THE AFRICAN EXPERIMENT & SAINT LWANGA

American Christians agree that putting homosexuals to death is a bit over-the-top.

Not a horrible thing but certainly a bit "over-the-top".

"Over-the-top" is making the rounds of the Christian media as a descriptive for genocide.  You might use words like "horror" or "Nazi-level crime against humanity"--but then that wouldn't be very Christian of you, now would it?

Not everyone agrees with American Christians.  For example, the Swedish government is so outraged by Uganda's intention to legalize mass murder, Stockholm is cutting off it's annual $50 million in foreign aid. 

The Obama Administration is still writing checks.

Self-proclaimed Christian "activist" John Henry Westen tells Lifesite News that Uganda's proposed death penalties for homosexuality and prison sentences for people who help hide homosexuals is "definitely too harsh" but completely understandable.

Westen is far from alone in this assessment. In fact, the Ugandan leader has the full and direct support of many American Evangelical and Catholic leaders, the Vatican, Obama's Inauguration pastor Rick Warren and any number of American politicians--including Congressmen Bart Stupak and Joe Pitts, Senator John Ensign, South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, former Representative Chip Pickering and Senators Brownback and Inhofe--who agree that death penalties may be too severe a response to homosexuality but all out criminalization is both understandable and desirable.

In fact, if you can connect the obvious dots, American Conservatives seem to be masterminding a model in Uganda, a bold African experiment that will set precedents and create models for a similar push in a revived 2012 Republican America.

Uganda will set the bar, and American legislation that criminalizes homosexuality but does not impose death sentences of life imprisonment with hard labor will seem humane by comparison.

Too extreme an assumption?  If you doubt this then you are in complete denial about the 27 states that have since 2003 pushed through bans on legalized gay relationships. legally condemning gay love as inauthentic and second class.  Do you really think that's the end of the road, the ultimate goal of the Christian Republican Party?

Relationship bans are just the beginning of the re-criminalization of homosexuality in America.

In fact, the resounding defeat last week of same sex marriage by New York Democrats and the initiation of campaigns to reverse same sex marriage in New Hampshire and Vermont makes it very clear to all but the most stupid (Joe Solmonese and any queer who supports HRC or the DNC) that this nation is well on its way to the criminalization of homosexuality with what is now openly bipartisan support.  The DNC and Obama made it very clear to gay Americans and gay wallets: you give us a majority and we'll give you equality.  It was not just an empty promise, it was an outright lie.

Westen writes:  "While a proposed and much-criticized anti-homosexuality law in Uganda is definitely too harsh, the law comes as a direct response to the heavy-handed pressure from international gay-activist politicians on Uganda to accept homosexuality as normal.

"In fact, as Dr. Scott Lively, the President of Defend the Family pointed out, the preamble to the bill, and the bill itself contain numerous references to stopping international pressure on Uganda to accept Western sexual values that are abhorrent to Ugandan culture. The bill states explicitly that it aims "at providing a comprehensive and enhanced legislation to protect the cherished culture of the people of Uganda." The goal is to protect the "legal, religious, and traditional family values of the people of Uganda against the attempts of sexual rights activists seeking to impose their values of sexual promiscuity on the people of Uganda."

Sound familiar?  Indeed, it is as American as fundamentalist Christian apple pie.

Dr. Lively, a pro-family activist and attorney based in California was in Uganda in March to testify before Ugandan legislators now considering the legislation.   Dr. Lively is one of dozens of American "Christians" and right wing politicians who have played a direct role in drafting the Ugandan legislation that would legalize mass murder of gay Ugandans.

Can you spell "dress rehearsal"?

Dr. Lively recently told the Christian press that the impetus for the bill was "a lot of external interference from European and American gay activists attempting to do in Uganda what they've done around the world--homosexualize that society." One of their main concerns, explained Lively, "are the many male homosexuals coming in to the country and abusing boys who are on the streets."

Lively explained that the bill, as it is currently worded, is definitely too harsh. The law would impose the death penalty on those who would homosexually rape, and engage in homosexual intercourse with minors, and someone who would knowingly commit homosexual sex acts while having AIDS.

Those found guilty of willingly engaging in homosexual sex acts would face life in prison. The law, as written, may also conflict with the rights of religious leaders to hear confessions and not reveal them, said Lively, since the bill states that those in authority who do not disclose to the police knowledge of homosexual activity within 24 hours face a fine of up to three years in jail.

While the Catholic leadership in the nation has not yet responded publicly to the proposed bill, they have consistently expressed outrage at the attempts of the West to impose acceptance of homosexuality on the country. Last month at the Synod for Africa at the Vatican, bishops from all over the continent noted their grave concerns over the international anti-family pressure. Summing up the discussions, the Cardinal Archbishop of Cape Coast, Ghana, Peter Turkson, said that the Synod had "described in various ways a ferocious onslaught on the family and the related fundamental institution of marriage from outside Africa and attributed it to diverse sources." The bishops, he said, "vigorously denounced the ideology and international programs which are imposed on African countries under false pretexts or as conditions for development assistance."

Lively said he went to Uganda "with the purpose of liberating the law and getting them to liberalize the law making it more oriented toward therapy." He testified to lawmakers in the Ugandan Assembly Hall that having legislation against homosexuality on the books is important since it protects against those who would advocate in public and in schools that homosexuality is positive. He noted however that the current bill has gone "way too far."

Lively lamented that even the Christian leadership of the "homosexualized" nations of the West have "fallen back to the last line of defense which is to defend the traditional definition of marriage." He suggested that it is important that "homosexuality should be actively discouraged in public policy. But only as aggressively as necessary to prevent it from being advocated in society." "Sort of the way that Oregon treats marijuana," he explained. "The law is on the books, it's very rarely enforce, but because it's enforced, because it's illegal, no one is allowed to go into the schools and say smoking dope is a good thing."

And there it is, the emerging American argument to re-criminalize homosexuality, playing out in Africa under the direction of the same folks who gave us Prop 8 and 31 state bans against gay rights.

But it is being said in Africa, the "Dark Continent" so it doesn't really apply to "us."

At least not yet.

Lively, playing the moderate, told the Uganda legislature:  "...if you go too far, and start enforcing the law and throwing people in jail you will end up doing more harm than good," he concluded.

Why is the Uganda the target for this trial run of emerging laws to re-criminalize homosexuality in America?

Easy.  Uganda appears to be the only nation on earth that actually has a national religious holiday dedicated to homophobia.

Not kidding.

Westen explains that in order to understand opposition to homosexuality in Uganda it is necessary to recognize the importance of the June 3rd feast of the Ugandan martyrs Saint Charles Lwanga and companions, which is still celebrated in the nation every year.

The martyrs were killed in the 1800's in Uganda by then King Mwanga for interfering with the homosexual activities of the King. King Mwanga was a violent ruler and sexual abuser who forced himself on the young boys and men who served him as pages and attendants. The growing number of conversions among the King's pages infuriated the King since they would no longer participate in his immoral sexual acts. In all, 22 converts accepted death rather than renounce their Catholic faith.

It is in honor of these Catholic Saints that Uganda intends to implement a sort of African Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre of homosexuals.  And it is in honor of Saint Charles Lwanga that American Christians, Roman Catholics and Republicans intend to stop the American cousins of King Mwanga (that would be you and me) from imposing homosexuality on the Christian States of America.

The African Experiment sends a clear message--even if the American gay community refuses to listen.  The United States--and that includes the slippery con artist in the White House--is on a mission to criminalize homosexuality and it is up to the gay community alone to stand and deliver outrage, civil disobedience and political impact before today's progress hits its expiration date and the late 20th Century/early 21st Century Golden Age of Gay Rights becomes a distant memory.

Comments

[Sterling]

I can't see outright criminalization coming back, that would cause an armed insurrection, equipped and funded by militant queers like me who have access to both money and caches of private arms.

[Chris]

I went to a Christian concert over the weekend just to see what was going on with the enemy, and my ticket was paid for by people trying to "help" me. Believe me, anything is possible with these people. If these people get anymore power in this country we are all in serious trouble.