Today is the International Day Against Homophobia (and Transphobia). And while LGBT Americans have reason to celebrate over recent advances in the cause of LGBT equality here in America, we need to be mindful of the horrors faced by individuals in much of the world. In far too many nations, being gay can lead to imprisonment or even the death penalty. In other nations, gays need fear being physically beaten simply for being who they are. What fuels such oppression? Religion first and foremost, adding to the proof that over the centuries, religion is a principal cause of evil in the world. And jumping on the band wagon are opportunistic politicians like Vladimir Putin and Yoweri Museveni who fan homophobia as a ruse to distract their oppressed citizenry from the abject failure of their policies and the rampant corruption that is a hallmark of their regimes. Yes, the politicians who use homophobia in this way are despicable, but it is ignorance embracing religion that sets the stage. A piece in The Daily Beast reminds us of the plight of gays in other parts of the world. I hope readers will stop and take a moment to remember the plight of our brothers and sisters around the world. Better yet, make a donation to an organization seeking to aid them. Here are article excerpts:
Google “Idaho” and “gay” in an average American’s mind, and you’ll get some strange results. Maybe something about Idaho becoming the 19th state to legalize same-sex marriage (although an appeals court has put the ruling on hold for now). Or maybe something about Governor Butch Otter’s wife, Gay, or his name, which is very gay.
To LGBT activists elsewhere in the world, IDAHO has a very different meaning: the International Day Against Homophobia, which takes place this year on Saturday, May 17. IDAHO—recently renamed IDAHOT to include transphobia in the acronym—is, as the name implies, an international day of parades, flash mobs, toothless political pronouncements, and other statements in support of the idea that LGBT people deserve to be free from violence and discrimination.
The fact that most Americans have no idea that the day even exists should give us pause, especially as the hard-won gains here seem to be provoking a backlash all around the world. Our ignorance and isolation is itself part of the problem.
U.N. Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon, as well as the directors of UNAIDS and the UN Development Programme, have all issued statements.
Some IDAHOT events are being planned and executed under threats of violence and persecution. In China, for example, Fan Popo, a leading LGBT activist and director of the documentary film Mama Rainbow, told me that all but one of this year’s IDAHOT events have been shut down by the government—and the one that went on (on May 16) took place while the organizer was in a police station. In South Africa, where the legal regime is favorable to LGBT people but social homophobia is on the rise, a full day of films, panels and performances in planned for Johannesburg. And in Russia, a flash mob is set to take place in the center of St. Petersburg, coordinated by Coming Out St. Petersburg, one of the organizations targeted by the Putin regime.
But not much in the United States. All that’s listed so far is a party in Omaha and a grassroots “day of action” in New Orleans.
There are many reasons for this relative lack of attention. Typical American exceptionalism, for one. Who cares in Kansas about what happens in Kyrgyzstan? We don’t do “international” here.
Another reason is the American nonprofit industry, with behemoths like the Human Rights Campaign focused on their own agendas and development campaigns. These organizations don’t raise money by being part of a vast international network; they raise money by branding themselves and their initiatives. IDAHOT doesn’t generate ROI.
Yet while Americans may be unaware of homophobia around the world, homophobes around the world are quite aware of Americans.
First, there’s our own homophobia-for-export industry. On May 19, PBS will air the film God Loves Uganda, which exposes the work of American evangelicals to spread lies about LGBT people in Africa. The same people—Scott Lively, the World Congress of Families, the Alliance Defending Freedom, Exodus Global Alliance, and many more — have also spread their venom in South America, Russia, and elsewhere. I won’t go into the details here; watch the film to see the evidence for yourself.
Second, there’s the increasing power of the homosexuality-is-Western meme, particularly used as a wedge issue by opportunistic politicians. Russia’s Vladimir Putin is the best known example—he recently blamed the crisis (if that’s what it is) in the Ukraine on “gay Nazis.” But the same meme has appeared in such far-flung places as Brunei, Kyrgyzstan (there it is again), Tanzania, and Jamaica.
Dan Savage’s encouragement notwithstanding, things are not getting better. In many parts of the world, they are getting worse.
Uganda is just the beginning. Elsewhere in Africa, new anti-gay laws have been proposed in Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. Anti-gay violence has been increasing across the continent.
Likewise, Russia’s “Anti-Propaganda Law” has caused a spike in anti-gay violence in Russia, and similar measures are to be proposed in neighboring countries Kazakhstan, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Georgia, and, yes, Kyrgyzstan.
Nor are things “getting better” in Asia. China has recently cracked down on LGBT activists, arresting nine in a sweep on Wednesday, and four more on Friday. The tiny sultanate of Brunei, as reported in The Daily Beast, has implemented a harsh form of shariah which threatens women, gays, and non-Muslims.
[W]hile we in the United States face inward and celebrate the remarkable cascade of good news on marriage equality and other issues, LGBT people in many parts of the world are literally and justifiably afraid for their lives. Some of this deterioration is a backlash against the high-profile progress of gay rights in the United States and Europe, some is instigated by Americans themselves, and some is political opportunism.
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