Category: West Africa
Life after prison: Young gay Nigerian struggles to adjust
A gay young Nigerian man, Adebayo, is having a hard time coping with life after his release from prison. Get a free subscription: Keep info [...]
‘Lesbian wedding’ arrestees freed; Ghana’s anti-LGBTQ furor continues
Ghana police have freed the people they arrested last weekend at a party that police believed was a "lesbian wedding". Meanwhile, homophobic campaigns [...]
Ghana: Police arrest 14 at party, suspecting it was a ‘lesbian wedding’
[This article has been revised to state that 14 LGBTQ people were arrested at the party -- a revised figure reported by the African Equality Centr [...]
Ghana counselors see business opportunity in anti-gay uproar
Some anti-gay counselors and psychologists in Ghana have decided that the nation's ongoing anti-LGBTQ uproar is a good time to publicize treatment of [...]
Senegal: Religious militants use dating apps to trap, then torture gay men
The arrest of an alleged homosexual on March 12 in Touba, Senegal, is the latest in a vicious trend of entrapping gay men using dating sites. [...]
Leader of Ghana parliament vows passage of strict anti-LGBTQI bill
The Speaker of Ghana's Parliament declared today (Monday) that parliament will pass a strict anti-LGBTQI bill later this year, according to a report f [...]
Heterosexual Nigerian women speak out about being married to gay men
Five heterosexual Nigerian women reveal the pressures and disappointments of being married to gay men. Get a free subscription: Keep informed [...]
Gay Nigerian teenager gets a new home after being rejected by family
Nigerian gay teenager Bright* is excited about resettling in a new city after being disowned by his family because of his sexual orientation. G [...]
LGBTQ+ Rights Ghana appeals for help from President Akufo-Addo
The advocacy group LGBT+ Rights Ghana yesterday appealed to Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo for protection. A letter to Akufo-Addo from [...]
Senegal: Hate speech flourishes on Facebook in language used by 5 million
In Senegal, anti-gay hate speech spreads on Facebook without restraint in abusive posts that are written in Wolof, LGBTQ+ advocates say. That's the lo [...]
Archbishop rebukes archbishop: God loves gay Christians
The leader of the worldwide Anglican Communion of Christian churches has rebuked the leader of the Anglican Church of Nigeria for calling homosexualit [...]
Senegal: Homophobic attack No. 7 sends LGBTI activist to hospital
Djamil Bangoura, founder of the Senegalese LGBTI advocacy group Prudence+, is recovering from a seventh homophobic attack -- this time an assault on F [...]
Please help save Nigerian LGBTIQ+ online counseling app
Qtalk, an online counseling and social app serving thousands of LGBTIQ+ Nigerians, will be discontinued unless a modest fund drive succeeds. [...]
Nigerian church to anti-gay Americans: You’re not anti-gay enough
The homophobic Church of Nigeria has scolded its American allies for "toleration of same-sex persons within their fold.” Get a free subscri [...]
Ghana: Police raid LGBT+ center; activists call for boycott
After police raided Ghana's new LGBT+ center on Wednesday, gay-rights activists called for a boycott of anti-LGBT leaders and celebrities in the West [...]
New LGBT+ center triggers holy war of words in Ghana
The opening of an LGBTQ+ safe house and advocacy office in Ghana has sparked heated disputes over what the Bible and Pope Francis have to say about ho [...]
Gay couple breaks up, lesbians fight – Qtalk helps LGBTQ+ Nigerians
LGBTQ+ Nigerians benefit from the support provided by volunteer counselors via the Qtalk app. (Ninth in a series) Get a free subscription: [...]
Ghana: LGBT+ safe house opens; anti-gay crusader in a rage
As the advocacy group LGBT+ Rights Ghana celebrates the opening of a new office and safe space for the nation's LGBTQ+ community, the organization has [...]
Sex video, parents, violence – Qtalk helps LGBTQ+ Nigerians
LGBTQ+ Nigerians benefit from the support provided by volunteer counselors via the Qtalk app. (Eighth in a series) Subscribe for free. See mo [...]
‘Proudly Gay’ – Popular Nollywood actor comes out as gay
Uche Maduagwu, a Nollywood Nigerian actor, recently came out as gay -- to the surprise of many. Subscribe for free. See more from the African Hum [...]
Nigerian gay-themed film will explore homophobia’s impact
Gay Nigerians are excitedly anticipating the release of a new Nigerian gay-themed film that will explore the impact of homophobia and other issues tha [...]
Nigeria is about to get its first trans beauty pageant
A group of trans women and activists are set to launch what will be Nigeria’s first trans beauty pageant. From the African Human Rights Media [...]
Nigerian gay YouTuber shares his coming out experience
YouTube celebrity and gay advocate Vicwonder got a boost from a GoFundMe funding campaign after coming out as gay to his Nigerian family. He shared hi [...]
Senegal: Victims of homophobia find respect inside prison walls
African prisons often are hotbeds of homophobic violence, but that hasn't been the experience of seven Senegalese men convicted in November on homosex [...]
37 arrests of allegedly LGBTQ Senegalese since September
The ongoing anti-LGBTQ crackdown in Senegal reached a new milestone yesterday with the arrest of the 37th person suspected of being part of a sexual m [...]
Meet the Nigerian blogger who amplifies queer visibility
A Nigerian blogger popularly known as Evander Bright is leveraging social media to promote LGBTQ+ visibility and provide a safe space for members of t [...]
Romeo and Juliet: Couple in love flees Mauritanian parents, sharia law
This is a love story, but not a usual one: A young couple fell in love and got married. The bride’s parents objected. So far, so familiar. But here’s [...]
Blackmail, parents, threats – Qtalk helps LGBTQ+ Nigerians
LGBTIQ+ Nigerians benefit from the support provided by volunteer counselors via the Qtalk app. (Seventh in a series) From the African Human Right [...]
Silence = failure when Senegal’s LGBT community is attacked
This fall, Senegal learned that its human rights defenders lacked the courage to defend sexual minorities against human rights abuses. From [...]
Senegal: Activists pledge to confront Islamist homophobia
LGBT rights activists in Senegal are speaking out against violently homophobic Islamists even as they work to help the victims of that homophobia. A t [...]
African churches: Why preach love, then imprison gays?
Why do people who preach love every Sunday want people put in prison for what they do in the privacy of their bedrooms? That was one of the questions [...]
Senegal: Arrest of 2 homosexuals at Great Mosque of Dakar
Two suspected homosexuals were arrested Nov. 23 in the area of the Grand Mosque of Dakar, Senegal. From the African Human Rights Media Netw [...]
#EndSARS: LGBT Nigerians get extra help to cope with crisis
More than a dozen LGBT Nigerians suffering from violence stirred up by #EndSARS protests have benefited from an emergency community relief program run [...]
Slander, HIV, bias at work – Qtalk helps LGBTQ+ Nigerians
LGBTIQ+ Nigerians benefit from the support provided by volunteer counselors via the Qtalk app. (Sixth in a series) From the African Human Rig [...]
13 Senegal arrestees were tortured before being released
Torture by police followed by the dangers of release back into Senegal's homophobic society. That is the testimony of men who were arrested Oct. 16 at [...]
Senegal: Prison for 7 men arrested at supposed ‘gay wedding’
A court in Senegal imposed prison sentences Friday on seven allegedly gay men who were arrested Oct. 16 at a celebration that police claimed was a gay [...]
Nigerian youth commits suicide after being blackmailed by homophobes
A young man in Lagos, Nigeria, reportedly committed suicide last week after he was blackmailed by homophobes. From the African Human Rights M [...]
Nigeria gets its first LGBTQ online streaming platform
Equality Hub, a Nigerian non-profit working to advance the rights of sexual minority women, has just launched a new LGBTQ online streaming platform. [...]
Nigeria: Prosecution flubs 47-man homosexuality trial; judge dismisses case
A Nigerian court ended a legal stalemate this week, dismissing a two-year-old case against 47 men charged with breaking the country's 2014 anti-homose [...]
You can help LGBT Nigerians crushed by #EndSARS violence
Their jobs lost. Their shops looted. Forced to beg in order to eat. LGBT Nigerians are frustrated, depressed, and plunged into poverty by the violence [...]
Senegal: Anti-gay zealots target 25 arrested men, 4 teenage girls
Senegal has intensified its repression of LGBTQ+ people amid escalating anti-gay propaganda and political pressure from the strict Islamist organizat [...]
#EndSARS Crisis: Here’s how to support LGBTIQ+ Nigerians
LGBTIQ+ Nigerians are suffering from violence and economic hardships triggered by the #EndSARS protests that have spread across the country. You can h [...]
Good news from Senegal: 4 rescued men reach safety
The last of 10 suspected homosexuals who were rounded up on Sept. 20 by the Safyatoul Haman religious militia in the holy city of Touba have been evac [...]
Family, blackmail, intersex – Qtalk helps LGBTQ+ Nigerians
LGBTIQ+ Nigerians benefit from the support provided by volunteer counselors via the Qtalk app. (Fifth in a series) From the African Human Rig [...]
Senegal: How a gay activist confronts violent Islamic homophobia
Arrests, assaults, rapes, expulsion, exile -- an LGBTQ rights leader in Senegal explains his struggles against violent and hypocritical Islamic homoph [...]
Openly gay Nigerian minister Jide Macaulay now ordained a priest
U.K.-based British-Nigerian gay minister the Rev. Jide Rebirth Macaulay has been ordained a priest in the Church of England. From the African Hum [...]
Anti-gay violence continues in Senegal’s ‘holy city’
Once again the gay community in Senegal's holy city of Touba is suffering from homophobic violence. On Oct. 8, another young man was beaten up, filmed [...]
Nigeria Diversity Prize picks 15 finalists, including RightsAfrica founder
Queer rights activists, journalists, and advocates in the fights against cerebral palsy and autism are among the 15 finalists newly announced by the N [...]
Here’s Nigeria’s first LGBTIQ+ virtual job fair and why you should be a part of it
LGBTIQ+ Nigerians have a chance to be a part of an upcoming Naija LGBT Virtual Job Fair scheduled for next month. From the African Human Rights M [...]
New Nigerian song promotes sexual diversity and human rights for all
Nigerian singer and human rights activist Samuel Uchenna, popularly known as Samuch, has released an empowering new song that promotes respect for all [...]