TheCall Ministries Plans Anti-Gay Rally in Uganda - Will it Revive the 'Kill the Gays' Bill?
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TheCall Ministries Plans Anti-Gay Rally in Uganda - Will it Revive the 'Kill the Gays' Bill?
posted by: Steve Williams 1 day ago
Those of you who have followed the story of Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009, frequently called the 'Kill the Gays' Bill for its mandate of the death penalty for the crime of "aggravated homosexuality" which particularly targets any sexually active gay person with HIV/AIDS, will no doubt be familiar with the history of the bill and how it appears that it was inspired by certain American evangelicals that, in March of last year, attended a conference in Uganda entitled: "A Seminar on Exposing the Homosexual Agenda." You can find out more on the American ties to the bill by going here.
Just when it seemed that the 'Kill the Gays' bill had been put on the back burner by Ugandan lawmakers, a new threat looms on the horizon from American anti-gay and anti-abortion extremist Lou Engle of TheCall Ministries who, with the endorsement of several of Uganda's local religious figures, has organized a rally event in Kampala for Sunday, May 2, that, according to the website, aims to specifically target "homosexuality and increased immorality" along with "the decay of morals and infrastructure" as "challenges" that need to be tackled alongside "witchcraft" and "human sacrifice."
From the Human Rights Campaign's action alert:
Engle was also part of a November 1, 2008, pro-Proposition 8/anti-gay marriage rally TheCall held in San Diego where he spoke against homosexuality, gay marriage and abortion. Engle is on record as saying that gay people are "possessed by demons", and has, in the past, called for "Christian martyrdom" to stop abortion. Engle's son also nowapparently works in San Francisco carrying out exorcisms to cast out "homosexual spirits."
While his influence may seem largely constrained in America, should Engle export his breed of anti-gay fervor to Uganda at this precarious time, it could add fuel to an already volatile fire.
As a result of last year's much smaller conference, a media campaignbegan in Uganda whereby the names, pictures and identifying details of Uganda's so-called "Top Homos" were printed in a national tabloid. Given the scope of this new event, such intensely dangerous circumstances seem destined to happen again, especially if Engel's past inflammatory statements on homosexuality and abortion are anything to go by.
Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) highlights why Engle's often colorful rhetoric could be especially dangerous in Uganda:
All this comes at a time when reports suggest that, while the bill's looming presence has not yet been extinguished, there has been a gradual wind-down of support for the legislation after President Museveni voiced his opinion that lawmakers should "go slow" on the bill and consider it carefully given the global attention the legislation has received.
One thing is clear: International condemnation of Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill has effectively slowed what once seemed to be a deadly runaway train. Lou Engle's proposed May event might once again stir up enough anti-gay animus to give new life to the proposed law and, moreover, could inspire fresh hatred and violence towards Uganda's LGBT population. This is a prospect that can not go unchallenged.
For those who are interested, SMUG has an action plan including a contact address so that those who are concerned can write to TheCall Ministries to voice their protest over "TheCall Uganda" event. Find out more here.
Pro-equality faith leaders and LGBT rights supporters have also created a Facebook group through which people can stay informed on the campaign to stop "TheCall Uganda" event from going ahead. You can join the group by going here. Alternatively, you can follow them on Twitter by going here.
Care2 Related Action:
Urge President Museveni to veto the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. Sign the Care2 petition today.
Already signed the petition? Thank you! Please consider forwarding it to your friends to spread the word. To find out more on Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill, links to our continued coverage of this story are provided below:
Just when it seemed that the 'Kill the Gays' bill had been put on the back burner by Ugandan lawmakers, a new threat looms on the horizon from American anti-gay and anti-abortion extremist Lou Engle of TheCall Ministries who, with the endorsement of several of Uganda's local religious figures, has organized a rally event in Kampala for Sunday, May 2, that, according to the website, aims to specifically target "homosexuality and increased immorality" along with "the decay of morals and infrastructure" as "challenges" that need to be tackled alongside "witchcraft" and "human sacrifice."
From the Human Rights Campaign's action alert:
Right wing fundamentalists are once again exporting hate and intolerance masked as religion to Uganda. The Call Uganda, led and fueled by American fundamentalist Lou Engle, is an anti-gay stadium event and all-day rally, scheduled for May 2nd in Kampala, Uganda. Faith leaders, including HRC’s Religion and Faith Program, have joined together to insist that we will not stand for the continual exportation of violence and hatred by fundamentalist preachers. Enough is enough. These incendiary actions, led by Lou Engle and others, put LGBT people, their families and allies in fear of their lives.
Engle, who bills himself as a "visionary" against “the spiritual darkness of the homosexual agenda,” recently took a turn in the spotlight as part of the 2009 "prayercast," an online gathering that called for divine intervention against America's health care reform bill.Engle was also part of a November 1, 2008, pro-Proposition 8/anti-gay marriage rally TheCall held in San Diego where he spoke against homosexuality, gay marriage and abortion. Engle is on record as saying that gay people are "possessed by demons", and has, in the past, called for "Christian martyrdom" to stop abortion. Engle's son also nowapparently works in San Francisco carrying out exorcisms to cast out "homosexual spirits."
While his influence may seem largely constrained in America, should Engle export his breed of anti-gay fervor to Uganda at this precarious time, it could add fuel to an already volatile fire.
As a result of last year's much smaller conference, a media campaignbegan in Uganda whereby the names, pictures and identifying details of Uganda's so-called "Top Homos" were printed in a national tabloid. Given the scope of this new event, such intensely dangerous circumstances seem destined to happen again, especially if Engel's past inflammatory statements on homosexuality and abortion are anything to go by.
Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG) highlights why Engle's often colorful rhetoric could be especially dangerous in Uganda:
Sexual Minorities Uganda calls on all human rights defenders, organizations, religious communities and leaders, governments, and civil society, globally to take action to ensure that Lou Engle and his associates do not set foot in Uganda and that the Call Uganda does not proceed with this inflammatory and hate-inducing plan. While Sexual Minorities Uganda supports freedom of worship, we recognize the need for restriction on any speech that incites hatred and violence against a minority group. If a prayer event is to be held in Uganda, it should be done in a manner which encourages Christ-like love and acceptance and does not incite hatred and violence toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex people...
[Engle's] inflammatory speech and focus on martyrdom can easily incite people in Uganda to disregard people’s human rights and go to extreme measures to eliminate whatever they characterize as “evil” or a “vice”. For example, Lou Engle preaches, “The most ‘dangerous terrorist’ is not Islam but God. One of God’s names is the avenger of blood. Have you worshiped that God yet?”
Put bluntly, the intolerant message that Engle and TheCall will be taking to Uganda in May could prove lethal for Uganda's much maligned LGBT population, and could ultimately be the spark that is needed to once again get the wheels turning in favor of the gravely abhorrent Anti-Homosexuality Bill.All this comes at a time when reports suggest that, while the bill's looming presence has not yet been extinguished, there has been a gradual wind-down of support for the legislation after President Museveni voiced his opinion that lawmakers should "go slow" on the bill and consider it carefully given the global attention the legislation has received.
One thing is clear: International condemnation of Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill has effectively slowed what once seemed to be a deadly runaway train. Lou Engle's proposed May event might once again stir up enough anti-gay animus to give new life to the proposed law and, moreover, could inspire fresh hatred and violence towards Uganda's LGBT population. This is a prospect that can not go unchallenged.
For those who are interested, SMUG has an action plan including a contact address so that those who are concerned can write to TheCall Ministries to voice their protest over "TheCall Uganda" event. Find out more here.
Pro-equality faith leaders and LGBT rights supporters have also created a Facebook group through which people can stay informed on the campaign to stop "TheCall Uganda" event from going ahead. You can join the group by going here. Alternatively, you can follow them on Twitter by going here.
Care2 Related Action:
Urge President Museveni to veto the Anti-Homosexuality Bill. Sign the Care2 petition today.
Already signed the petition? Thank you! Please consider forwarding it to your friends to spread the word. To find out more on Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill, links to our continued coverage of this story are provided below:
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