Grantee Profile: Dignity Association (formerly Sierra Leone Lesbian and Gay Association)

Sierra Leone is emerging from a civil war which tore the country apart. Violent crime remains high, and the police force and judicial system barely function in most of the country.  In this conflict-ridden environment, Sierra Leone’s lesbians, gay men, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are very much at risk, facing violence, harassment, and discrimination, with police often refusing to investigate crimes against LGBT people. Founded in 2002, Dignity Association works to end discrimination by the government, police, medical system and schools. The group also provides psychological and medical support to a fearful and underground LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community.

Working in Sierra Leone’s deeply conservative and traditional society, Dignity faces constant set-backs and barriers. In late 2004, the organization suffered a huge loss when its founder and director, Fanny Ann Eddy, was raped and murdered in the organization’s offices. Activists suspect her murder was because of her visible activism on the rights of LGBT individuals in Sierra Leone. Her brutal murder sent an immediate chill through Sierra Leone’s LGBT community. In addition, the willingness of these activists to raise unpopular issues makes them a target of official and social hostility, which sometimes threatens to shut them down. Last year, for example, the Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs refused to renew Dignity’s registration as an NGO. LGBT rights are so taboo that government officials and even other human rights organizations have refused to meet with Dignity staff. 

In the photo to the left, Dignity supporter Bather Whitfield speaks at the organization’s branch opening in Makeni, Sierra Leone. She is one of Dignity’s 120 members. The branch opening was only possible after months of outreach with local organizations. Dignity will use the office to provide health education and help LGBT victims of violence.

In Sierra Leone, the government and society prefer to deny the existence of lesbians and gay men. One consequence of this denial is that LGBT people don’t have access to life saving information on and health care for HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In its outreach with gay men and male sex workers in Freetown and the northern city of Makeni, Dignity has found disturbingly low levels of knowledge of HIV and STIs. In recent interviews with gay men in Makeni, only about a third had basic information about HIV/AIDS and its transmission; many were unaware of how to use a condom.

This lack of basic knowledge about HIV/AIDS in Makeni continues despite the National AIDS Secretariat’s outreach and training in the area. Dignity staff believe that gay men and women are afraid to attend workshops for fear of being publicly identified. Therefore, Dignity staff are working with the AIDS Secretariat to reach LGBT communities and provide health information that responds to their needs. Through this outreach, Dignity makes contact with frightened and isolated members of the community and helps them receive other support from the association. In Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, Dignity also provides access to low cost medical care for gay men when public hospitals refuse to treat them.

Dignity challenges the perception that there are no gay men and lesbians in Sierra Leone by raising the visibility of the LGBT community. Dignity participates in radio programs broadcast across the country on gender-based violence, speaking out against attacks on gay men and lesbians.

Within a difficult context, Dignity plays a critical role in providing a safe space for gay men and lesbians to meet and conduct workshops on HIV/AIDS and physical safety.   Despite great personal risk, Dignity activists continue their efforts to change mindsets and win respect for the basic rights of the LGBT community. 

October 2007