uganda

...now browsing by tag

 
 

Uganda: “Death to Gays” Bill Back?

Thursday, October 27th, 2011

Lawmakers in Uganda are preparing to revisit a controversial bill, first proposed two years ago, which would prescribe the death penalty for gays in certain cases and impose steep penalties on others who do not report gays to the authorities.

The so-called “Death to Gays” bill was first advanced by Ugandan MP David Bahati in October of 2009, shortly after several anti-gay American evangelicals visited Uganda and told crowds that gays corrupt youths.

The conference was put together by the Ugandan group the Family Life Network, which purports to uphold “traditional family values.” The speakers included anti-gay writer and missionary Scott Lively–author of a book that purports to tell parents how to “gay-proof” their offspring–and Don Schmierer, a board member of Exodus international, an organization dedicated to the idea that gays can be “cured” through prayer and counseling.

Full Story from Edge Boston

Click here for gay wedding resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook. We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda: Kill The Gays Bill Not Dead As Previously Reported

Monday, August 22nd, 2011

Melanie Nathan, Publisher of Gay U.S.A. Blog: “Do not be fooled by procedural ploys or Ugandan reports. Activists are urged to sign petition and organize protests.”

The Uganda Daily Monitor has written a report stating that the Anti-Homosexuality Bill has been dropped. However this is not correct. Warren Throckmorten has reported that Bahati has no intention of dropping th bill, citing that it is now the property (so to speak) of the Parliament and must be voted upon accordingly.

It is imperative that activists turn up the heat at this time, so that Uganda can see what the world thinks of this impending law.

Full Story from Gay USA

Click here for gay wedding resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook. We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda: Kill the Gays Bill Back?

Friday, July 29th, 2011

It appears Uganda’s Kill the Gays Bill is about to be resurrected and put on a fast track in the Ugandan Parliament.

The bill, which calls for the death penalty for the “crime” of being gay or HIV- positive, and prison sentences for friends, family, and acquaintances who believe someone is gay but does not immediately report them to authorities, may be voted on “by the end of August.”

Full Story from Lez Get Real

Click here for gay wedding resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook. We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda: Parliament Fails to Pass Kill the Gays Bill This Year

Monday, May 16th, 2011

Jay, a 27-year-old lesbian in Uganda, touches the scar tissue starting to form between her nose and lip. The tall, sturdily built woman was attacked last week outside her gate by two men she believes followed her home from a bar. They punched her repeatedly and when she tried to get away they said, “Come back; we’re not finished with you. You are spoiling our children!” she recalled.

Since the October 2009 introduction in parliament of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, a proposal that called for the execution of some homosexuals, enduring accusations of “recruiting” the nation’s youth and suffering physical attack “is what it takes to be a lesbian in Uganda,” said Jay.

On May 13, the speaker of parliament in this small East African nation suspended the legislative body without allowing MPs a chance to discuss the proposed anti-homosexuality law. Ugandan gays and lesbians say that while they are relieved the legislation is off the table for now, they fear it will be re-introduced when parliament reconvenes.

Full Story from Trust.org

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda: Kill The Gays Vote Rescheduled for Friday

Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

Outrage over proposed legislation unrelated to Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality bill caused a walkout of female MPs, postponing Ugandan lawmakers from making the final decision on the antigay legislation to Friday.

The Marriage and Divorce Bill and the HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Bill were the two pieces of legislation that drew ire from the female MPs, according to Jim Burroway of Box Turtle Bulletin. Parliament will reconvene Friday with the Anti-Homosexuality bill on the schedule for a vote.

Full Story from The Advocate

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda: Parliament Drops Kill the Gays Bill

Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

A bill calling for gay people to be imprisoned for life has been dropped by the Ugandan parliament after worldwide condemnation.

The fiercely controversial legislation, first put forward in 2009, was discussed in committee on Friday. It was due to be debated on Wednesday but was removed from the MPs’ timetable.

With the current parliament about to be dissolved, the bill appears to have been put on hold indefinitely – but campaigners warned it could be reintroduced in the next session.

Full Story from The Guardian

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda May Pass “Kill The Gays” Bill This Week

Monday, May 9th, 2011

UgandaOn Friday I noted that Uganda’s anti-homosexuality bill was getting a hearing and would likely be headed for a vote this week. The bill has been fast-tracked as a way to distract from domestic strife.

Activist group AllOut is circulating a petition calling on President Yoweri Museveni to veto the bill.

Full Story from Towleroad.com

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Being Gay in Uganda

Saturday, March 26th, 2011

John BoscoAs a child in Uganda, John Bosco remembers hearing an old wives’ tale that if a man fell asleep in the sun and it crossed over him, he would wake up as a woman. “I used to try that as a kid,” says John now, some 30 years later. He sits at a table in a busy cafe across the road from the railway station in Southampton, his fingers playing with the handle of a glass of hot chocolate.

“I’d spend all day lying under the sun. From childhood, I wanted to be a girl. I wanted dolls. At school, I played netball. I wanted to dress up like a girl … I rubbed herbs into my chest that were meant to make your breasts grow. I tried everything but it didn’t work.”

He tells me that there was not one single moment when he realised he was gay; that the knowledge of it had always been there, unexpressed until he found the right words. As he grew older, John started being attracted to men. On the radio, he heard stories of gay couples being beaten and killed by police. He says that if he could have changed himself, he would because he so desperately wanted to be considered “normal”, to fit in, to make his family proud.

Full Story from The Guardian

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Uganda “Kill the Gays” Bill is Back

Friday, March 18th, 2011

Uganda Kill the Gays BillThe Ugandan Parliament will reconvene next week to reconsider an anti-gay bill first proposed in 2009. Gay sex is already punishable by life in prison in the country, but the new bill would impose the death penalty on gay people convicted of having sex with minors or the disabled.

Gay people who are HIV positive would also face the death penalty for having sex. The bill would also impose jail terms on those who do not inform police of suspected homosexuals.

In January, the Ugandan activist David Kato was murdered in his home near Kampala. Kato was a gay activist who led the challenge against the bill. Kato’s death underlined the dangerous situation under which many gay and lesbian Ugandans live.

Full Story from Xtra!

Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Tolerance was lost in my homeland; will it be lost in my adopted home?

Friday, February 11th, 2011

Iowans are among the best people I know. I have traveled to more than 60 countries, and I choose to live in Des Moines, my home for nearly 40 years. My wife and I raised our three children here and are proud to be part of this wonderful community and our great state.

Of the many advantages to living in Iowa, one that I hold as both precious and powerful is our commitment to diversity. It makes our state different, and it makes our state better. Iowa was a leader in recognizing the rights of minorities, women, interracial couples and now same-sex marriage. I am proud of our leadership position in the protection of rights and our intolerance of discrimination. The approval of House Joint Resolution 6 in the House is a giant step backward. It puts the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian Iowans up for a vote, rather than allowing our constitution to protect their civil rights.

I came to Iowa from Uganda, where I was born and raised, to attend Iowa State University. While I was attending college, Idi Amin, a brutal dictator, started driving “foreigners” out of Uganda. Even though my family had lived there for four generations, they were still considered foreigners because of their roots in India and were driven from Uganda. Many of our friends were killed.

Full Story from the Des Moines Register

Click here for gay marriage resources in Iowa.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.