Two students at Maseno School in Kisumu County have been expelled from the school for being gay. The two students were caught in the dormitory toilet having sex by fellow students who later beat them up so badly before reporting them to the principal.
Instead of offering them with proper counselling, the principle was so quick to judge them and sent them packing. The principle claimed that the school had no room for such people and such acts and warned that if anyone was caught in such acts, he would send them packing for good.
Expelling the boys was not a wise decision. I wonder how having sex would affect their performance or the school performance. Instead of sending them home the head teacher could have sat down with the boys and offered them proper counselling.
What angered me most is that the students who beat them up so badly were never punished at all. They were seen as heroes. I am so sure that if it was a boy caught having sex with a girl; no student would have reported them to the principle. People would have seen the boy and the girl to be cool and even if they were reported to the principal, they could have been given lighter punishment and told to go back to class.
Being gay doesn’t make you to be less human. It doesn’t make you to be treated like trash all the time. Gay people are human beings and deserve to be treated with respect and dignity. Article 28 of the Kenyan constitution states that every person has inherent dignity and the right to have that dignity respected and protected. Violence against gay people is a total violation of human rights. No one should be bullied because of their sexual orientation. If being gay was a choice then since when did you decide to be straight?
You cannot control or choose who to love because love is natural and it just happens like that without even you noticing. Being gay is like being left handed. Some people are and most people aren’t and nobody really knows why. It’s just the way things are and we have to accept that.
Article 27 of the Kenyan constitution states that every person is equal before the law and has the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law. It further states that the State shall not discriminate directly or indirectly against any person on any ground, including race, sex, pregnancy, marital status, health status, ethnic or social origin, color, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, dress, language or birth. I call upon the government to protect the gay community of this country against all forms of violence.
No one is free when others are oppressed. If we can’t stand up and fight for others when their rights are being violated then who will stand up for us when our rights are being violated?
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