In an era where state-sanctioned homophobia relies on distorted narratives, it is essential to confront misinformation designed to demonize our lives as people- as the SOGIE movement- as LGBTQ people. The recent article circulating on https://nymynet.com/ presents a deeply flawed and dangerous account of “Roots Symposium “portrayed not as a gathering of strength but as a covert operation for youth moral corruption. We are therefore called to educate on such shallow deductions and point out how these are only intended to uphold discrimination and fear mongering towards LGBTQ people.
The article intentionally misinterprets the purpose of the symposium by naming it “a grooming site intended to entice youth to the vice” Contrary to this claim, in hostile environments where the mere expression of queer identity is met with brutal state violence, creating inclusive and supportive spaces is an act of survival—and resistance. Labeling LGBTQ+ inclusive gatherings as “grooming” smears a community that, for decades, has fought for nothing more than dignity and mere safety. Our safe spaces are a necessity for nurturing ourselves and fostering community, not covertly recruiting others into a fabricated vice, we are not a form of religion.
This article then taps into the anti-rights favorite, “LGBTQ demonization through Sensationalist Rhetoric” a well-documented tactic that includes use of descriptive terms such as “traumatic,” “horrifying erotic homosexual behavior” a calculated attempt to evoke revulsion and justify unwarranted scrutiny. This sensationalism dismisses our community’s long history of resilience and survival while ignoring the harsh reality of how misinformed societal beliefs and institutional violence continue to force LGBTQ individuals to the margins and justify the need for community. By distorting the symposium’s objective into moral decadence, this writer perpetuates an age-old shallow media narrative that has historically been deployed to marginalize any people that dare to exist authentically.
While the article fixates on the supposed moral decay within our community, it conveniently ignores the fact that Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act—an excessively harsh law is not a shield against immorality but a tool of repression and political control. Unless this writer has been under a rock and missed numerous political efforts during its passage, when legal systems and state institutions conspire to criminalize an existence, privacy becomes both refuge and fortification.
The secrecy of LGBTQ inclusive gatherings is therefore born out of necessity and with such legislations as the Public Order Management Act that this writer quotes, we must be vocal in emphasizing the fact that the true threat to Uganda’s Morality lies not in the acknowledgement of Gender identity and Sexual Orientation diversity but in the relentless hateful distortion of narratives as in this articlehttps://nymynet.com/how-effective-is-the-anti-homosexuality-act-in-uganda-resort-hosts-a-secret-gay-gathering/
In nuanced homophobe hinting writing, this writer further distorts the ugly reality of Uganda’s child sexual Abuse statistics and systematically endangers the much-needed honest conversations about how this society’s misguided moral righteousness has fostered an environment of sexual exploitation. By employing triggering myths, the writer of this article undermines legitimate discussions about “sexual exploitation of children online” and shifts the focus to artificial moral panic about our LGBTQ identities. These are clearly manipulative narratives that dangerously stigmatize the community and divert attention from real threats.
Reclaiming our story
At its core, the article is a desperate attempt to reignite witch hunts and stigmatization of the LGBTQ community by using morality posturing as a weapon to silence Our voices and Our stories. This is not a matter of “recruitment” or “influence” but every safe and inclusive space we create, every gathering we hold is a necessity in a society that continues to demonize us.
As KuchuTimes, we emphasize that the media’s understanding of how misinformation intertwines with violence and repression of the LGBTQ community could offer meaningful insights into the broader struggle for equality. Correct information helps society to push back against intolerance and injustice not for a few but for communities. And maybe this is something we could all be better at such times as these.
