Global Media News

Gay Expression Restricted in Nigeria

Homosexuality is scorned upon by the Nigerian government. Laws have been past to restrict gay marriage in Nigeria. Anyone found or assumed to be gay can be captured and tortured legally. Arrests have been made to punish those suspected to be gay leading to fourteen years of jail time. Nigerians are allowed to beat and even kill gays in public. Gay Nigerians have fled the country in order to protect themselves and their families.

Bisi Alimi was one of the first gay Nigerians to come out about his homosexuality on television. His appearance caused his interview to be taken off air and the show to be canceled. The show producers where putting together a project covering stories of people in the L.G.B.T community. Although Alimi was a guest on the show, he was ridiculed by the host for his sexuality. The host felt the need to apppear against homosexuality in order to convince the public that they do not promote it on the show. The host Funmi Lyanda had stated "In a country like this how dare you come out and say your gay?" (The New York Times) Unfortunately the public wasn't satisfied with Funimi's backlash because they did not want any coverage on homosexuality at all. After the show he was harassed and death threats pushed him to flee his country.  Since the show, Alimi has received positive and negative support on social media such as twitter over his sexuality.

Whether people believe in homosexuality or not, some just can'y understand why its a major problem. People question as to why laws are being made over gay marriage instead attention being paid to poverty and underdevelopment. The Nigerian government is expected to have kept homosexuals detained in order to collect more money from their families and take advantage of their charge. Dorethy Aken'Ova, executive director of Nigeria's International Center for Reproductive Health and Sexual Rights stated "Even after extorting them, they have not released the people". The bias and lack of self expression against gays is unfair.

Reference:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/04/15/meet-the-first-man-to-come-out-as-gay-on-nigerian-television/ 

http://amanpour.blogs.cnn.com/2014/01/16/meet-the-first-gay-nigerian-to-come-out-on-tv/

http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2014/12/22/372536703/adebisi-alimi-gay-nigerian-actor-puts-his-sexuality-in-the-spotlight

Ugandan Magazine Advocates Gay Lifestyle

A Ugandan Magazine was recently published to support gays and help tell their story. The publisher, Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera is openly gay and hopes to raise awareness about gay experiences. Tabloids make it difficult to supports homosexuality because they expose LGBT people in a country where homosexuality is illegal. "Politicians have stoked anti-gay sentiment by proposing laws that appeal to conservative Christians – the latest of which seeks to criminalise the “promotion” of homosexuality". (Agence France-Presse)

Along with many of her followers, Kasha has experienced violence and hate. She decided to create the magazine entitled Bombastic after she received hundreds of Facebook messages about harassment of LGBT people. Kasha developed the idea of producing the magazine concerning the lack of media support in Uganda, towards gays. She wanted to give people the LGBT people a platform in a country that shames them. Many people that have spoke out about gay rights have been threatened and attacked. The media is a major factor to the violence and harassment against gays. Magazines, television broadcasts , and newspapers exploit the LGBT community by plastering their photos on publications. Her dear friend, David Kato had been eaten to death with a hammer, in broad daylight after his name was published by a tabloid. “They would target me a lot, they would cook up stories – how I’m getting married … I’m training people to become lesbians,” Nabagesera said.

The people of  Uganda ad many other African countries are afraid to speak out because they fear or their jobs, homes, families and life. She wanted to be the voice for those afraid to weak out. After printing 15,000 copies of Bombastic Kasha sent them everywhere. “We took lots of copies to parliament, government offices, everywhere,” she said. Kasha further sought to promote Bombastic using a website, driving major traffic. 

One hundred thirty-eight volunteers including mainstream media help distribute the magazine. Awareness was being raised about the trouble Ugandan media causes for the LGBT community, although some burnt and dismissed them. Kasha was told "“the president’s wife refused even to open it”. “It is our wish, our hope, that if people read just one story it changes their attitude,” she said. Kasha's goal is to gain more support for gay rights.

Reference:

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/09/uganda-gay-magazine-homophobia

http://www.dougcooperspencer.com/black-lgbtq-people-in-history.html

Cyber Monday Craze

Who needs Black Friday when you have Cyber Monday! For all the people that decided they did not want to stand on long lines or deal with being pushed by crazy shopper’s cyber Monday was a peaceful heaven.

But what stood out to me the most about Cyber Monday was the amount of media it received. Cyber Monday has only been in effect for a couple of years but people have really taken to it. More and more people are choosing to not take part in Black Friday festivities but instead  to wait for the following Monday to enjoy sales while remaining in the comfort of their homes. 

While many people like myself enjoyed shopping at home for Cyber Monday some people had no idea where to even begin to look for great online sales. What I did to figure out exactly what stores were having great sales was go on Youtube. Alot of people put up video blogs viewers what websites were giving the best deals.

 

 

I found these videos informal. They made my shopping experience easier because I knew the type of deals that were offered. So if the idea of shopping on Cyber Monday scares you check out some videos of your own.