Is Homosexuality UnAfrican?

Examinations of sexual orientation and gender identity have continued to spark debate and split opinion across the world. Most of these discussions stem from legal, religious and cultural beliefs. African countries have signed agreements to guarantee the human rights and inclusion of all people. The African Charter was adopted in 1981 and ratified by all the countries except Sudan. Article 2 of the charter states that “every individual shall be entitled to the rights and freedoms recognized and guaranteed in the charter without distinction of any kind”. Article 4 also states that “every human being shall be entitled to respect for his life and the integrity of this person. No one may be arbitrarily deprived of this right.” It is very clear that African states have the noble intentions of protecting the rights of their citizens but that has never proven to be the case.

On the African continent, the majority of the 54 states have laws banning homosexuality. These include Nigeria, Zimbabwe and Uganda with its Anti-Homosexuality Bill which was introduced in 2009, which aims to police sexuality. The countries that are more progressive on LGBTI rights and have afforded their citizens tangible equality rights are South Africa, Mozambique and Angola. Attacks on the LGBTI community are a global scourge but in Africa, Leaders are the ones publicly condemning and acting to criminalize same-sex relations under the guise of it being Un- African.

In his article written in The Guardian, Eusebuis McKaiser states that this argument is flawed and “the mere existence of gay men and women who are African constitutes a counter example to the claim”. Why have a few individuals been given the right to decide what constitutes being African? African culture and tradition is steeped in cis-heteropatriarchal thought and this has allowed the exclusion of non –binary people. It has forced the continent to continually lag behind the rest of the world because outdated traditions are preserved and progressive self-introspection, repressed.

According to the book " Boy wives and female Husbands" ,there are no examples of traditional African belief systems that single out same-sex relations as sinful or link them to concepts of disease or mental health - except where Christianity and Islam have been adopted." I believe that it is rather Africa’s fixation with religiosity that has influenced and stunted advancement on the continent.