Health Implications of Anti-LGBTIQ+ Stigma & Discrimination: Spotlight on Uganda

Despite widespread condemnation, on May 29th, 2023 Uganda’s President signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act, 2023 into law. While Uganda has passed anti-LGBTIQ+ legislation over the past several decades, this bill is the most egregious and among the harshest anti-LGBTIQ+ laws in the world. Since the passage of the Act, Ugandan, regional, and international organizations, including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), have rebuked it as a violation of human rights and a threat to the health of Ugandans. The Act will not only inflict direct harm on LGBTIQ+ Ugandans, but will undermine public health campaigns, most notably the HIV response, by discouraging health seeking behaviors due to fear of punishment and marginalization. 

On June 12th, the Harvard Global Health Institute and the Center for Global Health at Massachusetts General Hospital will host a webinar with local experts and advocates who will describe how the health and well being of Ugandans will be impacted by this legislation and how Uganda can forge a more inclusive path forward for all of its citizens.