Box Turtle Bulletin

International Healing Foundation Issues Statement On Uganda

Rachel Maddow finally got a statement from Richard Cohen’s International Healing Foundation about Uganda’s proposed death penalty for LGBT people under certain circumstances:

L-R: Unidentified woman, American holocaust revisionist Scott Lively, International Healing Foundation's Caleb Brundidge, Exodus International boardmember Don Schmierer, Family Life Network (Uganda)'s Stephen Langa, at the time of the March 2009 anti-gay conference in Uganda.

Caleb Lee Brundidge was one of three American anti-gay activists participating at a conference in Kampala last march which led to the current crisis there for LGBT people. Other American anti-gay activists participating were Holocaust revisionist Scott Lively and Exodus International board member Don Schmierer. Rachel also read portions of a statement from Scott Lively which we already covered last Saturday. Don Schmierer belatedly signed on to the November 16 letter from Exodus condemning the Ugandan legislation. His signature was appended just this past Tuesday.

The portion of IHF’s statement that Rachel Maddow read was brief:

We condemn any harsh and extreme punishment of persons who identify as homosexual or who engage in homosexual behavior. Instead, we advocate education and counseling for those with unwanted Same-Sex Attraction.

We don’t know whether this is the entire statement or not, as it can be found nowhere on the International Healing Foundation’s web site. You can find plenty of sales clutter, but no statement.

What we do have is a typically vague non-statement. What is “harsh and extreme punishment”? The death penalty? Lifetime imprisonment? Any imprisonment? And what do they advocate for those who don’t have unwanted “Same-Sex Attraction”? (Note the capitalization; it’s Richard Cohen’s terminology, often abbreviated as SSA, to indicate that he believes that homosexuality is a mental illness.) What they do advocate is left unclear.

If the International Healing Foundation is at all familiar, it is chiefly because of Richard Cohen’s unorthodox methods to “cure” homosexuality, which include “touch” or “holding” therapy. On March 23, 2002, Richard Cohen was permanently expelled from the American Counseling Association for multiple ethical violations. He now practices as an unregulated “coach.”

Caleb Lee Brundidge is also associated with Extreme Prophetic in Phoenix, AZ. Extreme Prophetic refused to condemn the proposed Ugandan legislation, saying “As a ministry we do not have an official opinion on political policies.” Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton notes the inconsistency behind that statement, since Extreme Prophetic’s stated mission is to “take over spheres and adminstrate them for the glory of God.” Among those spheres of influence is the political sphere. Extreme Prophetic’s own theology makes a mockery of their statement.

Brundidge himself has maintained complete silence.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Going Rove In Uganda

American political strategist and Bush Administration adviser Karl Rove was famous for his use of wedge politics to drive voters to conservative causes. He became so famous for it that his name became an adjective to describe that style of campaigning: Rovian. If you want to turn out voters to get behind your cause, make sure there’s something for them to vote against, a wedge that pits one segment of voters against their own better judgment. And nothing is wedgier than gays. A rash of anti-gay marriage amendments in 2004 have long been regarded, rightly or wrongly, as being part of a successful strategy to put Bush over the top in key battleground states.

We may call it Rovian politics, but that doesn’t mean Karl Rove invented it. It has been a staple of political campaigns the world over for centuries. Ugandan political observers detect what we would call Rovian politics at play with the Anti-Homosexuality Act that was introduced in Parliament last month. Anne Mugisha, of the Forum for Democratic Change, observes that “Uganda is in fact on the verge of a political crisis created by the conflict of an authoritarian police state trying to pass for a quasi modern democracy.” And whenever there’s a political crisis, leaders need a convenient scapegoat to provide a distraction from the real problems facing a country, and American anti-gay activists were more than happy to point the way.

The current strongman, President Yoweri Museveni, has won accolades as a reformer for his 1995 Constitution that requires elections every five years. Museveni has also been behind numerous moves to subvert and change that same constitution (including the removal of its mandated term limits), and this has allowed him to retain the power that he has held since overthrowing his predecessor in a 1986 civil war. But despite his authoritarian credentials, his reputation as a reformer has somehow remained intact. And to keep it that way he has to have elections every five years — 2011 will be another election year — and he has no intention of losing even if a few gay people have to be put to death in the process.

The elections are two years out, but observers note that Uganda’s Parliament is already busying itself with the kind of populist measures to burnish the government’s reputation that voters have come to expect in advance of national elections. But Uganda’s notorious corruption can’t be covered over by another round of popular land reform measures. Wedge politics, according to observers, are also re-appearing after lying dormant since the last elections in 2006, and political leaders are turning to new scapegoats to prop up their popularity. 

At a forum held in Makerere University two weeks ago, Law Professor Sylvia Tamale observed that gays make a great scapegoat. “Anyone who cares to read history books,” she remarked,  “knows very well that in times of crisis, when people at the locus of power are feeling vulnerable and their power is being threatened, they will turn against the weaker groups in society.” She reiterated that in her column published on November 3 in the government opposition paper The Daily Monitor:

Politicians find that homosexuals are a great scapegoat or red herring to divert attention to more pressing issues that affect the ordinary Ugandan such as unemployment, corruption, poor health facilities, reform of electoral laws and so forth. If we are to be absolutely honest with ourselves, we should ask whether there are not more pressing issues of moral violation in other areas such as domestic violence, torture and corruption. None of these areas have specific laws outlawing their practice. That is where the likes of Hon. (David) Bahati (chief sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality Act) should expend their energies.

Writing for tomorrow’s edition of The Daily Monitor, Augustine Rizindana observes that Museveni’s gay bashing isn’t meant to solve any actual problems which Uganda faces, but is instead a blatant attempt to distract voters from endemic corruption and mismanagement that has been hallmarks of his 23-year rule:

Why does the government and Parliament find the Anti-Homosexual Bill more of a priority than the electoral bills and other governance issues? Already homosexuality is a criminal offence as a “crime against nature” in the Penal Code and marriage is defined in the Constitution as between man and woman. The life and death sentences introduced in the new Bill are to impress an external constituency critical for regime survival.

He doesn’t name the “external constituency critical for regime survival” but Anne Mugisha reminds us to look elsewhere for the bigger picture. Wedge politics may be in play here, but that’s not the whole story. It’s not about David Bahati, a member of Museveni’s ruling party who is the chief sponsor of the Anti-Homosexuality bill. And it’s not just about Museveni winning yet another election. She says it goes even further than that:

Hon. Bahati is a sitting duck for the LGBT community because he has become the face of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill in Uganda after he tabled it and his name will forever be linked to the international outrage that Uganda has attracted for proposing to execute gays and lesbians for what the Bill calls aggravated homosexuality. But rights activists need to focus harder and higher on the real source of his inspiration and not just on the Ugandan President but also the fundamentalist interests in the US that sponsor radical right wing idealism in our country.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Clinton Condemns Criminalization of Homosexuality

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke out yesterday against attempts abroad to criminalize homosexuality. Without mentioning Uganda specifically, Secretary Clinton said:

Obviously, our efforts are hampered whenever discrimination or marginalization of certain populations results in less effective outreach and treatment. So we will work not only to ensure access for all who need it, but also to combat discrimination more broadly. We have to stand against any efforts to marginalize and criminalize and penalize members of the LGBT community worldwide. It is an unacceptable step backwards — (applause) — on behalf of human rights. But it is also a step that undermines the effectiveness of efforts to fight the disease worldwide.

Eric Goosby, chief coordinator for the President\’s emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), came under fire last week when he announced that funding for Uganda would not be linked to their actions on the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act, which would impose the death penalty on LGBT people under certain circumstances. Altogether, Uganda is set to received $250 million in developmental assistance to promote health, agriculture, and business investments. Secretary Clinton’s address does not contradict that stance, but Kerry Eleveld reports that vigorous engagement with Uganda is taking place behind the scenes. Eleveld writes:

The source said the diplomatic goal was to strike a forceful tone that stopped short of shaming President Museveni, who has yet to take an official stand on the legislation, which was introduced by a lawmaker in his own party, member of parliament David Bahati.

“They are trying to proceed in a way that gives them some private leverage but also acknowledges that Secretary Clinton has an obligation to speak out on human rights issues in her capacity as our top international diplomat,” said the source. “It’s been a delicate effort with inconclusive results.”

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Rick Warren refuses to oppose Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill

Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church, has a unique way of viewing a global ministry. Warren sees his mission as being of a scope that does not stop at national borders. He seeks Purpose Driven Nations to comprise his Purpose Driven World.

And Warren is not hesitant to interfere in international religious divisions or schisms. Though not Anglican, he has been a major player in providing American support to African Anglicans who are seeking to oust any affiliates from the Anglican Communion that make any accommodation for gay Christians.

Warren also likes to rub shoulders with the politically powerful. He is friends with presidents and the powerful around the globe. And one of the five steps in his Plan is “Equipping ethical leaders”, i.e. those who agree with Warren’s religious views.

And he’s no stranger to activism on behalf of legislation. Though he was not highly visible in supporting Proposition 8, he did not hesitate to instruct his flock – which does not stop at the walls of his church – to vote to take away the civil rights of their gay neighbors.

But Warren has now found the one exception to his political involvement. And that exception is the proposed Ugandan “Kill Gays” bill. Unlike virtually anything else that flickers across his attention, this piece of legislation just doesn’t rise to the level of requiring his involvement. That would be “interfering in the political process of other nations.”

Or maybe Rick Warren just doesn’t find it unethical on the part of leadership in Uganda to execute HIV positive gay people, incarcerate the rest for life, ban any form of activism that might object, and jail those family, friends, or acquaintances who fail to report their gay loved ones to the government.

On Meet the Press this morning he spoke a good game of loving gay people (while fighting against their rights). But though he declared that his “role is to love everybody” (which presumably would include gay Ugandans), this love seems not to stretch quite enough to oppose their execution and life-long incarceration.

And Newsweek’s Kate Dailey is noting Warren’s failure to respond to the situation in Uganda:

But Warren won’t go so far as to condemn the legislation itself. A request for a broader reaction to the proposed Ugandan anti-homosexual laws generated this response: “The fundamental dignity of every person, our right to be free, and the freedom to make moral choices are gifts endowed by God, our creator. However, it is not my personal calling as a pastor in America to comment or interfere in the political process of other nations.” On Meet the Press this morning, he reiterated this neutral stance in a different context: “As a pastor, my job is to encourage, to support. I never take sides.” Warren did say he believed that abortion was “a holocaust.” He knows as well as anyone that in a case of great wrong, taking sides is an important thing to do.

I would go further.

When you build the platform, put out the chairs, advertise the event, set up the audio system, introduce the speaker, and hand him the mic, it’s disingenuous to claim that you are not taking sides. Rick Warren was significantly responsible for building Martin Ssempa’s influence in Uganda, and releasing a statement that he had “severed contact with Mr. Ssempa” two years ago is not an adequate reaction to Ssempa’s efforts to incarcerate and kill gay people.

The truth is that while Rick Warren speaks of loving gay people, he doesn’t care if they are executed in Uganda for being gay. Or, at least, he doesn’t care enough to make the slightest effort to stop it.

I guess his life is “driven” by some other “purpose”.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Catholic News Source: Scott Lively Blames Foreign Gays for Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

John-Henry Westen

LifeSiteNews was originally launched in 1997 by Campaign Life Coalition, a Canadian national pro-life organization, as a news source for those opposed to legal abortion. Since that time it has broadened its interests to include euthanasia, cloning, homosexuality, and other social issues and currently its readership is primarily in the United States.

LifeSiteNews is generally well written (though biased) and informative and often will have stories that have not caught the attention of mainstream media, especially those which are international in scope. But it must be read with the understanding that it has a strong sectarian slant and is perhaps best viewed as an unofficial lay voice of the Roman Catholic Church.

Today, LifeSiteNews published an article that was unexpected. The Editor, John-Henry Westen, interviewed Scott Lively and echoed without question his statements about homosexuality in Uganda and the current effort underway to pass legislation to execute HIV positive gay people, incarcerate other gay people for life, and jail those family, friends, or acquaintances who do not report suspected gay people to the government. While Westen’s biases make him ready to believe the worst about gay people, however irrational, it was surprising the extent to which Lively’s word was taken as unvarnished truth.

Scott Lively is an unusual anti-gay activist. He does not stop at moral concern, cultural discomfort, or objection based in ignorance, stereotype, or unfamiliarity. Rather, Lively travels the world marketing in anti-gay lies and myths and seeking to inflame hatred and instigate outrage and social oppression of gay people on an international scale.

Lively is the author of The Pink Swastika, a book whose premise is that the Nazis were primarily a homosexual organization and that gays were responsible for the Holocaust. While this is a laughable assertion dismissed by historians and holocaust groups, it is read, believed, and treasured in countries where animus against gay people is strong and an excuse to hate gay people is welcomed without question.

Lively was also, along with Exodus International board member Don Schmierer and Caleb Lee Brundidge of Richard Cohen\’s International Healing Foundation, one of the three American speakers at the conference in February which led to the current proposed legislation in Uganda.

According to the reported interview in LifeSiteNews, Lively is spinning a peculiar message. Lively says that laws against homosexuality should be on the books but only sporadically enforced. This keeps gays oppressed and support for their social inclusion forbidden.

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.

While Lively makes sure to say that the bill as proposed is “too harsh”, his primary objective in the interview was to lay the blame for any excesses in the bill on reasonable reaction 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.”

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. In an interview with LifeSiteNews (LSN), Dr. Lively explained 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.”

The Catholic Church’s position on the “Kill Gays” bill is less clearly defined. However, as LifeSiteNews summarizes, they too are taking a “blame it on the foreign gays” approach:

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.”

This may not be a conclusive endorsement of the bill by the Catholic Church – and indeed the death penalty goes in opposition to the position of the Vatican. However, it would appear that the Catholic Church is, in at least some venues, indicating that it will not speak out in opposition to this draconian piece of legislation.

Scott Lively has illustrated that he has no use for civil freedoms such as the right to speech or assembly, and his gross distortion of the murder of a gay man has long since revealed a lack or any moral center. One expects nothing but the most extreme and hateful from him.

But it is sad when an institution as old and influential as the Catholic Church, and one that is charged with doing good, seems to be siding with evil.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Sweden responds to Uganda’s proposed “Kill Gays” bill

Sweden may cut back their development assistance to Uganda if the draconian new anti-homosexuality bill passes.

From Radio Sweden

Speaking to Swedish Radio news, development minister Gunilla Carlsson says that she thinks the new law is “appalling”.

“I’m doubly disappointed”, she says, “partly because Uganda is a country with which we have had long-term relations and where I thought and hoped we had started to share common values and understanding. The law itself is wretched, but it’s also offensive to see how the Ugandans choose to look at how we see things, and the kind of reception we get when we bring up these issues”

In all, Sweden’s response puts about 50 million dollars at risk.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

UK PM Gordon Brown Denounces Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown reportedly met with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) taking place this weekend at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. According to The Telegraph, Brown met one-on-one with Museveni and denounced the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act which is now before Uganda’s Parliament. No details of the conversation were provided, but an unnamed Downing Street source said in a typically understated British fashion, “The Prime Minister did raise it and you can take it that he was not supportive of the idea.”

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Canada PM To Denounce Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced on Thursday that he will raise the issue of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) which began yesterday. Transport Minister John Baird made the announcement before Parliament on Thursday:

Transport Minister John Baird made the announcement today in Question Period in answer to demands by NDP MP Bill Siksay that the Prime Minister meet “face-to-face” with the Ugandan leader “to help stop this bill.”

“The current legislation before Parliament in Uganda is vile, it\’s abhorrent. It\’s offensive. It offends Canadian values. It offends decency. We strongly condemn that and the Prime Minister will make that strong condemnation as well,” Mr. Baird said.

The Conservative Prime Minister is just one more important voice denouncing Uganda’s proposal to institute the death sentence for LGBT people. On Tuesday, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa Stephen Lewis demanded that discussions of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act be placed on the agenda.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

United Church of Canada Urges PM To Bring Up Uganda’s “Kill Gays” Bill at Comonwealth Meeting

The United Church of Canada, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, sent a letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, urging the leader to raise the issue of Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting taking place in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. In the letter sent Thursday, acting Executive Minister Patti Talbot wrote:

[I]t is with shock and dismay that we have learned that the Ugandan Parliament is in the process of bringing to law an Anti-Homosexuality Bill that would lead to the criminalization of homosexuality as well as the restriction of free speech and organization in support of the legitimate civil rights of its population.

…Canada\’s own Charter of Rights and Freedoms enshrines the rights of all people regardless of their sexual orientation. As Canadians then, we are responsible for becoming more aware of discrimination against homosexual persons, taking action to ensure that they enjoy their full civil and human rights in society, working to end all forms of discrimination against them, and personally supporting the victims of such discrimination.

In the next few days there is an opportune moment at the summit of Commonwealth leaders for Canada to show leadership in advocating for the protection of the human rights of all people, especially those who are most marginalized, such as gay, lesbian and bisexual people in Uganda. At this summit we urge you to raise these issues and speak firmly against this regressive proposed legislation by the Parliament of Uganda.

The United Church of Canada was formed in 1925 as the result of the merger of Canada’s Presbyterian, Methodist and various congregational churches. The UCoC joins the Anglican Church of Canada in calling on the Canadian government to publicly denounce the bill.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

PEPFAR Coordinator: Don’t Link Uganda Funding To Anti-Homosexuality Act

Newsweek’s Katie Paul spoke to Eric Goosby, chief coordinator for the President’s emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) about Uganda’s proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act instituting the death penalty against gays under certain circumstances. The bill would also outlaw all advocacy and outreach toward and on behalf of the LGBT community, making HIV/AIDS prevention work impossible. Linking to some of BTB’s reporting, Paul asks Goosby about the administrations plans for PEPFAR in Uganda should the legislation go forward:

I’m very concerned about any decision that any country—including our own—would make to target a group that’s in the population, and that’s always been in the population, by excluding them from a service or passes legislation that criminalizes their behavior. Every time you do that, you push the behavior underground. It never works. Rather than minimizing the spread of the virus, it actually amplifies it.

The U.S. policy is trying to work with governments to say exactly that. I think I would do more harm than good by connecting our resources to respond to the epidemic to making them dependent on a behavior that they’re not willing to engage in on their own. My role is to be supportive and helpful to the patients who need these services. It is not to tell a country how to put forward their legislation. But I will engage them in conversation around my concern and knowledge of what this is going to do to that population, and our ability to stop the movement of the virus into the general population.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Follow The Money: The American Connection to Uganda’s Death Sentence For Gays

Jeff Sharlet, author of The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power, appeared on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross, where he laid out yesterday for the first time the pipeline of money and support for those behind the Anti-Homosexuality Act which is now before Uganda’s Parliament.

Before investigating that particular connection, a bit of background on the American secretive group, The Family, is in order. The Family (sometimes known as The Fellowship) was founded in 1935 by Abraham Vereide, a Norwegian immigrant preacher who said that God came to him one night and said that Christianity has been focusing on the wrong people: the poor and the suffering. According to Vereide, God commanded him to become a missionary to the rich and powerful, so that they could unleash blessings to the rest of society through the exercise of theocratic principles that would, in effect, “trickle down” to the masses.

Immediately, Vereide set out to recruit a group of “Key Men” in Seattle, where his new theology was put to the test. Key Men are said to be those who are identified as having been chosen by God to be in positions of power and influence — that they are in those positions not because of their own hard work or fortune, but because they were chosen by God to be there. And in their positions, they are to exercise their power and influence in order to bring out a New Order throughout the world. To give you an idea of some of the influence The Family has in American politics today, Jeff Sharlet told Terry Gross:

And in particular – Joe Pitts has been in the news because of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment – was one of the guys who really helped to bring abortion to the forefront to the group, starting in the late ’70s, and that’s become a concern of a lot of members. And, as you expand outwards over the last couple decades, and you look at the concerns of politicians like Senator Sam Brownback, Senator Jim Inhofe, Senator Tom Coburn, all these guys who are very involved members — you see homosexuality, you see all the culture-war issues taking a place alongside biblical capitalism and this foreign affairs expansionism, and, in fact, merging in The Family’s view into one sort of united world view.

Other key members of The Family that has made news lately are Sen. John Ensign (R-NV) and South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford (R). But it’s not just Republicans. The Family also has key players in the Democratic Party as well, including Reps. Mike McIntyre (D-NC), Heath Shuler (D-NC) and Stupak. (D-MI). Senator Mark Pryor (D-AK) told Sharlet that Jesus didn’t come to take sides, but to take over.

Now on to the Ugandan connection. In his book, Sharlet identifies Uganda President Yoweri Museveni as “The Family’s man in Africa,” who came into The Family when he rose to power in 1986 following a civil war, and he has been a key player in Africa on behalf of The Family ever since.

But the connection between The Family and the currently proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act doesn’t end with that relationship. It goes much deeper. Here is the key part of Sharlet’s interview yesterday, detailing for the first time the specific role that The Family is playing in the proposal to add the death sentence for LGBT people under certain circumstances and to bring an end to all public advocacy on behalf of LGBT citizens in that country:

GROSS: This legislation has just been proposed. It hasn’t been signed into law. So it’s not in effect and it might never be in effect. But it’s on the table. It’s before parliament. So is there a direct connection between The Family and this proposed Anti-Homosexual Legislation in Uganda?

Mr. SHARLET: Well, the legislator that introduces the bill, a guy named David Bahati, is a member of The Family. He appears to be a core member of The Family. He works, he organizes their Uganda National Prayer Breakfast and oversees a African sort of student leadership program designed to create future leaders for Africa, into which The Family has poured millions of dollars working through a very convoluted chain of linkages passing the money over to Uganda.

GROSS: So you’re reporting the story for the first time today, and you found this story – this direct connection between The Family and the proposed legislation by following the money?

Mr. SHARLET: Yes, it’s – I always say that the family is secretive, but not secret. You can go and look at 990s, tax forms and follow the money through these organizations that The Family describe as invisible. But you go and you look. You follow that money. You look at their archives. You do interviews where you can. It’s not so invisible anymore. So that’s how working with some research colleagues we discovered that David Bahati, the man behind this legislation, is really deeply, deeply involved in The Family’s work in Uganda, that the ethics minister of Uganda, Museveni’s kind of right hand man, a guy named Nsaba Buturo, is also helping to organize The Family’s National Prayer Breakfast. And here’s a guy who has been the main force for this Anti-Homosexuality Act in Uganda’s executive office and has been very vocal about what he’s doing, and in a rather extreme and hateful way. But these guys are not so much under the influence of The Family. They are, in Uganda, The Family.

GROSS: So how did you find out that Bahati is directly connected to The Family? You’ve described him as a core member of The Family. And this is the person who introduced the anti-gay legislation in Uganda that calls for the death penalty for some gay people.

Mr. SHARLET: Looking at the, The Family’s 990s, where they’re moving their money to – into this African leadership academy called Cornerstone, which runs two programs: Youth Corps, which has described its in the past as an international quote, “invisible family binding together world leaders,” and also, an alumni organization designed to place Cornerstone grads – graduates of this sort of very elite educational program and politics and NGO’s through something called the African Youth Leadership Forum, which is run by -according to Ugandan media – which is run by David Bahati, this same legislator who introduced the Anti-Homosexuality Act.

Those behind this bill claim that it is necessary because, they charge, wealthy foreign homosexuals are pouring money into the country to turn everyone gay. But as is typical in cases like this, these people are denouncing ghosts which are reflections of their own reality. It is, in fact, wealth, powerful and influential Americans at all levels who are making this literal death sentence possible.

The entire interview is an eye-opener, and provides an excellent introductory view of The Family. Sharlet’s book is required reading for every American who cares about the future of not just this country but the entire world.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Possible Movement On Uganda from US Episcopalians

The Episcopal News Service in the United States reports:

A teleconference meeting of the Episcopal Church’s Executive Council will take place on Dec. 7 to discuss a possible statement on Ugandan legislation that would imprison for life or execute people who violate that country’s anti-homosexuality laws.

This would be a welcome addition to the Anglican Church of Canada’s statement. But so far, no signs of life are emanating from the Anglican Communion itself

HIV/AIDS Envoy: Uganda’s Chairing Of Commonwealth Meeting “A Mockery of Commonwealth Principles”

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) takes place every two years to bring together the heads of states of some fifty-three countries, most of them former members of the British Commonwealth. CHOGM was last held in Kampala, Uganda in 2007. This year, the CHOGM will take place in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago on November 27-29, with Uganda President Yoweri Museveni serving as the meeting’s chair.

Prior to the CHOGM, there is another important series of meetings known as the Commonwealth People’s Forum. This Forum is conducted by the Commonwealth Foundation, which is officially sponsored by the Commonwealth. This year’s Forum is taking place in Port of Spain November 22-24, and it brings together hundreds of civil and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to discuss several important issues on wide ranging topics of human development around the world.

Today, Stephen Lewis, Co-Director of AIDS-Free World, is speaking before the Forum to address the Anti-Homosexuality Act which has been tabled before the Uganda Parliament. Lewis also serves as the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa. According to prepared remarks (PDF: 143KB/7 pages), Lewis said that the proposed Act is an “inflamatory redesign” of Uganda’s already draconian anti-sodomy law into “a veritable charter of malice.” He also warns that the proposed Act and Museveni’s chairing the CHOGM “puts the Commonwealth\’s legitimacy and integrity to the test”:

One must remember that the last meeting of CHOGM was held in Uganda in 2007, and issued what is called the “Munyonyo Statement of Respect and Understanding”. It asserted that the Commonwealth “is a body well-placed to affirm the fundamental truth that diversity is one of humanity\’s greatest strengths”. It went on to say that “accepting diversity, respecting the dignity of all human beings, and understanding the richness of our multiple identities have always been fundamental to the Commonwealth\’s principles and approach …”. President Museveni signed the document. How in the world does he reconcile the affirmation then with the defamation now?

Lewis recalls some of the most heinsous aspects of the proposed legislation — the death penalty for LGBT citizens with HIV/AIDS, the criminal sanctions against those who fail to report LGBT people to police within 24 hours, the extraterritorial clause which “extend(s) the arm of the state into the bedrooms of the world,” and the provisions which explicitly suspend international law — and he declares that the legislation has a “powerful Orwellian flavor”:

If it weren\’t so extreme, so menacing, so lunatic, it would be the stuff of theatrical parody. Parents, teachers, doctors, entrepreneurs, preachers, landlords, community health workers, members of the media, civil society activists, anyone who can identify a homosexual, gay or lesbian, or has reason to believe that homosexuality is lurking, must report to the authorities or face a fine, or jail term of three to ten years, or both. Can you imagine a father or a mother turning in a son or daughter? Can you imagine a teacher ratting on a student? Can you imagine a physician who\’s taken a Hippocratic oath to tend to the sick betraying that trust because of a patient\’s sexual orientation? But that\’s exactly what this law requires.

I\’ve truly never seen its like before. Please forgive the harsh language, but this intended antihomosexual statute has the taste of fascism.

And yet, that\’s only the half of it. What is put at terrible risk here — beyond the threat of the death penalty for HIV-positive homosexuals — is the entire apparatus of AIDS treatment, prevention and care.

Citing the significant amounts of HIV/AIDS funding now being funneled to Uganda from the United States (through PEPFAR, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Marlaria, Lewis warns that “there’s a very real crisis of conscience in the offing.” As written, this bill, which also bans any activities which can be seen as “support” for LGBT people, would place ordinary NGO employees and volunteers at risk for criminal penalties. Lewis continues:

I know that the views I am expressing on behalf of the organization I represent, AIDS-Free World, will seem tough and harsh to some. But let me tell you what we feel.

We don\’t think that this piece of legislation deserves a careful parsing of its clauses, invoking all of the international human rights instruments that Uganda has endorsed, from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, attempting to show where the Bill is in conflict with human rights principles. That just gives far too much credibility to the proposed legislation. On its face, without more than a simple glance at the substance, the Bill is revealed as an unbridled attack on the human rights of sexual minorities. There is no overall clause worthy of retention. There are phrases here or there (like the prohibition of sex with a minor) that any sentient human being can agree with. But the Bill cannot possibly be salvaged. It must be expunged in total from the parliamentary record. And for those who believe in conspiracy theories, let me say that the fundamentalist hand of the religious right in the United  States is not difficult to discern.

Nor do we think that we need treat this issue with respect. We don\’t believe that we have to ‘respectfully submit\’ our arguments to anyone, or seek to ‘respectfully influence\’ the powers-that-be. There are some moments in life where defining issues are indelibly joined. I remember sitting behind my then Canadian Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney, at the Commonwealth meeting in Vancouver in 1987. The issue was apartheid. The contest was between Margaret Thatcher and Mulroney, and Mulroney let her have it. There was no respectful pretense. He didn\’t parse the pass laws, he didn\’t invoke the clauses of international covenants, he just lacerated Prime Minister Thatcher for defending apartheid, and he decried it for what it was: a totalitarian regime rooted in racism and the savage decimation of human rights. It\’s worth noting that he was joined by Sir Shridath Ramphal, then the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, who was slightly more restrained but unmistakable of tone and purpose. That was a time when the Commonwealth stood for something.

Lewis skillfully defends the apartheid analogy be pointing out that he didn’t invent the analogy. The comparison between racial apartheid and anti-LGBT legislation was made by the Constitutional Court of South Africa itself in 1998 when it struck down that country’s anti-sodomy law.

Describing the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act as “positively criminal,” Lewis demands that the CHOGM takes up this issue and places it on the agenda. He also demands that the Commonwealth collectively commits to suspending Uganda from the Commonwealth should the proposed law pass. This step is typically reserved for when a member state undergoes a military coup or suspension of its constitution. Zimbabwe is the most recent suspension. However, South Africa was suspended in 1961 over apartheid, and it wasn’t re-admitted until 1994 after its racial policies were dismantled.

But that was a relatively easy call: no other member nation had state-sanctioned racial segregation policies. Forty of the fifty-three member nations currently have anti-sodomy laws, although none of them as severe as Uganda’s existing law which already provides for lifetime imprisonment. With the vast majority of the Commonwealth already on record as  fully prepared to imprison its LGBT population, and Museveni acting as chair of the Commonwealth summit, a statement addressing the proposed legislation is a severe long shot. But as Lewis concludes:

“The credibility of the Commonwealth is hanging by a spider\’s thread. …If the once-upon-a-time civilized values of the post-colonial Commonwealth are to be restored, then the monstrous war on homosexuality is the place to start the restoration. Uganda makes a perfect beginning.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Canada’s Anglicans oppose Uganda’s ‘Kill Gays’ bill

From the Episcopal News Service:

The Anglican Church of Canada’s Council of General Synod has expressed its dismay and concern over the draft proposed Anti-Homosexuality Bill currently before the Ugandan Parliament.
…
“The proposed bill would severely impede the human rights of Ugandan citizens both at home and abroad by infringing freedom of speech, peaceful assembly, freedom of organization, and legitimate advocacy of civil rights,” the Council of General Synod said Nov. 15. “It would impose excessive and cruel penalties on persons who experience same-sex attraction as well as those who counsel, support, and advise them, including family members and clergy.”
…
Canada’s Council of General Synod called upon the Church of Uganda to oppose the bill. It also called “upon our own Government of Canada, through the minister of external affairs, to convey to the Government of Uganda a deep sense of alarm about this fundamental violation of human rights and, through diplomatic channels, to press for its withdrawal…”

Meanwhile Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury has remained too busy to oppose the proposed execution of gays in Uganda. He was in Rome today meeting with the Pope to discuss Rome’s poaching of anti-women and anti-gay Anglicans.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Exodus Sends Letter To Ugandan President

Exodus has announced that they have sent a letter to Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni concerning the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act that is now before Parliament. The letter, which is signed by Exodus President Alan Chambers, vice president Randy Thomas, “former homosexual” and AIDS survivor Christopher Yuan, and Grove City College professor Warren Throckmorton, the letter begins by making a distinction between child sexual abuse and consensual relationships between consenting adults. It then continues:

While we do not believe that homosexual behavior is what God intended for individuals, we believe that deprivation of life and liberty is not an appropriate or helpful response to this issue. Furthermore, the Christian church must be a safe, compassionate place for gay-identified people as well as those who are confused about and conflicted by their sexuality. If homosexual behavior and knowledge of such behavior is criminalized and prosecuted, as proposed in this bill, church and ministry leaders will be unable to assist hurting men, women and youth who might otherwise seek help in addressing this personal issue. The Christian church cannot and should not condone homosexual living or gay-identified clergy within its leadership, but it must be permitted to extend the love and compassion of Christ to all. We believe that this legislation would make this mission a difficult if not impossible task to carry out.

Written as it is by an organization which is does not affirm the dignity and worth of LGBT people to live their lives responsibly in freedom and self-determination, there is certainly much in this letter that merits criticism. Furthermore, the letter makes no recommendations except to “consider the influence this law will have” on the work of those who believe that the only valid option for LGBT people is to self-deny their own existence. The “influence” this law will have on LGBT people themselves, well that’s apparently inconsequential and not worthy of discussion.

Content-wise, there is almost nothing I can agree with. But then, this letter wasn’t written by an LGBT advocacy group, nor was it written on behalf or in defense of LGBT people. It was written by an organization who wants to make gay people straight — an already improbable task from a practical standpoint, soon to be made impossible by the legal impediments this law would impose. From that viewpoint, this letter makes their case well.

Besides, the contents of this letter shouldn’t allow us to refrain from both acknowledging its importance and welcoming its tardy arrival. For more than eight months after Exodus board member Don Schmierer participated in a conference in Kampala which fanned the flames of hatred that brings us to where we are today, Exodus remained officially silent. This letter breaks that long and exasperating silence. The damage done by eight months of silence won’t be fixed by a single letter, but it’s a start in the right direction. And as first steps go, this is a very good first step.

But to really be meaningful, this letter needs to be followed up with more actions and statements. I have a suggestion: The Observer, The Independent and The Monitor, all independent Ugandan newspapers, have printed letters and op-ed columns criticizing the proposed Anti-Homosexuality Act. I’m sure they’d be interested in the opinions of an American evangelical leader who presents himself as an expert in homosexuality and wants to approach the subject “with grace and truth.”

Will Exodus follow up with more action? Given the stonewalling we’ve seen to date, I’m not willing to place any bets. It seems to me as though they are looking for ways to do as little as possible, but just enough to inoculate themselves from criticism. This letter, by itself, is not an inoculation. Many more boosters will be needed. Eight months of silence is too long a trend to reverse in one shot. Besides, it’s not about criticism from us and other LGBT advocates that should be the issue. It’s the lives at stake in Uganda, lives made much more precarious following a certain conference last March.

The complete letter is reproduced below.

Click here to see BTB\’s complete coverage of recent anti-gay developments in Uganda.

Click here to read Exodus International’s letter to President Museveni.