, dubbed the "Kill the Gays Bill," will pass by the end of the year, calling it a "Christmas gift" to the nation. [ Read more → ]

LILILONGWE, Malawi -- Malawian Justice Minister Ralph Kasambara on Thursday backtracked on statements regarding possible suspension of arrests of LGBT persons in this small landlocked country in southeastern Africa. [ Read more → ]

SOMERVILLE, Mass. -- Conservative U.S. Christian "family values" and religious organizations are setting up fronts in Africa to fight for anti-gay and anti-abortion legislation to promote their fundamentalist convictions, according to a report released Tuesday by the progressive think tank "Political Research Associates." [ Read more → ]

A suspect has been arrested in the brutal murder of Thapelo Makuthle in Kuruman, near Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa. [ Read more → ]

Police in Kampala, Uganda on Monday raided a gay rights meeting and arrested several LGBT activists gathered at the Essela Hotel in Najjeera, a Kampala suburb, accusing the participants of “propagating gay issues in Uganda.” [ Read more → ]

HARARA, Zimbabwe -- Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo has urged traditional chiefs to banish "people who support homosexuality" from their communities and take away their land. [ Read more → ]

MONROVIA, Liberia -- An extremist anti-gay group in the west African nation of Liberia distributed fliers this past weekend with a hit list of people who support gay rights, and said that those involved in promoting gay rights “should not be given space to get a gulp of air.” [ Read more → ]

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, in an unusually outspoken declaration Sunday, told African leaders assembled at the African Union summit that they must respect gay rights, an issue that is controversial in many African states. [ Read more → ]

Mitt Romney on Wednesday proudly announced Kris Kobach’s endorsement of his presidential campaign. Kobach is the Kansas Secretary of State and a far-right conservative who was the architect of SB 1070, Arizona’s controversial anti-immigration law. [ Read more → ]

Nigeria's Senate has passed an "anti-gay marriage" bill, extending its scope by also criminalizing gay clubs and organizations, and making public displays of affection between gays punishable with 10 years imprisonment. [ Read more → ]

Though LGBT people are already deemed criminals in the West African nation of Ghana, it seems that persecution of gays and lesbians is only slated to get worse, as police services in the western portion of the nation have been ordered to round up all suspected homosexuals. [ Read more → ]

A gay couple in Malawi sentenced to 14 years hard labor for holding the country’s first same-sex engagement were pardoned Saturday after a meeting between the president and the UN Secretary General. [caption id="attachment_7994" align="aligncenter" width="460" caption="Monjeza (left) and Chimbalanga"][/caption] President Bingu wa Mutharika announced... [ Read more → ]

A Malawi gay couple was sentenced Thursday to the maximum 14 years in prison with hard labour, after being convicted of sodomy for holding the country's first same-sex wedding. [caption id="attachment_7992" align="aligncenter" width="462" caption="Monjeza (left) and Chimbalanga"][/caption] Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza were arrested on... [ Read more → ]

Kenya police on Friday arrested five suspected homosexuals in a coastal resort town after hundreds of residents protested over a planned gay wedding. A police official said two of the men had been found with wedding rings, attempting to get married, in the Kikambala beach... [ Read more → ]

A gay couple in Malawi who held a public wedding ceremony have been arrested and charged with "gross indecency," police officials said Tuesday. According to Reuters: Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza publicly wed in a symbolic, traditional ceremony on Saturday. "We arrested them last night... [ Read more → ]