Meet Rev. Mark Kiyimba from Uganda

Meet Rev. Mark Kiyimba from Uganda on Wednesday, October 6, 2010 7:00 p.m. at Brookfield UUC Church, 9 Upper River Steet, Brookfield, MA.

Contact the church office at 508 867-5145 for more information or to arrange handicap access.

Who is Rev. Mark Kiyimba and why do we want to meet him?

Beginning in 2009, a horrendous legislation was put before the Ugandan government as a private bill: the Anti-Homosexuality Bill which, if enacted, would broaden the criminalization of homosexuality by introducing the death penalty for people who have previous convictions, are HIV-positive, or engage in same sex acts with people under 18 years of age. The bill also included provisions for Ugandans who engage in same-sex sexual relations outside of Uganda, asserting that they may be extradited for punishment back to Uganda, and included penalties for individuals, companies, media organizations, or non-governmental organizations that support LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) rights. This bill would also punish those who knew of someone who was homosexual, or even only suspected that someone was homosexual, and did not report that information.


Rev. Mark and his church, the Unitarian Universalist Church of Kampala, took a strong and courageous stand against this bill. They organized a conference, called "Standing on the Side of Love: Reimagining Valentine's Day," held February 14, 2010. All details were kept secret until that day, knowing, as one organizer put it: "If we walk through the streets [for this protest] we will surely be stoned."

According to Rev. Mark, whose church members include many LGBT persons, "I cannot stand by and watch as my community is exterminated. My church will become illegal and cease to exist if this bill becomes law" The intense international reaction to the bill, which was stirred primarily because of Rev. Mark's conference, caused President Yoweri Museveni to form a commission to investigate the implications of passing the bill. In May 2010, the committee recommended withdrawing it.

The Unitarian Universalist Association of Kampala includes the urban congregation of about one hundred members in Kampala as well as a rural community that oversees a school and orphanage for HIV/AIDS orphans near the town of Masaka.