American Jewish World Service Joins with Global Human Rights Activists for a Day of Action Opposing Ugandan Anti-homosexuality Bill

Will urge Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni not to sign the bill into law

NEW YORK, NY – American Jewish World Service (AJWS), the leading Jewish international development and human rights organization, joined with human rights activists around the world on Monday, February 10, for a Global Day of Action, urging Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni not to sign the country’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill into law. AJWS held five events as part of the Global Day of Action in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Passed by the Ugandan Parliament in December, the Anti-Homosexuality Bill contains many cruel and unconscionable provisions including life imprisonment for repeated same-sex sexual behavior. It also criminalizes the so-called “promotion of homosexuality,” which includes funding organizations that provide health and other services to LGBT people or promoting the legal and human rights of LGBT people.

“We implore Ugandan President Museveni to reject the Anti-Homosexuality Bill and refuse to sign it into law,” said Ruth Messinger, president of AJWS. “LGBT Ugandans are ostracized and assaulted on a daily basis just for living their lives, and, for recent generations of Jews, the threats facing LGBT people in Uganda are all too hauntingly familiar. State-sanctioned hate and escalating efforts to use the law of the land to strip citizens of their legal rights and their humanity have no place in any country.

“Now, as we watch history threaten to repeat itself, we answer the call of our colleagues in Uganda to speak out. We cannot remain silent. We cannot simply stand by,” said Messinger

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