One Teachable Moment

Thanks to dear Martin…!

who is leading a church of homo-haters in disgust and revulsion at what gay men do behind closed doors.  And what do they do?  They “eat da poo poo,” of course, “like ice cream.”

Despite the very real possibility that this sort of propaganda will lead to the death penalty for men who have sex with other men in Uganda, the man is so ridiculous and clearly located elsewhere that Americanqueers have responded with humor more than outrage .  In fact, there’s even a dance remix of the minister’s anti-homo remarks.

Having watched this with my teenaged daughter – it was on her favorite vlog- we had one of those “teachable moments.”

Teenager:  That’s so messed up.  Uganda’s messed up.

Me: Yeah, but they’re funded by American conservative Christians.

Teenager: But Uganda’s more messed up than here.

Me: I hope so.

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You follow that post, you will find that the Republican Party of Texas believes almost word for word what Martin Ssempa preaches. Yeah, no one has a monopoly on stupidity.

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Ahem,. Uganda is one messed up country. I know, I am Ugandan, and fact is, I agree. Did you hear of the ‘National Day of Repentance’?

Declared by the President. It was last Sunday.... didn’t blog, my bad. But, it was, actually there. Fact, I am a non-believer. So maybe that is why it strikes me as weird. Other people’s religion, to one who is not so inclined, is weird.

The decision to declare a national day of repentance, according to the organisers, was reached after several prophets approached the president with prophetic warnings of bloodshed, death of political and church leaders, famine, and many other calamities that would befall Uganda as the consequences of her evil deeds.

“These and other acts, which have been or are being committed, have not pleased God. We risk losing out on God’s blessings for this nation if we choose to disobey Him,” President Yoweri Museveni warned in a press statement.

“Accordingly, I have declared that on Sunday June 20, 2010, at 9:00am at Kololo Independence Ground, we shall gather together for a special day of prayer and repentance. This is so that together we may thank God and seek his mercy and forgiveness for this great and chosen nation,” the president said.

When the President of the Republic declares a National day of repentance, I first feel it weird, and then start looking for something underhand. What I thought was happening was a rally... Elections are next year. The president is out in force on one of his ‘poverty’ tours. And, in Kampala, why not hold a religious rally? Have you seen the list of sins to repent of? It was drawn up by the Minister of Ethics and Integrity, Hon. Nsaba-Buturo, so homosexuality must be there somewhere...!

But, what is so weird, so funny, for me as a Ugandan, [errr, you know of how many times I as a gay Ugandan is accused of being non-patriotic, simply because I am gay?], what is interesting is that it seems the inspiration is coming from across the Antlantic, from America. You think I am lying you? Well, let me run and hide in the New Vision. And, as you read this, remember that it IS THE government paper. The government mouthpiece.

America became a blessed and prosperous country built on godly values after its former President Abraham Lincoln on March 30, 1863 appointed Thursday 30th April 1863 as a National Day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer for the pardoning of their national sins.

Now, which is which? When I say I am gay, I am accused of being an idiotic, unafrican person. When someone else imports a religion from their colonizers, and, continue to hold onto it… for them they are good.

Don’t worry, friends from America. We are kind of selective in our hypocrisy. We choose to lambast gay rights as of the devil, but we are kind of hypocritical in embracing the anti-gay agenda from the west. Well, we cannot embrace both, can we?

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One of the reasons that religion seems so weird to me is the issue of faith. We are human beings. Individiuals, different, unique…. yes? So, I would be happy thinking that we can never really agree. But, of course religious dogma says we must BELIEVE in something, in the correct way. Sorry, now I am injecting my personal prejudices into it… cant run away from them. Here is what the Catholic leader from Botswana believes about gay people.

“The Church does not reject them,” he said. “We only reject attendant practices, like sodomy.”

Calling homosexuality a “sickness mostly of our own making,” Seane added, however, that the orientation is not something that the church can “justify,” although the church will “sympathise to see how people who find themselves with such inclinations can be helped.”

“There are interventions that include surgery, hormonal (balancing), and psychological counseling,” he said. “We do acknowledge that such orientation might result from physiological make-up or hormonal imbalance, but you can work on that.”

“Sometimes socialization plays a role, especially in a family that perhaps had wanted to have a girl to such an extent that the parents insist on dressing a son in girl’s clothes,” Seane added.

So, how does one ‘believe correctly’? Not surprisingly, such a point of view is very different from our Ugandan religious leaders who wanted us in prison, or getting the death penalty, for touching, and other heinous crimes. Matter of fact, we kind of educated them a bit...!

Now, the sound of vuvuzelas is in my ears. South Africa against France... and those angry bees from the television have to be listened too. Of course, the French players revolt, and fact that the hosts South Africa maybe out after this match is interesting! Have a great day.

gug