The Downfall of Gay Rights in Nigeria

The Downfall of Gay Rights in Nigeria

  Gay marriage in the United States was legalized in 2015, and many other countries changed their laws in the past two decades as well.  The world is constantly changing and becoming more accepting.  However, some countries refuse to change with it.  Nigeria’s Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act was passed in 2014 and since then it has been used to legitimize abuses against LGBT people (“Nigeria: Harsh Law’s Severe Impact”). Gay people in Nigeria are tortured by police and beaten by fellow citizens for simply existing.  The law imposes a prison sentence of ten to fourteen years, and because of this law, gay people in Nigeria describe their lives as like “being on the most wanted list of a law enforcement agency” (“Why achieving LGBT rights”).  This new law continues to influence the law enforcement and community in Nigeria to act on prejudice views in an often violent manner.
  The police were affected by this law and used it to their advantage.  Police have been accused of arresting homosexual or possibly homosexual people with the only reason being to gain money from their bail (“Hunting Down Gays”).  The 2014 law allows the police to get away with this behavior and face no repercussions.  The police also torture gay people they have taken into custody in order to get more names of possible suspects.  This torture only forces the person they captured to give names of people who are not gay or face further pain and death (“Hunting Down Gays”).  Police attacks and the lack of police action against attackers has resulted in violence against the LGBT community being at a record high (“Why achieving LGBT rights”).
  The law enforcement taking part in the abuses only opens the door for the citizens to take part as well.  Nigerian people are able to get away with extreme beatings of gay people in public without any issue.  Micheal Ighodaro, an openly gay man from Nigeria, described his attack, saying “I was hit on my head and beaten. I was called a homosexual. My house and my property were burned. My hand and ribs were broken” (Gander).  His assailants faced no consequences, as any police report would have outed Ighodaro and criminalized him under Nigerian law (Gander).  Similar attacks against gay men have been reported, and gay women are often raped along with being attacked in a similar manner.  The citizens of Nigeria support the law, as their culture and religions are also against homosexuality (“Why achieving LGBT rights”).  Their support of the law and its abuses allows for the attacks to continue.
  It is difficult to come to a solution in Nigeria.  Many Nigerians hold prejudice due to culture, religion, and tradition, and agree with the Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act, making change difficult.  The current president, Muhammadu Buhari, also agrees with the act and shows no signs of changing it (Alimi).  Though there is pressure from other countries such as the United States, President Muhammadu Buhari has “ruled out any chance of Nigeria being pressured by America into legalising the act” (“Why achieving LGBT rights”).  However, hope for the LGBT community in Nigeria still exists, as acceptance rates have gone up 7% from the previous 39% in 2017 (“LGBT poll offers hope”).  In the end, it is only the citizens of Nigeria who can change the laws and create a more accepting community that may be seen in the future.

Works Cited
Alimi, Adebisi. “Nigerian President Reinstates Anti-LGBT Crackdown.” Washington Blade:
          Gay News, Politics, LGBT Rights, 6 Sept. 2016, 2:59pmEDT, 
          www.washingtonblade.com/2016/09/06/nigerian-president-reinstates-anti-lgbt-
          crackdown/.

Gander, Kashmira. “Gay in Nigeria: The Stark Reality for LGBT People in the West African
          Country.” Independent, 23 May 2017, 13:00BST,
          www.independent.co.uk/life-style/love-sex/gay-nigeria-lgbt-reality-life-violencewest-                      africa-flee-micheal-ighodaro-us-abuse-homophobia-a7741161.html.

"Hunting Down Gays in Nigeria." Daily Beast, 11 Apr. 2016. Opposing Viewpoints in 
          Context, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A451860041/OVIC?
          u=los42754&xid=b0892b08. Accessed 8 Mar. 2018.

"LGBT poll offers hope; Attitudes change in Nigeria." Daily News[South Africa], 17 May 
          2017, p. 4. Global Issues in Context,          
          http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A491832604/GIC?u=los42754&xid=31943771. 
          Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.

“Nigeria: Harsh Law’s Severe Impact on LGBT Community.” Human Rights Watch, 20 Oct.
          2016, 12:00PM,
          www.hrw.org/news/2016/10/20/nigeria-harsh-laws-severe-impact-lgbt-community.

"Why achieving LGBT rights in Nigeria remains an illusion." Nigerian Tribune [Oyo State,
          Nigeria], 31 Jan. 2017. Global Issues in Context,
          http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A479692696/GIC?u=los42754&xid=3f85e246.                        Accessed 6 Mar. 2018.