the ugandan lgbti civil rights movement
PRIDE UGANDA in the 2020's
The Ugandan LGBT Civil Rights Movement has held 4 pride festivals since inception in 2012. Since 2016,
Pride events have been halted by the government. This continued throughout the following years, which saw the community go without Pride celebrations in 2017 and 2018 and 2019.
However, we are hoping to resume our annual Pride festival. We can no longer cower to the intimidation and threats issued by the very people who should be protecting us and ensuring our safety.
This year as the gay civil rights movement celebrates 51 years since the uprising at #Stonewall Inn,
Uganda's own movement activists shall also arise and reclaim their annual Pride occurrence- an event that has become very sacred to the LGBTI community as a reminder of our past triumphs and the better future we all hope for.
We must celebrate our journey thus far, and the 21 years since the realization that a social movement was not enough. We must celebrate the metamorphosis from a social to political movement that saw people step out boldly to reclaim their space in a world that preached hate against us, yet still we stood tall and proud.
It’s from this background that we request your unwavering support to help us bring back the momentum lost in the last 4 years that Uganda Pride has been halted. There is need to re-mobilise and organize the community as we get closer to the 2021 elections – a period that is bound to bring up anti-gay conversations as people use the criminalization of LGBTI Ugandans as campaign strategy, in order to make their way into various political offices. More than ever, we need to bring the community together and encourage one another not to give up, remind ourselves of why the stonewall riots happened, what lies ahead of us but more so to celebrate the achievements we have attained in the last 51 and 21 years of the World and Ugandan LGBT Civil Rights Movements respectively.
COVID19
In times of a pandemic and or crisis is when we realise that we need each other more than ever.
We have all witnessed the unbearable genocide that the COVID19 has caused globally. The scariest thing is that the developed world that is supposed to bring Hope to the third world is the one that is taking away even the little hope left.
Not willingly but because the economic infrastructure is failing.
Uganda is among the world’s poorest countries. It has so far registered 52 cases of COVID19, No reported deaths and No reported recoveries. We are very sure the numbers could be much higher but because of the limited resources few are being tested.
In times of crisis always the marginalized suffer multiple traumas and discriminations. Many LGBQT+ persons suffer these multiple traumas and discriminations. Many LGBQT+ persons are homeless and many on funded HIV medication, with the county direction of lockdown and No public transportation many will not be able to survive through these tough times. Many have stopped taking their medication because they are hungry, many are so scared because they have no roof over their heads. This is a very difficult period for the whole world but more so marginalized communities. Cases of blackmail, domestic violence, extortion are on the rise now.
The LGBQT+ community in Uganda is under renewed attack because of religious leaders spewing falsehoods that our community caused the COVID19 pandemic by annoying GOD. Many brutal attacks are underway.
Arrests. On the 1st of April 2020 20 members of the community were arrested by government authorities from the community shelter for homeless LGBTQ+ persons. This was a direct under on the homeless members after a directive of quarantine was issued by the President about social distancing. This is their daily home but police said they had abused the Presidents directive since they were more than 5 people in the shelter.
It is from this short humble request that we at BRC kindly call for your assistance to support your Ugandan LGBTI community in the very trying moment. We have not given the whole picture of our situation because of underlying security circumstances.
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