22 Jun LGBT voices from Uganda
Rainbow Riots is an international non profit LGBT organisation operating in Uganda since 2015. Now things are harder than ever in this East African country, since the introduction of death penalty for homosexuality.
To fight this human rights violation we are gathering Ugandan LGBT voices to tell the world about their situation. Here is a new message from one Ugandan LGBT community member:
As Ugandan LGBT people, we dream of freedom, but right now it is just a dream. Instead we live in fear of what tomorrow will bring. The fear of being named, shamed, punished and killed simply for being who we are. This is not a life we wish for any human being.
With the law now in place we are suffering. Many LGBT people have lived their lives openly, out and proud – now they fear even walking in the streets. And those LGBT Ugandans who are brave enough, will flee the country and seek asylum in other countries. We receive no help, no advice and no shoulder to cry on.
Even our own parents reject us. They think homosexuality is “un-African”. They are scared of embarrassment and want us to live a lie and get married to a person of the opposite sex. Or even worse, they try to change us, force us to denounce homosexuality. But the reality is that nature is nature. Homosexuality is not something you learn, it’s the way one is born.
The fact is, no one can stop relations between two consenting adults. No law can stop love. This reminds me of when I was young and I couldn’t help who I fell in love with. The heart has no law but love. Being gay is being a human being with human emotions, and although a lot of us try to hide it to survive, the person you truly are simply emerges from within you. You can’t change who you are.
Please help us not to live in fear of tomorrow. Like all human beings, we want to look forward to a new day where we can be free to be who we are and love who we love.
Please support Rainbow Riots so we can help the Ugandan LGBT community in the fight against this dangerous bill.
Together, we can work towards a world with love, dignity, and equality for all human beings.