Fact vs Fiction: Debunking the Myths Behind Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023

When Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act (AHA) 2023 was signed into law, it was framed as a moral shield meant to “protect children”, “defend the traditional family” and “preserve Ugandan culture”. In reality, the Act is built on claims that collapse under even light scrutiny. This is not a debate about values. It is a matter of evidence.

Decades of global research show that the foundations of the Act are rooted in misinformation, moral panic and political scapegoating rather than science or social reality.

Below, UmojaPride breaks down the most common myths used to justify this draconian law, and the facts that dismantle them.

Myth 1: LGBTQ+ people threaten the “traditional family”

The claim: same-sex relationships weaken heterosexual marriage and family life.

The facts: there is no evidence that LGBTQ+ relationships damage heterosexual families. Large-scale studies across the United States, Europe and OECD countries show that recognising same-sex relationships has no impact on marriage rates, divorce rates or family stability among heterosexual couples (Carpenter et al., 2021; Trandafir, 2015). In some cases, divorce rates even declined following marriage equality reforms.

Countries like Denmark, Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands show the same reality: heterosexual families continue to exist, marry, have children and thrive regardless of whether LGBTQ+ people are allowed dignity and legal recognition (Badgett, 2020). Extending relationship recognition to same-sex couples did not alter non-marital birth rate trends or the proportion of children born to unmarried heterosexual parents.

Myth busted: the idea that LGBTQ+ existence threatens families is not evidence-based. It is fear-based.

Myth 2: LGBTQ+ people endanger children

The claim: children must be “protected” from homosexuality.

The facts: children are not endangered by LGBTQ+ people, but they are endangered by stigma, violence and state-sanctioned hatred.

Over 30 years of peer-reviewed research confirms that children raised by same-sex parents are just as healthy, stable and well-adjusted as those raised by heterosexual parents (Patterson, 2022). Longitudinal studies following children into adolescence show equal or better outcomes in emotional wellbeing, social competence and academic performance (Gartrell & Bos, 2010).

Even more damning is the misuse of child protection rhetoric. Extensive evidence shows that the vast majority of child sexual abuse is committed by heterosexual adults known to the child, often within family or trusted social settings, and not by LGBTQ+ people (Jenny et al., 1994; Barth et al., 2013).

Myth busted: using children as a justification for criminalising LGBTQ+ identities is not protection. It is political manipulation.

Myth 3: homosexuality is a choice or a foreign influence

The claim: same-sex attraction is learned, imported or imposed.

The facts: sexual orientation is a natural and deeply rooted part of human diversity.

• King Mwanga II: the 19th-century Kabaka of Buganda openly had sexual relations with both male and female servants.
• Traditional Ugandan societies had specific roles for diverse identities, such as the mudoko dako among the Lango people: effeminate men treated as women, who could marry other men without social sanction.
• It was the British Empire that introduced the original laws criminalising “unnatural offences” when Uganda became a protectorate. These were the imported Western legal and religious values, not the other way around.

Scientific consensus is clear: sexual orientation emerges early in life and is not something people consciously choose or can simply abandon (ASSAf, 2015). Genetic and developmental studies, including one analysing nearly half a million people, show biological influences on same-sex attraction (Ganna et al., 2019).

Myth busted: what is foreign is the colonial-era legal framework that criminalised same-sex intimacy in the first place: laws imposed by British rule, not indigenous African cultures.

Myth 4: sexual orientation can be “fixed” or changed

The claim: LGBTQ+ people can be “rehabilitated” through therapy.

The facts: so-called conversion or reparative therapies are ineffective, unethical and dangerous.

A systematic review by the American Psychological Association found no credible evidence that sexual orientation can be changed. Instead, these practices are linked to increased depression, anxiety, trauma and suicidal thoughts (APA, 2009).

As a result, conversion therapy is condemned, and in many countries banned, by medical and psychiatric bodies worldwide. The World Psychiatric Association is unequivocal: sexual orientation is not an illness and does not require treatment (Bhugra et al., 2016).

Myth busted: promoting these practices under the AHA is not about healing. It is about coercion.

Why this matters

The Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 is not only legally extreme but intellectually dishonest. It ignores overwhelming evidence, weaponises misinformation, and legitimises violence and exclusion under the guise of morality. Laws built on myths do not protect societies. They fracture them.

Ugandans deserve policies rooted in truth, dignity and evidence, not fear-driven legislation that sacrifices lives for political gain. The facts are clear. The question now is whether they will be acknowledged.

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