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Death penalty for gays? Uganda debates proposal
By KATHARINE
HOURELD and GODFREY
OLUKYA (AP)
KAMPALA, Uganda "
Proposed legislation would
impose the death penalty for
some gay Ugandans, and their
family and friends could face
up.to Seven years in jail if they
fail to report them to
authorities. Even landlords
could be imprisoned for.
renting to homosexuals. Gay
rights activists say the bill,
_ which has prompted growing
international opposition,
promotes hatred and could set.
back efforts to combat HIV/
AIDS. They believe the bill is
part of a continentwide
backlash because Africa T sgay
community is becoming more
vocal. oIt Ts a question of
_ Visibility, ? said David Cato,
who became an activist after he
was beaten up four times,
arrested twice, fired from his
teaching job and outed in the
press because} heis gay. oWhen
we come. out and ask for our
rights, they pass laws against
us. ? The legislation has drawn
global attention from activists
across the spectrum of views
on gay issues. The measure was
proposed in Uganda following
a visit by leaders of U.S.
conservative . Christian
ministries that promote therapy
for gays to become
heterosexual; However, at least
one of. those. leaders has
denounced the bill, as have
some other conservative and
liberal Christians in the United
States. Gay rights activists-say
the legislation is likely to pass.
But the bill is still being debated
and could undergo changes
before a vote, which has not yet
been set. The Ugandan
legislation i in its current form
would mandate a death
sentence for active
homosexuals living with HIV or
in cases of same-sex rape.
oSerial offenders ? also could
face capital punishment, but the
legislation does not define the
term. Anyone convicted of a
homosexual act faces life
imprisonment. Anyone. -who
oaids, abets, counsels or
procures another to engage of
acts of homosexuality ? faces
seven years in prison if
convicted; Landlords who rent
rooms or homes to
homosexuals also could get
séven years and anyone with
oreligious, political, economic
or social authority ? ? who fails to
report anyone violating the act
| faces three years. Gay rights
activists abroad are focusing on
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the legislation. A protest against
the bill is planned for Thursday
in London; protests were held
last month in New York and
Washington. David Bahati, the:
legislator sponsoring the bill,
said he T was encouraging
oconstructive criticism ? to
improve the law, but insisted
strict measures were necessary
to stop homosexuals from
orecruiting ? schoolchildren.
oThe youths in secondary
schools copy everything from
the Western world and
America, ? said high school
teacher David Kisambira. oA
good number of students have
been converted into gays. We
hear there are groups of people
given money by some gay
organizations in developed
countries to recruit youth into
gay activities. ? Uganda Ts ethics
minister, James Nsaba Buturo,
said the death sentence clause
would probably be reviewed but
maintained the law was
necessary to counter. foreign
influence. He said
homosexuality ois not natural in
Uganda, ? a view echoed by
some Ugandans. oI feel that the
bill is good and necessary; but 1
don Tt think gays should be
killed. ? They should *be
imprisoned for about a year and
warned never to do it again, The *
family isin danger in Uganda
because the rate at which vice
is spreading is appalling, ? said
shopkeeper John Muwanguzi.
Ugandg is not the only country
considering anti-gay laws.
Nigeria, where homosexuality is
by
imprisonment or death, is
considering strengthening
penalties for activities deemed
» to oe it. _Borundi just: iui.
banned same-sex relationships
and Rwanda is considering it.
Homophobia is rife even in
more toletant African countries.
In Kenya, homosexuality is
illegal but the government has
acknowledged its existence by
launching sexual orientation
survey to improve health care.
Nevertheless, the recent T
marriage of two Kenyan men in
London caused outrage. The
men Ts families in Kenya were
harassed by reporters and
Villagers. In South Africa, the
only African nation to recognize
gay marriage, gangs carry out
so-called ocorrective ? rapes on
lesbians. A 19-year-old lesbian
athlete was gang-raped,
tortured and murdered in 2008.
Debate over the Ugandan bill
follows a conference in
Kampala earlier this year
attended by American activists
who consider same-gender
relationships sinful, and believe
gays and lesbians can become
heterosexual through prayer
and counseling. Author Don
Schmierer and T osexual
reorientation coach ? Caleb Lee
Brundidge took part;, they did
not respond to interview
requests. A third American who .
took part in the conference in
Uganda, Scott Lively, said the
bill has gone too far. oI agree .
with the general goal but this
law is far too harsh, ? said
Lively, a California-based
: preacher and author of oThe
Pink Swasti
othat advise parents how to T
orecruit-proof ? theit children :
from gays. oSociety should
actively discourage all sex
outside of marriage and that
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12/18 - 12/31, 2009 page 7
Gay people oshould not be
parading around the streets, ?
he added. Frank Mugisha, a
Bay Ugandan human rights
activist, said-the bill was so
poorly worded that someone
could be imprisoned for giving
a hug. oThis bill is promoting
Hatred, ? he said. oWe're
turning Uganda into a police
State. It will drive people to
suicide. ? Buturo played down
the influence of foreign
evangelicals, saying the
proposed legislation was an
expression of popular outrage
against orepugnant ? practices.
But activists like Cato argue
anti-gay attitudes are q foreign
import. oIn the beginning,
-when the missionaries brought
religion, they said they were
bringing love, ? he said..
oInstead they brought hate,
through homophobia, ? Susan
Timberlake, a senior adviser on
human rights and law from
UNAIDS, said such laws could
hinder the fight against HIV/
AIDS by driving people further .
underground.:And activists
also worry that the legislation
could be used to blackmail or
silence government critics.
Cato said he thinks the
Ugandan bill will pass, perhaps
in an altered form. oIt Ts such a
setback. But I hope we can ?
overcome it, ? he said. oI cannot
believe this is happening in the
21st-century. "
Associated Press Writer
Katharine Houreld reported
: from Nairobi, Kenya, ,
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12/ 18 - 12/31, 2009 page 8
| From The Desk Of
sO)
welll oh
SE
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oBRATE THE
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"
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THANKS FOR CHOOSING.
| A DESIGNATED DRIVER ~
Sy se pennant Pe eet aero seve ne pnercee,
~s
Life Changing Decisions
Itls]no surprise most of us
Mrs. Beatrice Maye
what) makes you
happy; don fet
outside pressure affect
your decision. If youre
unhappy. about some
aspect of your life,
check to see if its
because youlfk living
out someone else
dream.
WITH EVERYDAY
EXERCISE
agonize over life bigger * Take the stairs
issues OO switching
careers, going back to
school, and/or getting
married. These are the
kinds of issues that leave
us feeling overwhelmed.
Consider these points
next time youlfe faced
with an important
decision: |
* Always choose to
instead of the escalator
even when youl tired.
* Rake your own leaves
instead of paying the
kids next door.
* Wash your car by
hand and follow up
with a triceps-toning
wax | ' |
* Park far away and
grow. The opposite of
growth is stagnation.
Think about " how Te ei
changing: your situation «qty grocery bags curls
will help you to expand as you carry them
your human experience. inside.
walk to your
destination.
\
* Choose to take risks. « Rent a bike instead
Part of the reason for not of a car on-your next
taking risks is fear. After vacation.
weighing all options,
make a decision and *-Walk the terminal
move toward that new when your plane is
goal. Believe that you can late. , a
all ree Before you know it,
* Be open to different being active will
options. What become __ " second
ultimately important is nature,
New York Times raises eyebrows with
- gift guide for people of color T ,
A new addition to the New York Times annual Holiday Gift Guide
has sparked a minor uproar after a blog devoted to critiquing the
paper termed it oracist. ? Included in this year Ts guide, which was
published in November, is a page titled oOf Color/Stylish Gifts. ?
This first-time feature is described by the paper as ogifts created for
eee case
Bobby E. Roberson
- Thanks For your Support In The
Washington City Council Election
an ot
a
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4 Paid For by Bobby Roberson T
and by people of color. ? After going virtually unnoticed by critics for
4 month, the guide Ts been widely slammed in the past week as a
collection of obackhanded insults ? which are obordering on offensive ?
_ and oout of touch. ? The oOf Color ? section was compiled by African
American reporter Simone S. Oliver and can be found inside the oStyle
& Travel ? section of the 2009 Gift Guide. Its
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12/18 - 12/31, 2009 page 9
New Chair of the National
Black Chamber of
Commerce Leads
-_ Organization U
by Pharoh Martin
NNPAN. ational
Correspondent
WASHINGTON (NNPA) -
Sherrie Gilchrist, the first
woman to chair the 95,000-
member: National Black T
Chamber of Commerce, says
she will focus on business
empowerment and education
as difficulties mount for small
African-American owned
businesses in a turbulent
economy. o oThe primary focus.
is bridging the empowerment
gap in Our communities and I
think if we can accomplish that
it'll be a great year, ? said
Gilchrist, who has sat on the
board of the Black business
advocacy group since 2000
and has headed the Tennessee
Multicultural Chamber of
Commerce since its inception
in 1999 as its president and
chief executive officer. Under.
Gilchrist Ts NBCC
chairmanship, which begins in
January, the Washington-D.?,?.-
based organization will
undergo a total restructuring in
order to strengthen its reach at -
the Jocal level. Amidst
America Ts ailing economy,
already hard on small:
businesses, she will be tasked
to hold NBCC Ts local affiliates
accotintable and to assure that -
the national chamber is able to
provide the chapters the
support and
essary | ort and.
SG iis forge growth. As*
a part Of. its-strategy, the
Chamber plans to write and
publish a number of new
training manuals for their local
chapters and, under Gilchrist Ts
leadership, will unveil a new
affiliate evaluation process that
local chapters must meet to be
certified as viable NBCC
chapters. oTraining is going to
be a big factor, ? says Harry
Alford, NBCC co-founder,
president and CEO. oWe will
be training the trainers so we
can provide people in
Cleveland; Denver and places
that have local chapters [with
information] that will be viable
to their communities and help
Start new businesses that help
Provide capital access and .
~~ MBN.S HAIRCUT
) o$4000 10 $1200, s
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ri EYE BROWAROH,
create jobs. ? Gilchrist will have
plenty on her plate for her first
year with small businesses
operating in the faint economy »
that shows double digit job loss
nationally and diminished bank-
lending opportunities that are
sorely needed to expand
resources; Small-businesses are
also tremendously affected
because they must remain
_ competitive
companies in order to attract
quality employees, who desire
benefits-such as health care.
with large
oMany of the difficulties that
face small businesses are tenfold
than those that face large
corporations, ? Gilchrist said.
oBut the burden - although 80 .
percent of the businesses i in.
America are small businesses -
[is that] the larger corporations
get the major discounts. Small:
business owner pay three times _
the price point per individual
employee than a large |
corporation. Although we are. | ?
not against large corporations T °
Setting a discount fora number}...
of employees, but it should not | ?
be triple the amount that small
businesses. pay. ? Gilchrist is
hopeful that that the economy _ |-
will make a significant recovery
in the next 12 to 18 months and_
that the NBCC can help
eliminate some of the disparity
gaps that exist in the Black
employer and employee séctors.
/NBCC leaders naturally
anticipate obstacles, But, as
-pmall business advocates; they
sometimes encounter hurdles in -
unexpected plages. For
example, when President |
Obama held:a forum on oJobs
and Economic Growth, ? at the
White House Dec. 3 to seek job
creation ideas, the forum
included union leaders,
economists and corporate
executives but not much in the
form of representation of the
small business séctor, Alford
observes. oThere were no small
business people there! We
weren't invited, ? Alford said.
oThe U.S. Chamber. of
Commerce wasn Tt invited. The
Federation of Independent
Business wasn Tt invited. They
didn Tt have one small business
BY y OBAMA TO FOURTH CIRCUIT COURT Character was Based on His Mom
[WASH., DC] President Barack
Obama has nominated NC
Courts of Appeals Judge James
A. Wynn Jr. to US Circuit Court
of Appeals for the Fourth
Circuit, This makes the second
time since 1999 that Wynn has
been nominated to the 4th
Circuit. At the time, Sen. Jesse
Helms of NC blocked President
Bill Clinton Ts confirmation
| Judge Wynn, who resides, in
Cary, is a former US Navy
attorney and currently also
serves asa military trial judge.
He has served on the NC
Appellate Court since 1990,
took a break when appointed to
the NC Supreme Court in 1998
where he failed to win election,
the returned to, the state Court
of Appeals where he currently
serves. Pres. Obama also
nominated Superior Court
Judge Albert Diaz of Charlotte,
the first Latino named to a NC
Superior Court bench, to the
Fourth Circuit Court,
Filmmaker Tyler Perry received some bad news Tuesday. Perry Ts
mother, Maxine Perry, died at the age of 64. On his website,
Perty made a brief announcement of his mother Ts death: ? T Willie
Maxine Perry, February 12, 195 to December 8, 2009, thank
you for all-your prayers. ?
Bryant Gumbel Announces He Has»
Lung Cancer ,
Bryant Gumbel announced today that he is battling lung cancer
while filling in on Live! With Regis and Kelly. T The 61-year-
old, who is the host of HBO Ts Real Sports, T said a malignant
tumor and a portion of his lung were removed in a surgery two
months ago. oWe had told a few people. We told my family,
obviously, ? Gumbel said: oI even kept it from my staff at Real
Sports. T So I Tm okay for the time being. ?
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12/ 18 - 12/31, 2009 page 10
Apostle Ruth Peterson Ordination Service,
Would Like To Thank All Who Were In Attendance
