The interaction of human rights and religion in Africa's sexuality politics.

This article analyzes the contested appropriation of human rights language in Africa’s sexuality politics, focusing on how lesbians, gays, bisexual, trans, queer, and intersex persons (LGBTQI+) are excluded from protection due to intertwined religious, cultural, and postcolonial predispositions. It highlights how anti-LGBTQI+ advocates invoke human rights claims related to religion, family, and culture—often supported by alliances with the US Christian Right, the Vatican, and Islamic leaders—to justify discriminatory laws and policies, as seen in countries like Uganda, Ghana, Zambia, Nigeria, and Kenya. The article also discusses the limitations of African regional human rights bodies in enforcing LGBTQI+ protections and critiques the framing of LGBTQI+ rights as foreign impositions. It concludes by proposing the African philosophy of ubuntu, emphasizing communal dignity and interconnectedness, as a culturally resonant framework to vernacularize and advance LGBTQI+ rights on the continent.