Thoughts on LGBTI Activism, Race, and Gender in a Kenyan Context

Abstract

This article gives perspectives on the challenges of LGBTI advocacy in a Kenyan context. The paper starts by giving a summary of the work done by Minority Women in Action (MWA), a local LBTI organization. It then goes into the various concerns being addressed by MWA and other Kenyan LGBTI organizations. These concerns are described as twofold. On the one hand, there is ignorance of sexuality and sexual orientation, compounded by inherited colonial criminal law, dogmatic religious belief, and the rigidity of social and sexual hierarchies. On the other hand, there are poverty levels among LGBTI and wider communities alike. Thereafter, the paper discusses the challenges and impacts of race, culture, and gender on LGBTI activism. The fourth section outlines various policy changes that are needed if there is to be more successful advocacy of LGBTI rights. Finally, the essay concludes with some factors that have thus far contributed to MWA success.