Gender fluidity remains a contentious topic across the African continent, marked by societal norms and cultural beliefs that often hinder its expression and acceptance. African social expectations of gender identity are largely determined by a deeply entrenched patriarchal system and the influence of colonialism.
LGBT rights in Africa.
Historical Context and Cultural Acceptance
Before the onset of colonization, numerous African cultures displayed a rich tapestry of gender identities and expressions that were far more fluid and diverse than the rigid frameworks imposed by colonial authorities. In many societies, traditional gender roles were not strictly defined, allowing for a broader spectrum of gender experiences.
- The Lango people of Uganda have a flexible view of gender that allows people to identify as either male or female regardless of their biological sex, an acceptance that extends to same-sex relationships.
- Similarly, the Imbangala people in Angola have a cultural practice in which men can don women’s clothing and live alongside their wives.
- In Nigeria, the Igbo and Yoruba communities don’t assign gender at birth.
- The Dagaaba people of Ghana assign gender based on the energy a person exudes rather than their biological sex, emphasizing the fluidity of gender identities and diverging from the conventional binary perspective.
- In Zimbabwe, the San people have left cave paintings that illustrate sexual relationships between men, suggesting a cultural acceptance and hinting at the possibility of gender fluidity within their society.
- Among the Zande warriors in the Congo and Sudan, same-sex relationships were not only commonplace but also culturally significant, with young men often marrying older warriors and assuming domestic roles until they transitioned into being warriors themselves.
- South African miners adopted a similar practice in which the older men would have younger men as “boy-wives” who were responsible for domestic tasks in addition to providing companionship and sexual intimacy.
Gender fluidity extends beyond cultural practices and is deeply embedded in African spirituality. Various African cultures have historically celebrated androgynous or intersex deities. In Mali, the Nommo of the Dogon people embodies this fluidity, while ancient Egyptian deities like Mut and Sekhmet also reflect a reverence for nonbinary identities.
Some West African societies have documented the presence of transgender priests and rituals that included cross-dressing. Among the Lugbara community, there are transgender people who communicate with the spirit world. Transgender women mediums are named okule (“like women”), while transgender men mediums are called agule (“like men”).
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African Spirituality.
The Impact of Colonization and Modern Challenges
Today, however, Africa is rife with violent and murderous hatred that affects LGBT people of all genders, sexualities, ages, and racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. The repression of gender fluidity can be traced back to the mid-19th century, when European colonizers-heavily influenced by religious missionaries-imposed strict, binary views of gender that were rooted in the values of Victorian-era Christianity.
These views-particularly those based on the King James Bible-condemned same-sex relationships and marginalized any expression of gender that fell outside the traditional male and female categories. The introduction of Christian values by the colonizers helped shape the legal systems that emerged during that era, criminalizing same-sex relationships and entrenching patriarchal norms.
As the European powers expanded their influence, they imposed penal codes that explicitly banned homosexual acts. In South Africa, the Immorality Act of 1957 was one of the earliest laws aimed at restricting intimate relationships. Laws targeting “cross-dressing” were established by British colonial authorities in multiple countries across Africa.
In Gambia, the Criminal Code of 1965 illegalized sexual acts between two men or between two women. A 2013 amendment stipulates that any man who publicly dresses as a woman could face up to five years in prison and a potential fine. Colonization also led to the suppression of third-gender expressions, which were often viewed through a lens of inferiority and primitiveness.
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Many African nations continue to uphold laws that criminalize homosexuality, and gender-based violence remains a significant concern across the continent. African leaders, in their struggle to maintain political popularity, have fostered an environment in which LGBT people often face persecution.
Today, the attitudes toward LGBT people in Uganda have become increasingly rigid, leading to widespread discrimination, harassment, and violence. In 2023, the Ugandan Parliament enacted an Anti-Homosexuality Act that imposed severe penalties for consensual same-sex relationships, including life imprisonment.
Nigeria has a similar law preventing people from entering into a same-sex marriage or civil union, being involved in LGBT clubs or organizations, or publicly displaying affection in same-sex relationships. The Ghanaian Parliament is considering a bill that would impose a prison sentence of up to three years for anyone who identifies as LGBT.
South Africa: A Beacon of Hope and Persistent Challenges
In contrast, South Africa has been a pioneer in LGBT rights as the first nation to provide protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation in its constitution and the fifth globally to legalize same-sex marriage. The legal protections for queer people are unmatched across the continent.
But despite these progressive laws, many LGBT people still face social stigma, discrimination, and violence, highlighting the challenges that persist even in a country known for its progressive legislation. Transgender people in South Africa also face discrimination and mistreatment within the healthcare system, particularly in hospitals, where they often encounter stigmas and barriers to accessing appropriate care.
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This not only leads to poorer health outcomes but also exacerbates existing health disparities. And not enough healthcare professionals possess the necessary knowledge and understanding to deliver competent care, including gender-affirming treatments. Structural barriers, such as long wait times and bureaucratic hurdles, further complicate their access to care.
Many trans people report negative encounters with healthcare providers, including mistreatment, ridicule, and gossip, which can lead to feelings of alienation. Moreover, some find themselves excluded from primary healthcare services because of misconceptions that they require special psychiatric care.
Another issue often faced by transgender people, especially the young, is family abandonment. Many of these young people find themselves homeless, as they may be forced to leave their parents’ homes or feel unwelcome there. This lack of support can lead to a cascade of challenges, including emotional turmoil, difficulties in accessing essential resources, and a heightened risk of both physical and mental health issues.
Transgender and gender-diverse people in South Africa also know they may encounter brutal violence that could end in death. In 2021, there was an increase in attacks on the nation’s LGBT community, with sixteen reported murders, predominantly targeting black lesbians and people who identify as transgender. In 2024, there were fourteen reported murders, with one transgender woman, Aobakwe Mahlobo, surviving a brutal attack at a local tavern.
While the situation may appear hopeless-especially in other African countries such as Uganda and Nigeria-South African transgender activists and organizations are dedicated to improving the rights and lives of the community. Their efforts encompass legal advocacy, awareness initiatives, and direct support services aimed at fostering a more inclusive society.
LGBTQ+ Pride Flag Map of Africa.
Experiences of Black Lesbians
The experiences of Black lesbians are rarely studied by psychologists. American society examines the intertwining of race and sexuality in the lives of Black lesbians. stressors in their lives, and their life satisfaction. and the Importance of the Lesbian Community Scale. Relationship (68%). and moderately high negative effects from the events they had experienced. Being lesbian, community reaction and family reaction events they had experienced.
Community and the lesbian community were viewed as important to them. Community, and give support for the triple minority experience of Black lesbians.
For Lesbian Visibility Day 2020, we asked four lesbians living in Africa what visibility means to them. When danger surrounds using your name and your face, you have no other choice than to make yourself invisible. It is quite sad that we have to be asked for our names to be connected with our words and voice; I watch my back every day of my life.
I try to live my life but it is scary. I have been a victim of a homophobic attack by the police. In my profession, as a chef, I have been told not to put “my gay hands’’ in their food. My partner and I were supposed to cook for a funeral. We had been contacted by a member of the deceased’s family and negotiation had reached an advanced stage only for a senior member of the family to breeze in and torpedo our hope of getting a job.
It is painful and stressful at once to be a target, not for having committed a crime. Being a target by nature is traumatic. Visibility is highly important to me and people must accept that we exist.
Visibility to me depends on what you do. It could be work or domestic space. For me who works in an office that is affiliated with queer people, I feel seen and appreciated by people I work with. It is about having a queer desk in the police and other institutions. It is being allowed to live in different circles.
We all have different personalities and these personalities are intertwined. You can be a mother, a daughter, a sister, a sex worker, and so on. It is, for example, being a queer lawyer, taxi conductor, office clerk, or trader. You can be out in certain spaces and may not be in other spaces. I believe visibility is relative and visibility goes back to the issue of security.
In Uganda, the laws surrounding queerness are taboo. Yet, the laws are manipulated to be against queer people and not even your neighbor can or will fight for you. I don’t believe in coming out because straight people didn’t come out to me. I came out to myself though because when I noticed my feeling for girls, it was very weird and for a very long time, I was ashamed of myself, I hid it, never acknowledging it. Visibility is the ability to see everybody different.
I think it’s the ability of others to see what I’ve been seeing all my life: my own consciousness because I’m not just skin. But regardless of the world seeing you or not, you know you are a soul inside a body. I went to a missionary secondary school. That was my first encounter with homophobia, how girls who liked girls were ostracized and expelled. The first thing I did when I decided to accept myself was to cut off people who were homophobic.
Growing up, I didn’t find a lot of queer people around me but then I got on the internet and I started finding blogs, accounts that centered on queer life. Visibility means being seen, being recognized, being acknowledged. It reflects in the big ways and in small ways. Visibility is representation; reading books where there are characters like you, watching films where there are characters like you. Lesbians are people. They are our mothers, sisters, aunties, friends.
Activism and Resistance
First of all, I take as theory their very act of being out and religious. So, not leaving their religious communities, serving and serving as leaders in their religious communities is courageous when structures seek to demand their invisibility or their erasure. In this sense, I wish to expand the notion of activism beyond the typical conceptualizations that we may have of activism as marches or political reforms. Instead, what I'm trying to highlight here are what black sociologist Patricia Hill Collins notes as everyday activism.
It is in these private decisions made public that these black lesbian religious leaders' lives become theory, a theoretical positioning that contains within it a politics of resistance. This attention to everyday acts of self-determination is one of the markers of my project, as these activists can be viewed as persons who are working within their everyday lives. They're just going to work. They're just being themselves. And they are taking great risk and great reward. I resist cultural invisibility and religious irrelevancy.
Another factor for my project is ethicist Rosetta Ross's witnessing and testifying. This text explores social justice activism from slavery into the civil rights movement. And in it, she highlights how black women have fought to ensure human dignity through their community work, through their organizing, teaching, lecturing, demonstrating, suing, and arguing. All the while utilizing their belief in God to motivate them to help produce the change they want to see.
Fear and courage in combating homophobia in Africa | Seun Bakare | TEDxLeidenUniversity
The Role of Religion
Religion is often seen as a conservative force in contemporary Africa. In particular, Christian beliefs and actors are usually depicted as driving the opposition to homosexuality and LGBTI rights in African societies.
This book nuances that picture, by drawing attention to discourses emerging in Africa itself that engage with religion, specifically Christianity, in progressive and innovative ways - in support of sexual diversity and the quest for justice for LGBTI people.The authors show not only that African Christian traditions harbor strong potential for countering conservative anti-LGBTI dynamics; but also that this potential has already begun to be realized, by various thinkers, activists and movements across the continent.
Their ten case studies document how leading African writers are reimagining Christian thought; how several Christian-inspired groups are transforming religious practice; and how African cultural production creatively appropriates Christian beliefs and symbols. In short, the book explores Christianity as a major resource for a liberating imagination and politics of sexuality and social justice in Africa today.
Good quality social science and humanities research about same-sex sexuality in Africa is rare
This, does not imply that same-sex sexuality is not practised in Africa. The alarming news reports that appear with increasing regularity about extreme expressions of homophobia in some African countries (in recent times most notably Nigeria and Uganda) indicate that same-sex sexual relations are indeed part of the African sexual landscape.
Discussions about same-sex sexuality being ‘un-African’ would be moot, if African people did not engage in it. However, our understanding of same-sex sexuality in Africa has increased to a dramatic extent in response to the HIV epidemic, recognising that in the recent past we did not know much in relation to the relationship between same-sex sexuality and HIV, outside of the richer countries of the West.
Although this epidemic, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, was long believed to be exclusively characterised by heterosexual transmission, research in the recent past strongly indicates that in these countries, the odds of being infected with HIV is higher among men who have sex with men than among men in general. Attention to same-sex transmission of HIV has also contributed to the proliferation of community-based organisations with a focus on same-sex sexuality.
A consequence of this growth is an increasing societal visibility of same-sex sexuality, which likely also contributed to the mobilisation of counter forces in religion, politics, culture, tradition and indeed the law. This literature is primarily of an epidemiological nature, focusing on HIV prevalence and on men.
