Roger-Luc Chayer
It is by working on a daily basis in the research and analysis of international news on LGBT people that I can take the pulse of the trends and orientations of the countries and societies of the planet and of the evolution, or not, of the normalization of sexual orientations. However, over the past two years, and particularly since the start of 2021, I have noticed that the gap has been widening more and more between so-called « Western » societies and certain African or Asian countries. Going around the wire allows you to see the aberrations. For example, in early July, here are some sample headlines that say a lot about the teaching work we still have to do.
« Yoff: A homosexual falls into a trap » (Remwi.com)
In this Senegalese media, we tell the story of a group of young people who organized to capture a homosexual, beat him, humiliate him and tie him up, to contact the police and hand him over to the authorities, just because that he was gay. The article almost mocks the victim, because in this African country, homosexuality is still considered depravity. The article concludes, however, that the three youths were also taken to the police station, along with their victim, without mentioning whether charges would be laid against them.
« Plots: homosexual arrested for harassing and offering money to young people to satisfy his libido » (Pressafrik.com)
A predator was arrested by the research brigade of the Assainies Parcels police station. Cheikh Diagne, who has homosexual inclinations, targeted young people to offer them money in exchange for sex. He was placed at the disposal of the Morals Section of the Dakar central police station on June 4 when the population wanted to lynch him. This simple excerpt from the first paragraph of the article is bafflingly obvious when you consider that these are the words of a person who calls himself a journalist!
« The USA want to get Cameroon to lift the ban on homosexuality » (Cameroon News)
During a broadcast this Friday, June 25, 2021 on ABK radio, a private station broadcasting from Douala in Cameroon, political scientist Moussa Njoya relaunches the debate on the sexuality of the new United States ambassador to Cameroon. For this analyst, the country of Joe Biden wants to impose this practice of sexuality on our country.
Here again, the journalist places himself as a moralizing judge demanding that the United States ambassador to Cameroon be expelled because he would like to impose a sexual practice, rather than explaining that sexual orientation is a question of identity, not necessarily gender.
There are examples everywhere of this kind of misunderstanding, even speech that strangely resembles the speeches of American preachers who are happy to go civilize Africa, even in 2021. President Biden is right to link the international assistance for the development of LGBT rights, because in 30 years, it must be admitted that things are far from having evolved. Gay pride also means knowing how to explain who we are, willingly or unwillingly.