Policing Sexuality: The Criminalization of Africa’s Queer Population

Last updated on: July 10, 2014 at 9:59 pm by Guest Contributor

Policing Sexuality: The Criminalization of Africa’s Queer Population 2014-07-10T21:59:00-05:00 Guest Contributor

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Recently, the global queer rights movement has been receiving a lot of attention in the media, both domestically and abroad. One of many recent incidents that has received a lot of press in the media is the anti-gay legislation, which was signed into law by Yoweri Museveni, President of Uganda. The anti-homosexuality bill which was signed into law criminalizes any individual who identifies as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, or Intersex (LGBTI) for willingly engaging in same-sex relations. After the bill was signed into law President Museveni stated, “society can [now] do something about homosexuality to discourage the trend.” After hearing such a statement, one must wonder does such an executive act reinforce homophobia in Uganda? Will this law allow society to police their fellow man/woman’s sexuality based on patriarchal or religious beliefs? I would argue that President Museveni’s response to homosexuality in Uganda is clearly an attempt to create and control Uganda’s prison-nation. In Arrested Justice: Black Women, Violence and America’s Prison Nation, criminologist Beth Richie argues the creation of a prison nation “depends on creating fear, identity scapegoats, and reclassifying people as enemies.” (Richie 2012, p. 3) In this case, it is Uganda’s queer population that is being reclassified, all because queers in Uganda choose not to conform to societal norms. Furthermore, Richie argues that “prison-nation” is a term scholars use to describe “a neo-liberal, law-and-order oriented social agenda” (Richie 2012, p. 103). Furthermore, President Museveni feels as if homosexuality is a choice and gay people are ‘disgusting‘ and therefore policing and stiffer penalties must be instituted to control the queer population. Whether or not one wants to argue if homosexuality is biological or a choice is not the main concern. What one should be concerned with is the patriarchy and religious beliefs that reinforces homophobia.

Historically, patriarchy and sexuality have been used as mechanism of control during colonization, the trans-Atlantic slave trade, and chattel slavery. Moreover, masculinity and sexuality are a social construct that has different meanings based one’s race, ethnicity, religion, age, geographic location, and socio-economic status. Traditional ideologies of manhood in post-colonial Africa revolve around sex and man’s ability to dominate woman. In African Sexualities, Kopano Ratele asserts, “manliness is closely associated with our sexual partner(s), the sexual appeal of our partner(s), the size of one’s penis, sexual stamina, being able to maintain a healthy erection, and one’s fertility” (Tamale 2011, p. 399). Many African societies support one predominate form of manhood, which is heterosexuality. Anything that does not conform to patriarchal heterosexual structures are deemed abnormal. Patriarchal heterosexual structures encourage men to “sow their wild oats, teach boys and girls that female bodies are dirtier and weaker than those of males” (Tamale 2011, p. 413). Such heterosexual structures posit a double jeopardy ideology which asserts boys should be promiscuous, while girls are expected to remain a virgin until marriage.

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