£14,645 donated by supporters of the Peter Tatchell Foundation is funding a new community project to support LGBT+ victims of persecution in Uganda.
The Dauglas Project, coordinated with Out & Proud African LGBTI (OPAL), will provide safe housing and farmland to grow food and generate income to sustain the project. It will offer mutual support, sports activities and facilitate the development of creative skills in music and dance. The aim is to uplift LGBT+ Ugandans suffering homelessness, unemployment, poverty and social exclusion on account of their sexuality or gender identity.
The funding was raised from the Peter Tatchell Foundation’s appeal to friends and
supporters earlier this year. A cheque was formally presented to Abbey Kiwanuka of OPAL outside Uganda House in London by Sir Ian McKellen, Peter Tatchell and the then PTF Operations Manager, Simon Harris, who coordinated the fundraiser.
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Sir Ian McKellen, who helped fund the project, praised PTF donors for their “generosity and solidarity with LGBT+ Ugandans facing persecution.” He said the project was an “important and valuable lifeline” for LGBTs outcast and under threat.
The project is led by Ugandan community organiser, Dauglas, who already supports
vulnerable young people through music, dance and sports sessions. His full name is being withheld to protect him against arrest and vigilante violence.
Dauglas said: “This support will help us create a safe community where vulnerable LGBT+ people can come together, grow food, develop their talents and rebuild their lives with dignity and hope.”
Abbey Kiwanuka of Out and Proud said: “The project plans to support around 30–80 LGBT+ people in its first year. Farming will help provide food and potentially generate income, while a small music and recording facility will develop creative skills and possible employment opportunities.”
Peter Tatchell said: “LGBT+ Ugandans are living under some of the harshest anti-gay laws in the world, with maximum sentences of life imprisonment and even execution by hanging.
“Many face rejection by their families, eviction from their homes, and dismissal from their schools and jobs. They also suffer mob violence and police harassment, blackmail and sexual assault. Homelessness and poverty are widespread.”
“We are proud to help fund this project, which will provide housing, employment, skills training, income, food, and a LGBT+ social and friendship network. It is about helping vulnerable LGBT+ people survive today and securing their long-term future.”
The project will operate discreetly because of Uganda’s hostile anti-LGBT+ environment. Identifying information about participants and the precise location of the project will not be published to protect them from arrest and mob violence.