Late in 2014 when my friend, Zachary, invited me to his wedding taking place in The Berkshires this September, I was less concerned about having to travel all the way from Abuja to Massachusetts. Zachary is gay. “What if lightning comes and strikes the building?” I asked. He replied that there had so far been under 100, 000 gay marriages in the U.S. — and no bolts. “Of course, my partner and I could be the last straw,” he added.
That exchange
may have been facetious, but many Nigerians are genuinely terrified of gay
marriage. And they are distraught over the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision
to legalize gay marriage in America.
They express
sadness and pity for what is supposedly God’s Own Country. They predict
America’s inevitable decline. But the emotion most potent in their words is
fear. The kind you might expect from news of an impending tsunami. Many
Nigerians appear terrified that, having finally won the victory on home soil,
America will now set its sights on imposing similar legislature in countries
like Nigeria. “We must resist this wave,” I have heard people say.
Rumors of
America’s plan of action have already started making the rounds. Over the past
few days, a number of articles in local newspapers have revealed what some
Nigerians believe to be the secret agenda behind President Obama’s invitation
to Nigeria’s new president, Muhammadu Buhari. Allegedly, the meeting, scheduled
to take place in the White House on July 20, is aimed at persuading President
Buhari to repeal Nigeria’s infamous Same Sex Prohibition Law signed by the
previous Goodluck Jonathan administration. “Beware of Obama’s Invitation,” read
a headline in one of Nigeria’s dailies.
A June 2015
survey conducted by Nigeria’s NOI Polls (which works in collaboration with
Gallup) shows that 90% of Nigerians believe their country would be a better
place without homosexuals. In addition, 81% do not agree that gay people should
have the same rights as other Nigerians. Only 30% of Nigerians were shown to
believe that gay people deserved equal access to public services such as
healthcare, housing and education.
Despite these
hair-raising data, I would be surprised if the anti-gay bill were the only
reason why President Obama has extended this warm invitation to Nigeria’s
president, what with issues like Boko Haram currently siphoning global
attention. But if indeed he has the welfare of gay Nigerians in mind, President
Obama must proceed with caution.
Read More: cnn