Nigerian atheist freed from prison but fears for his life
This week, we start in Sudan, where the United States has accused the RSF of genocide. Then, we travel to Nigeria, where an atheist has been freed after spending more than four years in prison for blasphemy. Finally, we stop in South Africa, where the police rescued 26 Ethiopians from a suspected human trafficking ring.
But first, in Uganda, in March 2023, one of the world’s strictest anti-homosexuality laws was passed. Since then, discrimination and attacks on queer people have increased. Despite this, LGBTQ+ Ugandans continue to support one another and stay strong in a system that tries to erase them. This week, we share a photo essay about the journeys of three brave queer Ugandans navigating life after the law was passed.
Read an excerpt here👇🏽:
“I am scared for my life”: Queer Ugandans on surviving under the country’s harsh anti-LGBTQ law
Pastress Aggy
“Before the law was passed, I could still move around without constant fear. But now, I’m scared for my life. I feel like a prisoner in my own home, staying indoors as much as possible. Even where I live, I can only stay for short periods before I have to move again, afraid someone might discover who I am. If they do… well, that’s a whole other ordeal.
Things have really gotten tough. Just a few months ago, I was sexually harassed, and I had no one to turn to because of the law. I couldn’t go to the police, and even at the hospital, I had to lie to the doctors, afraid they’d report me. So, I had to endure everything alone. Meanwhile, the person who did this to me is out there, living freely, while I carry the memory of that experience every single day.
Continue reading here
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Women fishmongers in Kenya have had little choice in the widespread sex for fish culture. Until now
Emelda has been a fishmonger at Lake Victoria’s Dunga beach in Kisumu City, 165 miles west of Kenya’s Capital, Nairobi, for the last 27 years. The mother of five says her late brother, a fisherman, introduced her to the business.
“After clearing my high school, I was unable to join college, this led me into an early marriage as the only option. With the help of my brother, I ventured into fish trading to help my husband, who was a small-scale farmer,’’ Emelda tells Minority Africa.
Emelda started buying fish from fishermen and selling it for a profit. While she was able to make money, she quickly realised that fish stocks for female fishmongers, who rely on fishermen and boat owners for supply, were never guaranteed. And it’s for this reason that she decided to venture into cage fish farming.
On January 4, 2023, Edwin’s body was found stashed in a metal box along the Kipkenyo-Kaptinga road in Kenya. Maybe, as is alleged, the murder of Edwin was a case of intimate partner violence. However, the events that led to his death cannot be divorced from homophobia.
When I first met him, there would have been no way to know that years later, I – and the world – would lose him so tragically. Due to the long wait at the bus terminal at our initial meeting, I was already irritated when he stepped out of the bus.
He stood at 6’2”, wearing a shirt with fur-like imprints on the collar, straightened black trousers and heels a few inches tall. He was a breathtaking figure and a sight that easily made me forget the hours of waiting.
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The Maths Queen with a quantum mission to mentor girls
Known in Ghana as the Maths Queen, Dr Angela Tabiri is the first African to win The Big Internet Math Off competition – quite an achievement for someone who had not initially planned to study mathematics.
The 35-year-old Ghanaian “finds joy in solving puzzles and mathematical questions” and hopes her 2024 win will open up the world of mathematics to other African women – who have traditionally been discouraged from taking the subject.
Sixteen mathematicians were invited to compete for the tongue-in-cheek title of “the world’s most interesting mathematician” – a public vote event started in 2018 by The Aperiodical blog.