Uganda

Ugandan Activist

b. June 17, 1979

“I am a gay man. I am also Ugandan. There is nothing un-African about me.”

Dr. Frank Mugisha is one of the most famous and outspoken advocates for LGBT rights in Uganda, a country where being gay is a criminal offense. He is the executive director of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) and advocates on behalf of LGBT Ugandans who face prison or even death for being openly gay. He has received both the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award and the Thorolf Rafto Memorial Prize for his work. 

When Mugisha was 14, he came out to his strict Catholic family. Many family members and friends disowned him. The rejection later inspired him to create Icebreakers Uganda, a group to help other young people with the coming-out process. 

In 2014 he came out publicly about Uganda’s anti-homosexuality law, which not only outlawed homosexual acts and compelled citizens to report suspected homosexual activity, but also mandated life imprisonment for LGBT citizens. “I want my fellow Ugandans to understand that homosexuality is not a Western import,” Mugisha said, “and our friends in the developed world to recognize that the current trend of homophobia is.”

Mugisha was also a plaintiff in a lawsuit against American evangelist Scott Lively for his work on Uganda’s anti-homosexuality bill. Mugisha has received death threats for his ongoing advocacy, but he has said, “For me, it is about standing out and speaking in an environment where you are not sure if you will survive the next day; it is this fear that makes me strong, to work hard and fight on to see a better life for LGBTI persons in Uganda.”

Activist

b. February 13, 1964

d. January 26, 2011

“What they're doing now is to make it more harsh on people, anyone promoting homosexuality is being criminalized.”

David Kato was the founder of Uganda’s LGBT civil rights movement.  He was an outspoken advocate for equality in a country with some of the harshest anti-gay laws. His murder brought global attention to the plight of LGBT people in Uganda and Africa.

Kato and his twin brother were raised in a conservative family in a small Ugandan village.  He recalled being brainwashed to believe “it was wrong to be in love with a man.” He attended some of Uganda’s best schools before moving to South Africa in the mid-1990’s to pursue a teaching career.  Inspired by South Africa’s LGBT civil rights movement, Kato became an activist.

In 1998, intent on dismantling the homophobia, Kato returned to Uganda, where homosexuality is a crime punishable by up to 14 years imprisonment. Uganda’s minister of ethics and integrity stated, “Homosexuals can forget about human rights.”

Despite the risks, Kato held a televised news conference pressing for LGBT civil rights.  As a result, he suffered several arrests and beatings.

Undeterred but cautious, Kato continued to lead the movement while supporting himself as a teacher. In 2004, he cofounded Sexual Minorities Uganda Group (SMUG), Uganda’s first LGBT civil rights organization. 

In 2009, the Ugandan legislature proposed a bill designating the death penalty for homosexuality. The following year, a Ugandan national newspaper published the names and photographs of gay rights activists, including Kato. It explicitly called for homosexuals to be executed by hanging.

Four months later, Kato was bludgeoned to death in his home. Local authorities claim his death had nothing to do with his sexual orientation.

In response to Kato’s death, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “This crime is a reminder of the heroic generosity of the people who advocate for and defend human rights on behalf of the rest of us—and the sacrifices they make.”