Brian Tuck
Weeks after Uganda's Rolling Stone newspaper cover story called for homosexuals to be hanged, a leading gay activist in Uganda, David Kato, was found brutally murdered in his home last Wednesday January 26th in the capital of Kampala.
David Kato, who was the advocacy officer for a group called Sexual Minorities Uganda, recently won a court victory over the tabloid that called for people to kill homosexuals.
The paper was running a campaign that was showing photos, names and even home addresses of people it claimed were homosexual. Late last year, David Kato's picture appeared in the paper.
Coinciding with recent proposed new laws in Uganda for homosexuals to receive the death penalty, Kato's death has shocked local and global LBGT community. Local Ugandan media hardly reported on the murder, demonstrating the reality of how the lives of homosexuals are perceived and erased in the country.
His funeral was held on Friday January 28th where the preacher began to condemn homosexuality to the mourning crowd of family, friends and co-activists. A scuffle ensued and police had to intervene as friends took the microphone away from the Anglican pastor. The burial had to be completed quickly due to threats from nearby locals.
