Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer-LGBTQ Ugandans were yesterday dumbfounded after homophobes attacked a Twitter Space that curated for queer people to have a conversation about the injustices we face daily.
By 8:00pm all participants had already signed into the space and were excitedly awaiting to share experiences on prejudices we face and how we can move on, creating a better life for LGBTQ people in Uganda. What started as a peaceful conversation was repeatedly interrupted. We had barely gotten past the introductions when we got our first interruption. After continuous interruption the Twitter Space was abruptly ended.
One of the main speakers Pepe Julian Onziema the Programs Director Sexual Minorities Uganda Tweeted, “Some homophobes reported our Twitter Space conversation tonight and it was ended prematurely! Sorry to the listeners who were eager to engage on this topics with us, and shame on you.”
A participant who prefers to remain anonymous says, “I thought I was having a network issue, you know how slow our internet providers can be. So I thought I’d log on back into the Twitter Space. Luckily, they were back on. Immediately we were interrupted and the conversation went off again! I was frustrated so I decided to restart my phone hoping that this time my network would be steady. When my phone got back on I tried again to get on to the space, this time it was totally off. I was confused and flabbergasted. I didn’t understand what was happening. Later when I saw a Tweet explaining what had happened I was disgusted, how could people be so callous? If you can’t stand LGBTQ Ugandans having a Twitter Space in peace I shudder to think what you’d do to them if you ever got anywhere near them.”
We are not broken however and we will continue to speak up and fight injustices that harm LGBTQ Ugandans.
In response to the attack Royal Rays Initiative Uganda the organisers of the Twitter space say, “We want to thank everyone who was able to attend our Twitter space conversation and though it was ended prematurely cause of some homophobes, this gives us to strength to fight and end We are not broken however and we will continue to speak up and fight injustices that harm LGBTQ Ugandans.”
In solidarity Kuchu Times Media Group condemned the act, “What a shame! To think that one can report a space that has been curated for queer people just because they are homophobic. It is 2022, time to outgrow the hate. Homosexuals are here to stay.”
