So, the last few weeks have
been filled with a lot of talk on gayism (no,
it is not an actual English word). First it was Binyavanga Wainaina, the Kenyan
writer who became probably the first public figure in the country to openly
come out of the closet and declare his homosexuality.
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| "She thinks I like her. Syke!" |
Then there was news from
across the border in Uganda where President Yoweri Museveni first declined to
sign into law a bill that would see gay people sent to prison for life. He has
since changed his mind and decided to sign the bill, citing research from
Ugandan scientists that shows homosexuality as “... not a disease but merely an
abnormal behaviour which may be learned through experiences in life.” Okay.
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| "There, there, we'll take good care of you. You'll be just fine." |
First, I want to talk
about Binyavanga and this whole coming out business. Predictably, his action
generated a lot of heat both in his support and... well, not in his support. Homosexuality
as a subject tends to split people down the middle, both as a political and a
moral issue. My opinion is pretty straight forward. I will never understand how
a man could be sexually attracted to another man. I will never get it. However,
I can see how a woman might find another woman sexually attractive. My logic is
simple. I am heterosexual, therefore I find the female form to be a thing of
beauty, and I say this with a great deal of respect to women. So yes, I totally
get lesbianism.
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| "Yeah, we totally get it too!" |
But why do we make such a
big deal out of other people’s bedroom preferences? For example, why do we feel
invested in whether Binyavanga sleeps with men or women? And why does
Binyavanga feel the need to let the whole world know that he does not really
like women that way? What is the
value in “coming out”?
I understand why the gay
community might feel discriminated against by society at large. They want equal
rights as those enjoyed by non-gays. Moral arguments aside, fair enough. But is
it really necessary for one to announce or declare their sexual orientation to
the public? Why is it necessary to let the whole world know how you like your
dessert served, and by that I mean how you like to have sex?
Every human being has a
right to choose whom they want to have sex with and how, as long as it is
consensual. I may not agree with the choices that some folks make. There may
even be religious and moral arguments against those choices. Whatever. What I am concerned about is this need by
homosexuals to “come out” and let everyone know what they get up to in the
bedroom.
As a heterosexual, I have
never found it necessary to announce that I like women. I have never had to. It
is none of anyone’s business but mine and whoever I am involved with.
Conversely, I really do not care what other people do behind closed doors. As a
practising Christian, I know that I should probably be breathing fire every
time homosexuality is mentioned, but honestly, I just cannot summon that righteous anger that might be expected of me.
I. Just. Don’t. Care.
I respect Binyavanga as an
accomplished writer. He is a talented prose writer and I have enjoyed his works.
And that is the extent to which I am familiar with him. I do not know him personally;
therefore I have had no opinion on his sexual preference. Until now. Because of
his public coming out, I will now know him as that homosexual writer, not in any derogatory way, but because that
is how, by commission, he has chosen to cloak himself.
I have read some online
comments by fans of his works. Some are supportive of him; others not so much.
Some are actually offended by his homosexuality that they have decided that he
must not be a very good writer after all. Which is a ridiculous premise of
course, but there you are. You cannot argue with people’s stupid opinions.
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| "I'M 'COMING OUT' OF MY STUPIDITY!!!" |
But when a person in the
public eye makes the decision to declare their sexual orientation, particularly
if said orientation is not very acceptable, they must understand that the
public will from that point on define
them by their sexual preference. I find that to be unnecessarily distracting.
For instance, right now we are not talking about Binyavanga The Writer;
instead, we are speculating on what kind of sexual partner he is. Dominant or
submissive? Who cares?
Incidentally, Binyavanga’s
late mother was Ugandan (Binyavanga is a Ugandan name), and that country is
currently in the middle of a storm that has attracted the attention of US
President Barack Obama. Following the decision to sign the anti-gay bill by
President Museveni, Obama has said that that decision “...could complicate
Uganda’s relations with the US.”
Now, I find Uganda’s
position on the whole gay question to be not only repressive, but an overreaction
of titanic proportions. I understand how some people might find gayism
disgusting and everything, but do you really want to jail for life folks who
choose to rub their genitals against other similar
genitals? Really?
Of course that decision by
Museveni, as much as it sounds like he is doing what the larger Ugandan public
wants him to do, could very well be a well calculated political move. It is
said that the President really believes, just like he had earlier indicated,
that homosexuality is a genetic disorder and that homosexuals need care and
treatment and not jail time. Also, he is very alive to the fact that his
country’s relationship with donors could be strained by harsh laws against the
gay community.
When Uganda’s parliament
passed that bill, Museveni’s hands were tied to the extent that he needs that
same parliament to pass some crucial bills that are important to him. So he
obviously needs the House’s goodwill, while at the same time not wanting to
alienate the donor community. So what is a president to do?
Simple. Sign the anti-gay
bill into law and keep the Members of Parliament happy while looking good among
the country’s conservative right. Then get your people to go to court – of
course no one knows they are your people – to contest the law. Wring your hands
and tell the nation you tried to sort out the gay problem, but you could only
do so much. The wazungus are glad
that you are not really going to send gays to prison forever and everyone goes
home happy. Problem solved!
Back to President Obama,
as much as I disagree with the direction that Uganda is taking with the gay
law, I cannot help feeling slightly insulted by the condescending manner in
which the US administration deals with nations in the so called developing
world. Just because homosexuality is slowly going mainstream in some parts of
the US does not mean that other countries should follow suit.
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| I... I have no words, Time Magazine. |
Obama is overtly pro gay,
but it is wrong for him to try and impose his beliefs and opinions on other
nations. It is not a smart move to base
your foreign policy on how other nations treat their gay population. That kind
of rhetoric has the potential to backfire in interesting ways, especially with
the Chinese looking to supplant the West in Africa. There are better and more
diplomatic ways of expressing displeasure than subtly hinting at possible
complications in bilateral relations.
Having said that, we must
all agree that homosexuality has been around since time immemorial and it is
highly unlikely that it will stop any time soon. Having punitive laws that open
the door to sending gays to prison for life, or even executing them for not
enjoying sex the way us “normal” folks do will not cure the gay out of
homosexuals. It will only send the gay culture and lifestyle underground, not
eradicate it.
Frankly, I am not even
sure that we should be treating homosexuality as a problem. Come on, we are
talking about people who have unconventional sexual taste, not poverty or
famine or insecurity or any number of things that should be our focus
especially in Kenya. I do not think we should give the gay community the
recognition they want as a “minority” group because I think that is a load of
crap. They are just people who have chosen a certain lifestyle and they should
be able to live with its limitations.
However, we should not
really be falling all over ourselves criminalizing the hell out of gayism. It
is a complete waste of time and resources, and while it may give those amongst
us that find it disgusting for people of the same gender to have sex with each
other some measure of comfort that we are making the world safer for... for...
um, I have no idea where I am going with this sentence.
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Some of my readers complained
about the use of cuss words in my last post. They will be glad to note that I
have ably exercised restraint this time. Unfortunately, I cannot, in all
honesty promise that I shall continue to behave myself.
