Africa and LGBT: Is Africa the new site for the clash of ‘civilizations’?

AFRICA AND LGBT: IS AFRICA THE NEW SITE FOR THE CLASH OF 'CIVILIZATIONS'?
Name:
Course Code:
Date:
Introduction
Homosexuality is not a foreign concept to Africans. However, all African countries but South Africa have criminalized same-sex marriage. In some countries like Uganda, homosexual behavior carries up to 14 years of prison time. The west made African behavior criminal in the continent and later changed tune, and today, western countries are calling on African countries to recognize LGBTQ rights. Views on homosexuality have gone through several iterations. At first, in pre-colonial Africa, homosexuality in the continent was normal and legal. In the wake of African 'civilization' through colonialism, homosexuality became criminal and un-African. In post-colonial Africa, the west is trying to make it normal and legal though there is a strong religious push by a part of western religious leaders to maintain the status quo.
Traditional African Societies and Homosexuality
In northern Africa, among the Yoruba people, there is a word for homosexuality, adofuro. Adofuro is a colloquial term for anal sex. Adofuro is a pre-colonial term which shows that there were elements of homosexuality in the community before colonization. In the northern parts of Nigeria, the Hausa people also had a term for men who were considered wives to other men. Bisi Alimi argues that Yan daudu was more about identity than the act.[Nel, Marius. 2020. LGBTIQ + people and Pentecostals: An African Pentecostal hermeneutic perspective. LIT Verlag Münster., 176] [Ibid, 176]
Early literature on African communities by European explorers noted some elements of homosexuality among African communities. In pre-colonial Africa, there were some prominent Africans who were openly gay. King Mwanga II of the Buganda kingdom in present-day Uganda was openly gay. He was not ostracized, and he was considered a king like any other who came before him. Theoretically, the Buganda people accepted homosexuality during the reign of King Mwanga II. Farther east, in Kenya, the Kamba, Kipsigis communities recognized woman to woman marriages. Whilst the main reason for a woman to woman marriage was for the sake of children, especially when one of them was barren, it highlights that the community was not against homosexuality.[Cole, Catherine M., Takyiwaa Manuh, Stephan F. Miescher, and Stephan Miescher. 2007. Africa After Gender? Indiana University Press.] [Cadigan, R. 1998. "Woman-to-Woman Marriage: Practices and Benefits in Sub-Saharan Africa." Journal of Comparative Family Studies 29 (1): 89-98.]
The Demonization of Homosexuality in Africa
Clearly, traditional African communities were not opposed to same-sex marriage and or homosexuality. Anthropologists struggle to find evidence of same-sex marriage in African communities because of the influence of missionaries and early colonialists. First, they introduced Christianity, which demonized homosexuality. As Christianity penetrated the continent, the identity of African culture and their views on sex changed. Additionally, the missionaries selectively decided what to report or document about African communities. Very few missionaries documented African communities' sexual relations or views. They mostly documented heterosexual relations, and they largely avoided how the communities treated homosexuality. The early settlers and missionaries to the continent were from European countries that were predominantly Christian, and in documenting African cultures, they could not overcome their bias. For example, Sir Richard Burton, who toured the continent in the 16th century, noted that Congolese men engaged in 'unnatural damnation', which was euphemistic for same-sex. Additionally, Epprecht reports that Andrew Batell, who lived among the Imbangala people in the 1590s, noted albeit disapprovingly that 'they are beastly in their living, for they have men in women's apparel, whom they keep among their wives.' The tone of the two explorers who are among the first to record incidences of same-sex marriage in Africa shows the personal bias in their works. Most of the other missionaries rarely recorded this behavior, and it was a reflection of their views on sex, gender, and race.[Epprecht, Marc. 2006. ""Bisexuality" and the Politics of Normal in African Ethnography." Anthropologica 48 (2): 187-201] [Ibid]
Additionally, the early explorers of the continent, mainly from Europe and America, considered homosexuality unnatural. When the explorers from these continents came to Africa, they generally viewed homosexuality as unnatural, and since they viewed Africa as the epitome of natural and primitive virility, they chose to selectively avoid documenting elements of African cultures that they were against. Explorers, missionaries, and early settlers did not seek to document and investigate gay sex in Africa as they were held back by their religiosity and bias.
Concisely, in pre-colonial Africa, homosexuality was normal. Therefore, homosexuality is not un-African. It existed before European and American civilizations visited the continent. There were African words for same-sex, and in some communities, it was part of growing up. When Tutsi men went to be taught the ways of the communities in the bush, same-sex relationships developed, and they persisted to their adulthood. There is nearly inexhaustible evidence that Africa embraced same-sex before the colonial period.[Ibid]
Impact of Western Civilization on the View of Homosexuality in Africa
When European explorers discovered Africa, there were trade interactions between them and the Africans. During this time, they documented the cultures of Africans. Mostly the description of Africans was that of savages who needed to be 'civilized.' Missionaries in Europe came to Africa to 'civilize' Africa and spread Christianity.[Muriithi, Samuel. 1997. African Development Dilemma: The Big Debate. University Press of America.]
As the missionaries spread Christianity, they demonized elements of African cultures, especially those that were inconsistent with European and Christian values. One of them was homosexuality. The missionaries instilled fear to discourage homosexuality, citing that homosexuals would burn in hell. It was an effective strategy, and, in a few decades, Africa was largely Christian, and the rest was Muslim. Africa is the most religious continent in the world. New societal values had to be founded in Christian/Islamic teachings. While the Europeans did not introduce Islam to Africa, it shared a common outlook on homosexuality. During the colonial period, many churches and Christian learning institutions were built.[Oduah, Chika. 2010. Survey Finds Africa is Most Religious Part of World. April 16. Accessed Nov 22, 2020. /news/2010/april/survey-finds-africa-is-most-religious-part-of-world.html.]
Over the 20th century, Christianity and western culture influence eroded African culture. Elements of African cultures that were inconsistent with Christianity were demonized, and they continually disappeared. African communities became largely westernized and adopted western cultural styles and ideas. Traditionally normal things like bare-breasted African women became indecency. Covering the bust was a western cultural thing, but it took root in Africa the same way views of homosexuality as a demonic and unnatural act endured. These beliefs still persist today, and though Africa has long been free from colonial rule, its ideologies have dominated and eroded the true African culture.
Erosion of African cultures and values and their replacement with western values resulted in confusion. Even to date, many Africans consider homosexuality as un-African and immoral, but when probed further how and why homosexuality is un-African, they do not have solid arguments for it. Paradoxically, they use the bible to prove that homosexuality is un-African and immoral. They go as far as condemning western nations for 'imposing' immoral behavior on African nations. Former president of Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe when questioned about homosexuality, he claimed it was a western thing, and it had no place in Africa. On other occasions, Most African leaders have spoken strongly against homosexuality and even passed laws criminalizing it. President Goodluck Jonathan passed the Same-Sex Marriage Prohibition Act that carried up to 14 years in jail for engaging in homosexual behavior. While the west termed the law as draconian, Nigerians were 'pleased' with the bill saying it was 'in line with the people's cultural and religious inclination and that it was a law that reflects the beliefs and orientation of Nigerian people.' Uganda passed the anti-homosexuality Act under Yoweri Museveni, which banned homosexuality in the country. Addressing the nation after he ascended the bill, president Yoweri Museveni said that, '"There is a fundamental misunderstanding between us (Ugandans) and the liberal west.' When Obama visited Kenya as a president, he held a press conference in which he urged Kenyan lawmakers to legalize same-sex marriage. President Uhuru Kenyatta retaliated and said,' there are some things that we must admit we don't share [with the US]. Our culture, our societies don't accept." These are some of the statements by African leaders that show how homosexuality is viewed on the continent.[Alimi, Bisi. 2015. If you say being gay is not African, you don’t know your history. Sep 9. Accessed Nov 20, 2020. /commentisfree/2015/sep/09/being-gay-african-history-homosexuality-christianity.] [Hodes, Rebecca. 2014. ...