John Oliver Talked About Gays in Uganda for Almost 20 Minutes
Outrage in the U.S. over Uganda's virulently anti-gay policy has died down since it flared up earlier this year, but that doesn't mean the situation has improved for Uganda's LGBT population. On last night's Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Oliver cited a May report by the activist group Sexual Minorities Uganda (or SMUG), which states that in the time since Uganda's anti-gay bill was passed by Parliament, there has been a huge increase in the persecution of gays. During the four-month period of this study, there were 162 cases of gay persecution reported, versus 19 in 2012 and eight in 2013 during the same four-month period.
Oliver discussed England and the U.S.'s involvement in the shaping of Ugandan leaders' anti-gay agenda (with a special shout out to Scott Lively, an idiot we laugh at), and he also had on Ugandan trans activist Pepe Julian Onziema, who continues to fight the good fight in his home country, despite the significant danger in doing so.
All in all this is a terrific rough guide.
Oliver's interview with Onziema continued online after the show, and you can watch it here: