Dozens Already Arrested in Nigeria Under Antigay Law

[William769]

Source: The Advocate

Dozens of people have already been arrested in Nigeria since a law was enacted that provides for jail time those who enter into marriages or civil unions with someone of the same gender. The law also prohibits public declarations regarding LGBT issues as well as gatherings of LGBT people.

The Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act was signed into law January 7 by President Goodluck Jonathan.

Already, four men were arrested in the state of Bauchi and possibly tortured in order for them to name additional gay people. Through that arrest, authorities reportedly compiled a list of 168 gay Nigerians, 38 of whom had been arrested recently, according to the Associated Press.

An AIDS activist, who requested anonymity, told the AP the men were arrested because a rumor was spread that they rhad eceived $20 million from the United States to promote marriage equality in Nigeria.



Read more: http://www.advocate.com/news/world-news/2014/01/14/dozens-already-arrested-nigeria-under-antigay-law

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And so it begins.

[hrmjustin]

1. We shoukd withdraw our ambasador and sanction them.

[William769]

2. For starters, yes!

[blkmusclmachine]

3. And the US/UN won't do SQUAT. Maybe they'll issue a statement, then WASH THEIR HANDS OF IT.

[blkmusclmachine]

4. Realize that U.S. Evangelical "Christian" organizations have been pushing for the Death Penalty for

African gay people, something I suspect these "Christian" organizations been exporting to Africa for awhile now. I bet/I am pretty sure these "Christian" organizations would like to do the same thing here in the U.S.

[William769]

5. No argument from me.

The Christian right is the enemy to all.

[Bluenorthwest]

6. This is what comes from the hate speech of the various anti gay clerics and preachers

This is why it is not in the least charming that folks promote anti gay hate speakers in any way, for any reason. This is what they ask for when they excuse that hate speech.

[William769]

8. Absolutely agree!

[theHandpuppet]

9. Exactly

Going to GD some days makes me want to puke.

[William769]

10. This really wanted to make me puke.

Look at this poll & the responses. http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=4310734 and that how it begins, with a simple joke not meant to cause harm. Yeah right.

[theHandpuppet]

12. Frankly, this is no surprise

GD is being overrun with the stupid, superficial, and silly. It is supposed to be a politics forum, not a personal facebook page for pre-pubescent nose pickers. You can hardly find any serious political discourse for dodging the endless posts about subjects like Justin Beiber, penis pumps, cute kitty photos and puerile polls with "jokes" that one might expect to find at a drunken frat party full of bigots. I'd like to know where the adults -- at least those who wish to discuss politics and who actually believe in the Democratic platform -- hang out. Better yet, why has it been allowed to deteriorate as a place for political discourse? There are supposed to be rules, not that you'd notice.

[shenmue]

7. Awful

[Swede Atlanta]

11. So the Xtian right got their wish.....

This is what happens when a minority is singled out. It is NEVER about the inherent qualities of the minority or their potential impact on the majority. It is always about the majority putting it to a minority group because they can.

There is no doubt if the xtian right thought they could get away with it they would gleefully embrace legislation here that would re-criminalize all manner of same-gender intimacy and love. The most hard core would welcome the ability to put those people in prison for decades or even execute them.

They claim Jebus told them so but he never said a single word about homosexuals. The Old Testament prohibition on a man sleeping with another man as with a woman had nothing to do with same-gender attraction and love. It was common practice at the time in the region for victors to humiliate the vanquished men and women by raping them. The Leviticus proscription is clearly intended to prohibit the practice of raping vanquished men. Interesting enough it was still okay to rape the women. But it was never in the context of same-gender attraction and love. And certainly no one at that time understood human sexuality the way it is understood today.