LGBT Ugandan Refugee support
Donation protected
My name is Dave Saville, I am a Forester and Conservationist in West Virginia, USA. I have spent part of each of the past few years working on Forest Restoration and Wildlife Conservation in Eastern Africa; Kenya and Tanzania. I work with students and also volunteer at an orphanage. It was at the orphanage where I met an amazing young Ugandan, also volunteering there, named Grace (not his real name to protect his identity). He has more courage than anyone I know.
In 2014, Uganda passed a law called the "Kill the Gays" law. Besides mandating harsh sentences, it required parents to turn their own children into the police if they were LGBT. Grace had been exposed (outted) by friends, so his parents rejected him and turned him into the police, he was quickly arrested. Through a twist of fate, he was able to escape, and like hundreds of other LGBT Ugandans, he fled to Kenya to seek refuge.
The Kenyan government placed the LGBT refugees into large camps with thousands of other refugees from Somalia. There, they were met with hatred and violence and many were lynched because they know the only refugees from Uganda are LGBT. Their lives in jeopardy, they have been forced to flee from the camps and live on the streets in Nairobi.
Because of widespread publicity, and American Evangelicals coming to Africa to fan the flames of hatred, they are living in fear and in hiding, their lives in danger from vigilante mobs. They are unable to get jobs or find safe housing. The police and authorities will not help or protect them, rather only further oppress them. Besides fearing for their life, they are subject to seemingly hopeless poverty.
I have had the sobering experience of meeting many of these persecuted souls. Grace introduced me to the unfortunate circumstances he and others are forced into. Kind, gentle people who only want to live, and pursue their dreams. They are at the mercy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where they are undergoing the painfully slow process of being resettled. Grace is registered with the UNHCR, but it could take years for the resettlement process to play out.
As much as I'd like to, I cannot save all these people. This Go Fund Me campaign seeks to raise awareness of this issue here in the USA, and also to help Grace survive until the UNHCR's resettlement process can relocate him to safety. Funds raised will be used to send Grace a monthly stipend of $100 which will help pay for his rent and other living expenses for up to 24 months. It will also provide airfare and funds for relocation expenses to whatever country he is eventually resettled to.
I know Grace personally, very well. And while it would only be helping one of hundreds in his situation, supporting this campaign, even in a small way, will change the course of a person's life, maybe even save his life.
I would be happy to share more information about Grace and his situation with anyone who would like to know more. Because his life is in danger in Nairobi, I don’t want to make too many details public. Send me a message and I will promptly reply.
In 2014, Uganda passed a law called the "Kill the Gays" law. Besides mandating harsh sentences, it required parents to turn their own children into the police if they were LGBT. Grace had been exposed (outted) by friends, so his parents rejected him and turned him into the police, he was quickly arrested. Through a twist of fate, he was able to escape, and like hundreds of other LGBT Ugandans, he fled to Kenya to seek refuge.
The Kenyan government placed the LGBT refugees into large camps with thousands of other refugees from Somalia. There, they were met with hatred and violence and many were lynched because they know the only refugees from Uganda are LGBT. Their lives in jeopardy, they have been forced to flee from the camps and live on the streets in Nairobi.
Because of widespread publicity, and American Evangelicals coming to Africa to fan the flames of hatred, they are living in fear and in hiding, their lives in danger from vigilante mobs. They are unable to get jobs or find safe housing. The police and authorities will not help or protect them, rather only further oppress them. Besides fearing for their life, they are subject to seemingly hopeless poverty.
I have had the sobering experience of meeting many of these persecuted souls. Grace introduced me to the unfortunate circumstances he and others are forced into. Kind, gentle people who only want to live, and pursue their dreams. They are at the mercy of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), where they are undergoing the painfully slow process of being resettled. Grace is registered with the UNHCR, but it could take years for the resettlement process to play out.
As much as I'd like to, I cannot save all these people. This Go Fund Me campaign seeks to raise awareness of this issue here in the USA, and also to help Grace survive until the UNHCR's resettlement process can relocate him to safety. Funds raised will be used to send Grace a monthly stipend of $100 which will help pay for his rent and other living expenses for up to 24 months. It will also provide airfare and funds for relocation expenses to whatever country he is eventually resettled to.
I know Grace personally, very well. And while it would only be helping one of hundreds in his situation, supporting this campaign, even in a small way, will change the course of a person's life, maybe even save his life.
I would be happy to share more information about Grace and his situation with anyone who would like to know more. Because his life is in danger in Nairobi, I don’t want to make too many details public. Send me a message and I will promptly reply.
Organizer
Dave Saville
Organizer
Morgantown, WV