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LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Brent Stirton
Series description
In May 2023, Uganda criminalised same-sex conduct for those convicted of ‘aggravated homosexuality’, even though the Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023 violates some of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Uganda’s constitution. Uganda’s penal code already punishes same-sex conduct with life imprisonment, but the new law legislates on new crimes, such as the ‘promotion of homosexuality’; introduces the death penalty for several acts considered as ‘aggravated homosexuality’; and increases sentences for attempted same-sex conduct to 10 years. Anyone advocating for the rights of LGBT people now faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment. Many LGBTQIA people have been forced to flee the country, and are now in fragile safe houses in Kenya. I felt compelled to work on this, as these laws are a violation of human rights and an assault on democracy: people in the LGBTQIA community are entitled to the same consensual rights as all humans when it comes to love and intimacy.
Biography
I am a photographer who specializes in the fields of sustainability, global health and the environment. I am employed as a special correspondent for Getty Images.
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Ayan Farah Dahr (18) was born a girl, but identifies as a trans man. At the age of 15 he fled persecution in Mogadishu, Somalia, and found his way onto a bus that took him to the Kenyan border. There, under cover of darkness, he walked illegally across the Kenyan border and made his way to Nairobi, to try to be resettled by the United Nations in a country that accepted him.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Olivia and Pretty, trans women, at a local hotel swimming pool near their safe house. They are seen comforting each other, which happened immediately after they were left alone. This kind of display of affection can draw negative attention across Kenya, and the police would likely be called if they were seen.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Lady Tina, in the wig, and Pretty Peter are trans women who fled the harsh anti-LGBT laws in Uganda and now live in a safe house in Nairobi, Kenya. They keep a low profile, only dressing as women within the privacy of the house and very rarely going out like that to a safe place.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Lady Tina and Pretty Peter were previously jailed in Uganda for their trans lifestyle and experienced sexual assault.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Olivia and Pretty photographed in Pretty’s bedroom in a safe house for trans women in Nairobi. Today they will go to church and a nightclub; they always prepare extensively for these outings. Olivia is visiting from Kakuma refugee camp, which is where most LGBTQIA refugees are sent. They are extremely vulnerable in the camp.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Scenes of fellowship at the Cosmopolitan Affirming Church at an undisclosed location in Nairobi. The identities of the church-goers are protected in this image to protect them from violent prejudice and discrimination. Kenya has become a hub for LGBT people who are fleeing violence in Uganda and other African nations.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Cyara is a trans woman who fled harsh LGBT laws in Uganda and is now a refugee awaiting asylum status in Kenya. She is seen at St Mary’s hospital in Nairobi donating blood for a sick friend in the hospital, who is in need of a transfusion. Cyara has experienced life-threatening prejudice and violence and would like to be resettled overseas in a more LGBT-friendly country.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards
LGBTQIA Refugees: Fleeing Uganda
Pretty arriving at the back entrance of the K1 Club in Nairobi. Pretty and her trans friends prefer to use the back entrance as it attracts less negative attention than the main gate. They always take care not to be seen publicly until they are in a safe place.
© Brent Stirton, South Africa, 2nd Place, Professional competition, Documentary Projects, 2024 Sony World Photography Awards