ACCRA, Ghana - Traditional healer Naa Busuafi used to feel empowered when leaving tribal ceremonies held on the outskirts of Accra, proud to be living out practices that colonists sought to eradicate.
But that pride has been replaced by fear and dread as a government bill intended to stamp out homosexuality has contributed to a violent backlash against LGBTQ+ people.
Busuafi’s peers connect people with spirits or with long-lost relatives. In TikTok videos of ceremonies, bare-chested women channelling male spirits chant and dance. Men wear a long dress with jewelry when the spirit dominating them is female.
These ceremonies would likely be banned under the proposed bill, which would criminalize cross-dressing. MPs tabled the legislation in June 2021 as a “family-values” bill. It was approved by Ghana’s parliament this past February, but has been tied up in court challenges ahead of the Dec. 7 national election.
The Canadian Press travelled to Ghana as part of an investigative series looking into a global backslide in LGBTQ+ rights and the consequences for Canada, including the role of pre-colonial gender identities.
Ghana’s proposed law would jail those promoting same-sex relations for up to a decade, coerce jail time or force what is referred to as conversion therapyfor those caught having gay sex. It also would ban certain medical treatments such as hormone therapy.
LGBTQ+ people say the proposal has led police to target them and has normalized street violence.
“Are you trying to say that our culture is a sin, that our tradition is a sin?” asked Busuafi, who uses the pronoun “they.”
They said Ghana had a relatively permissive attitude about homosexuality in the 1990s. A law that banned anal sex between men existed, but was rarely enforced.
Activists are now tapping into history to try to convince Ghanaians that gender and sexual minorities have a long-standing presence in the region.
“In the spirit realms, queerness exists. And it has existed from prehistoric times, before the slave trade,” said Busuafi’s friend Isaac Bill, who also uses “they” pronouns.
“We are the front-liners to the (LGBTQ+)community.”
Ghana needs a BJP or smth to put the christoid donkey worshippers in their place.