Africa, My Motherland

Newspapers in Uganda are infamous for printing the names and faces of LGBT people and calling for them to be targeted and attacked. Now, LGBT activists are taking the press into their own hands. 

A group of LGBT and allied Ugandans recently created Bombastic, the nation’s first-ever magazine by and for LGBT people. It will discuss LGBT news and politics, answer common questions about homosexuality, and feature personal stories of LGBT Ugandans. Because of the very real threat of persecution or even murder of LGBT people, many of the contributors will be using pen names, though some are choosing to use their real names and faces. 

Amnesty International says that while the Anti-Homosexuality Act was in force, people who identified as, or were perceived to be, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex, or LGBTI, were arbitrarily arrested. It also said some were beaten and groped by police — a violation of fundamental human rights.

“Over time people began getting so furious because they were told [LGBT people] are recruiting children and infecting them with diseases, [and] that turned the perception of people who never minded before,” says Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera, a prominent LGBT activist who helped create Bombastic.

Emphasizing the need to dispel fallacies at play in Uganda’s national discourse on homosexuality, Bombastic allows the gay community to define the narrative on its own terms.

"They term it promotion of homosexuality, and we have seen in the past radio stations threatened to be closed down if they let us go on air, or radio hosts who have been suspended for hosting us, so the avenues for us to be able to engage some of the general public have all been closed," Nabagesera said. "We felt the need to come up with another means for us to be able to take out our message, and what better way than to use the same media.”