Uganda's Anti-Gay Government Bans Organizations Promoting Homosexuality: "Kill The Gays Campaign" & Rachel Maddow

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Uganda Bans 38 organizations accused of "Promoting Homosexuality"

Uganda has announced a ban on 38 non-governmental organisations it accuses of undermining the national culture by promoting homosexuality.

Simon Lokodo, the country's ethics and integrity minister, claimed the NGOs were receiving support from abroad for Uganda's homosexuals and "recruiting" young children into homosexuality.

"I have established beyond reasonable doubt that the 38 NGOs, if not even more, exist not for humanitarian reasons but to destroy the traditions and culture of this country by promoting homosexuality," he said on Wednesday.

"We found that, on the pretext of humanitarian concerns, these organisations are being used to promote negative cultures.

They are encouraging homosexuality as if it is the best form of sexual behaviour."

The former Catholic priest said he believes the ban will come into a force next week. "If the NGOs continue to operate, they will be doing so illegally, they will be apprehended and will have to face a court of law."

Homosexuality is illegal in Uganda.

A bill calling for harsher penalties and outlawing the "promotion" of homosexuality, including providing financial support to gays and lesbians, is pending in the east African country's parliament.

A previous bill called for the death penalty for repeat offenders, although the new version is expected to drop this clause after international condemnation of the proposal and threats to cut off aid.

Lokodo said: "Homosexuality is illegal, unacceptable and strange to our culture. It doesn't have any positive aspects at all.

If homosexuality is promulgated and legitimised, that will be like having no future of society. There is no procreation between man and man or woman and woman. We condemn it very strongly."

On Monday he ordered the break-up of a gay rights workshop organised by the East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project at a hotel just outside the capital, Kampala.

Police wearing riot gear sealed off the venue for several hours. About 15 activists from Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya and Tanzania were questioned and later released without charge.

Police spokesman Idi Senkumbi told Reuters: "They were questioned on what exactly they were up to and the assembly they were involved in."

Amnesty International condemned the raid. "This ludicrous and senseless harassment of human rights activists has no basis in law whatsoever and has to stop," said Michelle Kagari, its deputy director for Africa.

"The continued persecution of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights activists by the Ugandan authorities is beginning to take on the sinister characteristics of a witch hunt."

Lokodo made a similar intervention in February when he stormed into a gay rights conference and tried to have one of the organisers arrested for insulting him.

Frank Mugisha, head of the NGO Sexual Minorities Uganda, said the minister's ban was part of a wider assault on civil society in Uganda. "The government is trying to use homosexuality to crack down on freedom of expression and freedom of assembly," he said. "If NGOs are closed down, they will not be able to support human rights.

"Simon Lokodo is very homophobic but it's coupled with politics. He's trying to gain popularity and make his name. The president should come out and distance himself from Lokodo."

Sexual Minorities Uganda would defy any ban, insisted Mugisha, winner of the Robert F Kennedy human rights award last year. "We are definitely continuing our operations and we will still hold conferences. We will continue to ask for the oppressive laws that are being used to intimidate us to be abolished.

"They have said they are going to pass the bill before October. That won't stop us. We shall continue to fight until all the legislation is cleared and we are free. Things are changing. It cannot be oppression forever."

Mohammad Ndifuna, the director of Human Rights Network Uganda, another of the organisations to be banned, told Reuters: "We know that they have been all kinds of threats coming towards the [NGO] sector for different reasons."

In May, Uganda threatened to de-register the British charity Oxfam over accusations it made of government involvement in violent land grabs in the country.



Uganda Anti-Gay Death penalty bill re-introduced

The Ugandan parliamentarian who first introduced an anti-gay bill that carried the death penalty for some homosexual acts reintroduced the bill on Tuesday, raising concerns among rights activists who have been fighting the legislation.

Parliamentarian David Bahati first introduced the bill in 2009 but it has never come before the full legislative body for a vote. Though widely supported in Uganda, the bill's progress apparently has been slowed by an international outcry against the bill, including condemnation from President Barack Obama.

Bahati has said that homosexuality poses a serious threat to family values and that his bill has helped raise public awareness about what he calls "the dangers to our children."

Scuffles at funeral for gay activist in Uganda
Uganda proposes death penalty for gays

Bahati told The Associated Press last year that he is willing to drop the death penalty provision if that is the recommendation of a parliament committee, though a current reading of the bill hasn't been made public.

European countries such as Sweden and Britain have threatened to cut aid to Uganda if the bill is passed.

Homosexuality, already illegal under Uganda's penal code, is highly stigmatized in Uganda. Opinion polls frequently show the bill's wide support among Ugandans. Lawmakers other than Bahati have sometimes spoken passionately about the need for such a law, and none have condemned it.

The bill has been championed by Pentecostal clerics, who warn that young Ugandans are at risk of being indoctrinated into gay lifestyles by gays visiting from the U.S. and Europe. Even pastors who oppose the draft law do so not because it is draconian or unnecessary, but rather because they believe the police would not be able to enforce it.

"I've rejected it because it does not address Uganda's homosexuality problem," said Solomon Male, a Pentecostal cleric who has been dragged to court for accusing another pastor of sodomy. "The system can't permit any good law to be enforced."

Male said that an existing law against homosexuality, inherited from the colonial days, had not been enforced.

"It is a big problem-homosexuals are in our schools, in our churches, everywhere, and we don't even know where to start," he said. "Sensitization is the best."

Bahati's original bill carried harsh provisions. The original bill would mandate a death sentence for active homosexuals living with HIV or in cases of same-sex rape. "Serial offenders" also could face capital punishment, but the legislation did not define the term. Anyone convicted of a homosexual act would face life imprisonment.

Anyone who "aids, abets, counsels or procures another to engage of acts of homosexuality" would face seven years in prison. Landlords who rent rooms or homes to gays also could get seven years.


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Sources: CNN, MSNBC, Guardian.co.uk, Politics Daily, Youtube, Google Maps

Horn Of Africa Famine Captures World's Attention! Help On The Way?

Horn of Africa famine: How to help

Somalia, already one of the world's poorest countries, is in midst of an epic humanitarian catastrophe, as a third of its popultion - 3.7 million people - face starvation. Throughout the Horn of Africa, in countries like Ethiopia and Kenya, as many as 11 million people are currently at risk of severe malnutrition or starvation as the region faces the worst drought conditions in 60 years.


The drought conditions, combined with an ongoing struggle between the Somali government and Islamic militants, as well as a recent rise in food prices, have all combined to create conditions that have stretched aid agencies thin.


The Horn of Africa region is now full of refugee camps, some with occupants numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Every day, countless families arrive half-dead out of the desert seeking help.


Many aid agencies say they have the capacity to address some of the worst results of the crisis, but they lack the funding to do so. Fortunately, there are many ways to help. Below is a list of some of the aid organizations with relief operations in the Horn of Africa, along with links to their donation pages.

UNICEF is among the most active charitable organizations supporting children in Somalia. They say as many 640,000 children are acutely malnourished in southern Somalia alone. Their programs support 16 stabilization centers, 201 outpatient therapeutic programs, and 325 supplementary feeding programs. To donate money to UNICEF, visit here. To learn how you can donate your time.

The U.N.'s World Food Program is the world's largest humanitarian organization fighting hunger, and is funded entirely through donations. Their work in the Horn of Africa is extensive and crucial. To find out how to donate to the WFP.

Save the Children is one of the world's leading independent nonprofit organizations. It has made an urgent call to donors to provide life-saving help to thousands of families in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. "Eighty percent of the refugees are children and the majority of the remainder are women," says Duncan Harvey, Save the Children's Deputy Country Director in Ethiopia. To find a list of the many ways to help Save the Children with their work in East Africa.

The International Rescue Committee responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. To support their work helping refugees in the famine.

Doctors without Borders, founded in 1971, provides independent, impartial medical assistance to those most in need in crisis zones throughout the world. They have been working actively with Somali refugees in northern Kenya since 2009. To find out about the many ways to support their medical mission.

CARE is a leading humanitarian organization that places special focus on working alongside poor women because, they say, equipped with the proper resources, women have the power to help whole families and entire communities escape poverty. Their immediate efforts for Somalia refugees in Kenya include safe water, sanitation, and emergency aid to newly arrived refugees. Individuals, especially children, who are suffering from malnutrition and medical problems are referred to supplementary and therapeutic feeding programs and stabilization units. Families are provided with emergency rations while awaiting access to general food distributions. To donate to CARE's East Africa program.

Mercy Corps is a global aid agency that works for long periods of time in areas that have experienced some kind of shock. They currently work with Somali refugees in Kenya, and plan on expanding their mission to alleviate the famine into Somalia and Ethiopia. To find out how to donate.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has operations in Kenya and parts of Somalia helping refugees. To donate to the Red Cross.

World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families, and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. They are currently undertaking famine relief operations in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia. To donate to their effort.

American Jewish World Service is an international development organization that has a long-standing presence in East Africa and is working with humanitarian organizations already on the ground to provide critical aid to refugees, internally displaced persons and host communities, including food, water and sanitation, medical support and personal safety. To find out how to donate to AJWS' effort in the region.

Islamic Relief USA is a legally separate and independent member of a global family of collaborating relief organizations that was awarded its sixth consecutive four-star rating by Charity Navigator in 2009. They already had relief projects in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia prior to the current crisis. To find out about volunteering with or donating to Islamic Relief USA.


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Sources: CARE, CBS News, Youtube, Google Maps

Agnes & Lola: Online Authentic African Fashion Boutique

Online Fashion Boutique Brings African Design To The World


Watch the show on Fridays 1945, Saturdays 0145, 0615, Sundays 0715 (all times GMT).


With a wide selection of eye-catching prints and colorful garments, online boutique Agnes & Lola has set its sights on becoming the website of choice for African fashion.

Launched by Lola Remi in August, the UK-based fashion store aims to make African clothes more accessible to the rest of the world, as well as promoting ethical fashion.

Like many major fashion brands, the clothing store traces its origins to one of world's most iconic fashion capitals -- Paris.

"In Paris I noticed many African young people wore African print and they didn't just wear it in a traditional sense," Remi told CNN.

"They wore it with jeans and they wore it just as dresses, I was really impressed by this and kept thinking about it.

"And then once I came over here [London], a friend of mine, Xaverie [Bakheme], who is also one of the designers, actually went to Cameroon and had one of the dresses as well. And that's when I was captivated by the print and that's how I really got into African fashion," she added.

Agnes & Lola (named after Remi and her grandmother, Agnes) carries the work of young designers from all around Africa, all of whom have one thing in common -- their strong ties to the continent.

For Nigerian designer Nkwo Onwuka, inspiration for her clothes comes not just from her country but from the entire continent. "There are so many different cultures and colors and so many inspiring things," she told CNN.

"When you walk through the markets, there are beads, there are all sorts of fabrics, so I find my inspiration from the whole of Africa."

Another designer is Christine Mhando, who was born in Tanzania but raised in Britain. In 2007, she launched the Chichia London brand, known for its use of the "khanga," a traditional cotton printed garment worn by women in East Africa as a wrap.

"I use the fabrics from over there [Tanzania] and basically create it in a more modern style, a more European style, which is kind of basically what I would wear myself, because I am African but I am also British," Mhando told CNN.

For Remi, an important part of her business is giving back to the continent that inspired her. She says Agnes & Lola is aiming to give a percentage of its profits to charity.

"The first one that we've chosen is Medicins Sans Frontier, which is also Doctors without Borders. And we've chosen a particular aspect of it which is Condition Critical and that's where they focus very much on the conflict in the Congo region."

Remi says her mission is to promote not only talented, but also ethical designers who are committed to embroidering their fashion with social consciousness.

Some of the designers featured by Agnes & Lola use recycled materials, others use local artisans to help design their garments.

Remi said: "They [the designers] are the future of African fashion, and I very much hope that Agnes & Lola is also the future of African fashion, bringing it out to that audience and making it more marketable and out there.

"And also representing ourselves in a very positive and ethical fashion, building the continent as well. It's not just about building ourselves but about promoting Africa in a positive way."


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Sources: Agnes & Lola, CNN, Harlem Loves, Google Maps

Anthony Foxx's African Revelation! OMG! He's Black!

It seems Charlotte, NC Mayor Anthony Foxx recently discovered that he's Black!

What a Revelation!

Since this man was elected last Fall he has done absolutely NOTHING for
Charlotte's Black Community, even though most of this region's Black Voters cast
their ballots for him.

Now that Mayor Foxx learned he has "African Roots", perhaps this will motivate him to begin helping Charlotte's Black Community.

I'm just saying. Peace


Anthony Foxx Learns His African Roots!


For years, Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx could trace his ancestors no further than a mid-19th century slave auction in Moore County.

Until Thursday night.

That's when he learned that a DNA test reveals he's descended from the Fulani people of northern Nigeria, a tribe of nomads, herdsmen and warriors almost 6,000 miles away.

"It's pretty powerful," Foxx said after a presentation of the findings at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts + Culture. "It opens a new understanding that I didn't have before."

The disclosure came courtesy of African Ancestry, a company that specializes in genetic genealogy of black Americans.

The company helped Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates trace the African roots of celebrities such as TV host Oprah Winfrey, comedian Chris Rock, poet Maya Angelou, singer Tina Turner and actor Morgan Freeman. Each was featured in Gates' "African American Lives" specials on PBS.

African Ancestry traced Foxx's roots as part of its "We Are Africa" road tour, designed to promote its DNA-based genealogy.

Popularized by 'Roots'

For many African-Americans, family history hits a dead end in the 1800s. Public records are sketchy, slave roots often impossible to trace.

Foxx's family knew that his great-great grandmother was a slave named Betsy Elizabeth Bean. Lore has it that she arrived in Charleston from Africa as a young girl. She was eventually sold at auction in the Moore County town of Carthage.

"We're the only group in this country that can't point to a country of origin," said Gina Paige, president and co-founder of African Ancestry. "Psychologically knowing where you're from is a critical component to your identity. As African-Americans, we have a void."

Black genealogy was popularized by author Alex Haley's 1976 publication of "Roots." The best-selling book and subsequent mini-series traced his ancestry to a village in the modern-day West African country of Gambia.

The basis of his research almost four decades ago lay largely in piecing together stories passed down in his family.

"Today we can do that with DNA tests that are truly amazing," said Bill Ferris, the senior associate director of The Center for the Study of the American South at UNC Chapel Hill and a friend of the late author.

"Even Alex could not have imagined the dramatic changes that we've witnessed. His connection, as was the case in most black families, was in the oral tradition and the stories passed down from generation to generation. In Alex's case, it was his aunts who would gather at family reunions and talk about Kunta Kinte and Chicken George."

DNA Research

Using a series of flip charts, Paige outlined the genetic process to an audience of about 200 at the Gantt Center. She explained how her researchers traced Foxx's maternal lineage through his mother's mitochondrial DNA.

Like most African-Americans, many of those in the Carolinas trace their ancestry to West and Central Africa. Many came through the port of Charleston.

Deborah Wright, an archivist with Avery Research Center, an archive and museum in Charleston devoted to black history, said many slaves in the S.C. Lowcountry came from West African rice-growing areas in what are now Gambia, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Ferris, a former chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, said DNA research has revolutionized genealogy.

"It's like the birth of the Internet where we have instant access to all knowledge," he said in a phone interview. "It's kind of dazzling and changes all the basic understanding of history and genealogy...

"The ability to trace family history and ancestry from generation to generation is much more accessible to Americans than it ever was before, especially to black families."


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Sources: Charmeck.org, McClatchy Newspapers, WCNC, Google Maps

Happy Kwanzaa! Sandra Lee's Kwanzaa Cake Recipe Video

Kwanzaa Celebrates African Culture


A holiday tradition dating back not centuries but decades has begun with the start of the seven days of Kwanzaa.

Unlike Christmas and Hanukkah, Kwanzaa isn't a religious holiday. Based on the year-end harvest festivals held in Africa for thousands of years, it's observed worldwide starting Friday by people of African descent.

Local observances include "Kwanzaa and the Seven Principles: Willing the Well-Being of the World," organized by the Black Arts and Cultural Center in Kalamazoo. Events will be held at the Epic Center, Kalamazoo Mall and other locations.

"We are partnering with various organizations in the city to host Kwanzaa events at their locations throughout the week with special guest speakers and entertainment," center director Sid Ellis told the Kalamazoo Gazette.

Kwanzaa is a Swahili word that means "first fruits of harvest." The holiday was created in 1966 by Maulana Ron Karenga, a professor at California State University, Long Beach, who is also executive director of the African American Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

Participation in Kwanzaa has leveled off, according to Keith Mayes, an assistant professor of African American and African Studies at the University of Minnesota. Mayes estimates between 500,000 and 2 million people in the U.S. celebrate Kwanzaa, out of about 40 million Americans identified by the U.S. Census as black or multiracial.

Ellis said the numbers aren't as important as what people learn from Kwanzaa.

"Kwanzaa is an acknowledgment of the African culture and heritage, and something BACC wants to help share with the entire community," he said.



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Sources: Chicago Tribune, Official Kwanzaa Website, Food Network, Youtube, Wikipedia, Google Maps