The Obama Admistratn's Bold but Risky Plan to Make Ai Gay-Friendly - The Atlantic

Contents:

• WHY GAY RIGHTS NOT HUMAN RIGHTS LIBERIA? “TAC TOLERANCE” UNRMED
• GAY LIFE LIBERIA
• LIBERIAN ANGER OVER GAY RIGHTS LL
• THE OBAMA ADMISTRATN'S BOLD BUT RISKY PLAN TO MAKE AI GAY-FRIENDLY

WHY GAY RIGHTS NOT HUMAN RIGHTS LIBERIA? “TAC TOLERANCE” UNRMED

Homosexualy⚢✖ Illegal (imprisonment as punishment)Censorship✔ No censorshipNon-bary genr regnnUnknownDiscrimatn✖ Illegal some ntextsEmployment Discrimatn✔ Sexual orientatn and genr intyHog Discrimatn✖ No protectnsConversn TherapyAmbiguo.

Our target populatn clus the Lbian, Gay, Transgenr, Bisexual and Intersex (LGBTI) muny, people livg wh HIV, people wh disabili, sex workers, and female jectg dgs ers. Signifint human rights issu clud credible reports of: unlawful or arbrary killgs, cludg extrajudicial killgs; cel, human, or gradg treatment or punishment by the ernment; harsh and life-threateng prison ndns; arbrary arrt or tentn; ser problems wh the pennce of the judiciary; ser rtrictns on eedom of exprsn and media, cludg vlence and threats of vlence agast journalists; ser ernment rptn; lack of vtigatn and acuntabily for genr-based vlence, cludg child, early, and forced marriage, and female genal mutilatn/cuttg; crim volvg vlence or threats of vlence targetg lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, and tersex persons; the existence and enforcement of laws crimalizg nsensual same-sex sexual nduct between adults; and the outlawg of pennt tra unns or signifint rtrictns on workers’ eedom of associatn. Women and members of historilly margalized groups, cludg persons wh disabili and lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, and tersex (LGBTQI+) persons, participated at signifintly lower levels than men as party lears and elected officials.

Rtrictns of Freedom of Exprsn, Associatn, or Peaceful Assembly: There were no legal rtrictns on those speakg out on LGBTQI+ issu or on the abily of LGBTQI+ anizatns to register or nvene events, but few engaged the permissible activi due to fear of verbal or physil abe, as antigay sentiment is a regular part of polil, social, and relig disurse. Here Liberia hostily towards members of the Lbian and Gay Communy Liberia (LGBTQ) ntu to persist and the suatn has been exacerbated further sce the outbreak of COVID-19 and s unrlyg rtrictns. Henshaw says there are several ways which gays and lbians are beg disproportnately affected by this global panmic—cril among the beg the crease vlence agast members.

GAY LIFE LIBERIA

As members of the gay muni across Ai, Liberian gays thought progrs was beg ma on their behalf when former Secretary of State of the Uned Stat, Hilary Clton, 2012 announced that “gay rights are human rights” and that aid to Ain untri would be tied to how those untri treat sexual mori.

Print Sirleaf immediately nullified Clton’s mpaign when she, an terview wh the UK-based Guardian Newspaper fend the current law which crimaliz homosexualy. While servg as Senator for Bong County, current vice print, Jewel Howard Taylor, troduced a bill to make homosexualy a first-gree felony—the bill did not pass. It is clear that COVID-19 is a great threat to the gay muny, given the documented high prevalence of ndns among them, such as HIV and ncer, which are risks of more severe COVID-19 disease and higher mortaly.

LIBERIAN ANGER OVER GAY RIGHTS LL

Not surprisg, homophobia ntu s march across sub-Saharan Ai unabated 2012 as Liberia lawmakers take their turn proposg hateful anti-gay discrimatory laws. Two lawmakers Liberia have troduced bills that uld make homosexualy more dangero than already is but the Print Mrs Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said she will not sign them.

Liberian gay activist Leroy Archie Ponpon (photo left) and associat were narrowly shed out of a lol rad and televisn statn by Police Monrovia, after more than 500 people had bieged the area of the rad statn to asslt him for his mpaign to advote for gay rights. “Most ordary Liberians, who opposed same sex marriage, have reportedly issued threats agast both gay activists and lawmakers, warng them of ser nsequenc should gay and lbian marriag be legislated.

“Print Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is the chief planner and fal cisn-maker when to our foreign relatns; the issue regardg gay and lbianism is ltle outlandish the Liberian terra, pecially wh the uniquens of the Liberian culture and tradn, ” the Foreign Mister-Dignate add. Self-styled exponent mpaigner for the legalizatn of gay rights and same sex marriage Liberia Tuday affirmed that members of his group have gone to hidg for fear of their liv, but vowed to ntue their advocy.

THE OBAMA ADMISTRATN'S BOLD BUT RISKY PLAN TO MAKE AI GAY-FRIENDLY

Speakg to this paper om his hiout, chief executive officer Leroy Archie Ponpon of the Movement for the Defense of Gay and Lbian Rights (MODEGAL), said, “We have gone to hidg bee of public outrage and threats of attacks on our liv. Nobel peace prize wner and print of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has fend a law that crimalis homosexual acts, sayg: "We like ourselv jt the way we are.

"Liberian legislatn class "voluntary sodomy" as a mismeanour punishable by up to one year prison, but two new bills have been proposed that would target homosexualy wh much tougher sentenc. For , the prri are around power, roads, jobs livery, " he his 10 years as prime mister, Blair beme a champn for the legal equaly of gay people, phg through laws on civil partnerships, liftg a ban on gay people the armed forc and lowerg the age of nsent for gay people to 16. But gay rights, he said, were not somethg he was prepared to get volved as an adviser to Ain Sirleaf stg to his left, Blair refed to give any advice on gay rights reforms.

One would amend the penal to make a person guilty of a send-gree felony if he or she "sc, enurag or promot another person of the same genr to engage sexual activi" or "purposefully engag acts that aroe or tend to aroe another person of the same genr to have sexual terurse", rryg a prison sentence of up to five send bill – drafted by the ex-wife of the former print Charl Taylor – would make gay marriage a crime punishable by up to 10 years jail. "The gay rights bate epted Liberia after the US secretary of state, Hillary Clton, announced December that Ameri's foreign aid budget would promote the protectn of gay rights, promptg speculatn that funds would be tied to rights announcement brought unprecented attentn to homosexualy a untry where until recently gay people and lbians lived secret, but generally not fear for their liv. "Over the last six months, we've seen a worryg crease anti-gay rhetoric, tolerance and ed attacks on dividuals fightg for the rights of Liberians same-sex relatnships, " said Corne Dufka, a senr rearcher for Human Rights Watch wt the past month alone there have been at least six homophobic attacks the pal, 21-year-old gay man, who recently left Monrovia to move to the untrysi after some of his iends were threatened, said he now lived fear of mob vlence, a mon occurrence on the streets of Monrovia.