African academies use science to refute anti-gay policies

So-called ‘evidence’ commonly used to back anti-gay legislation in Africa has no basis in science, says a report produced by the South African science academy and endorsed by its Ugandan counterpart.

The Academy of Science of South Africa published the report on 10 June at the South African AIDS conference in Durban, at an event attended by the Ugandan National Academy of Sciences president, Nelson Sewankambo.

The report draws on research into biology, anthropology and social science to assess whether statements like ‘homosexuality is un-African’, ‘homosexuality is a threat to children’, or ‘homosexuality is socially contagious’ are borne out by science.