Gay rights, the devil and the end times

Public religion and the enchantment of the homosexuality debate in Zambia

Bibliographic Data

ID4372170
AuthorsAdriaan Van Klinken (0000-0003-2011-5537, University of Leeds, corresponding author), Adriaan S Van Klinken
Year2013
Volume43
Issue4
Pages519-540
Publication date2013-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligion (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0048-721X • E-ISSN: 1096-1151
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0048721x.2013.765631
OpenAlexW2109761882
LanguageEN
Citations received41
References cited29

This article contributes to the understanding of the role of religion in the public and political controversies about homosexuality in Africa. As a case study it investigates the heated public debate in Zambia following a February 2012 visit by United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who emphasised the need for the country to recognise the human rights of homosexuals. The focus is on a particular Christian discourse in this debate, in which the international pressure to recognise gay rights is considered a sign of the end times, and Ban Ki-moon, the UN and other international organisations are associated with the Antichrist and the Devil. Here, the debate about homosexuality becomes eschatologically enchanted through millennialist thought. Building on discussions about public religion and religion and politics in Africa, this article avoids popular explanations in terms of fundamentalist religion and African homophobia, but rather highlights the political significance of this discourse in a postcolonial African context

Context (archaeology) · Homosexuality · Human rights · Political science · Politics · Public discourse · Sign (mathematics) · Sociology · African Sexualities and LGBTQ+ Issues · African studies and sociopolitical issues · Gender Studies · History · Law · Marriage and Sexual Relationships

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