“The recognition of the LGBTQIA+ community is a matter of recognising that everyone has the right to have their human rights protected. May today ignite the visibility to assembling a new, better, diverse and inclusive world. May we see the LGBTQIA+ people as human as everyone else?”
– Elidah Maita, Kenyan #WhatGirlsWant focal point
The 17th of May marks the commemoration of International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia which aims to coordinate international events that raise awareness of LGBTQIA+ rights violations and stimulate interest in LGBTQIA+ rights work worldwide.
We write this reflecting on the recent murder of Sheila Adhiambo Lumumba, a 25-year-old non-binary lesbian from Kenya. Sheila was found murdered in Karatina, Kenya. They had been missing for several days before they found their body. An autopsy report revealed that Lumumba was sexually assaulted, strangled, stabbed several times in the neck and eyes and their legs had been broken. Sheila is one of many LGBTQIA+ people who are stripped of their dignity, the freedom to be who they are and prosecuted for their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Although South Africa is known as the ‘rainbow nation’ with a progressive constitution and the legal protection provided to LGBTQIA+ people are unmatched compared to the rest of the continent there are still difference exists between the protection provided by the law and the lived experiences of LGBTQIA+ people. The 2020 Civil Union Amendment Act recognises marriage between same-sex couples. However, in 2020, only 28.6% of Home Affairs branches had marriage officers who were willing to marry same-sex couples. The Act also allows for marriage officers to refuse to solemnise a civil union between same-sex couples based on religion or conscience of belief. In 2021 between January and June there were 42 pending hate crimes perpetrated against LGBTQIA+ people. Of the 42 pending cases, 30 cases are for murder and 12 are for sexual assault.
In January 2022, Kenyan Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha suggested that queer students be banned from attending boarding schools. In May 2021, the Sexual Offenses Bill was passed in Uganda. The bill prescribes a five-year jail term for anyone guilty of same-sex acts. In 2018, the government of the United Republic of Tanzania banned the provision of condoms and lubricants to LGBTQIA+ healthcare facilities and increased the use of forced anal examinations. There are so many more examples of the violence and isolation faced daily across Africa. However, these statistics are seldom published because of criminalisation laws and the resistance to acknowledge LGBTQIA+ people who deserve to be protected and respected.
Homosexuality, bisexuality and being trans or gender-diverse are not the problem. The problem is homophobia, biphobia and transphobia and how they fuel the many ways that people are oppressed based on sexual orientation, affectional preference and gender identity.
Although our continent’s history is rich with evidence of relaxed attitudes towards homosexuality and gender fluidity before colonisation and the spread of fundamentalist Christian attitudes. Stigma and discrimination have made a home for themselves in many African countries with more than half of them outlawing homosexuality, bisexuality and being trans or gender-diverse and four of them imposing the death penalty.
The consequences of the discrimination and intolerance are far-reaching and regularly result in many LGBTQIA+ people constantly being denied the right to bodily autonomy; dignity and life; human rights; access to health care and healthcare facilities; and access to HIV and AIDS treatment; prevention and care. Their sexual reproductive health and rights are undermined, they are isolated from their communities, denied access to schools and work, economic stability and a sense of belonging. They are denied the simple pleasures of being seen and affirmed. This means that many LGBTQIA+ experience higher levels of anxiety, depression and suicidal feelings than heterosexual people.
We need governments to take a stand, intervene and ensure that people are protected irrespective of their sexual orientation or gender identity. However, it isn’t enough for governments to just intervene legislatively. We need interventions that are targeted at creating behavioural change, ending stigma and stereotypes, eliminating language that others and harmful cultural and religious practices.
For those of us who identify as feminists, our feminism must take an intersectional approach with consideration of the ways LGBTQIA+ people are further pushed into the margins, silenced, erased and oppressed. We need to think about how their race, social and economic locations shape how they navigate the world and what they have access to. We mustn’t assume that our feminist spaces and language are inclusive or that our politics are progressive without constantly asking ourselves ‘who they are inclusive of and what progression looks like.’ Our problems need to be seen as connected. We need to think about which bodies and lives are accepted and which are made disposable.
In a presentation about feminist movement building, Salim said, “[we need to think about] solidarity as friendship. Our feminist work should be a recognition that we only have each other to lean on. We need to build movements based on love and friendship. We owe it to ourselves.”
LGBTQIA+ issues are human rights issues, they’re everyone’s problem. We don’t have the luxury of fighting for ourselves without thinking about who else is being left behind. Cultivating a feminist future means that nobody gets left behind.