African Rainbow Family with Aderonke Apata

05/01/22 • 38 min

The Forbidden Apple: LGBTQ+ SPIRITUALITY

Aderonke is a Nigerian LGBTQ Activist and the founder of African Rainbow Family charity- a UK-Based organization that supports LGBTIQ people of African heritage and the wider Black and Asian Minority Ethnic groups.

Aderonke was born and raised in Nigeria where being gay is illegal. When she was found to be a lesbian she suffered intense persecution. Aderonke fled to the UK to seek asylum.

Despite fearing imprisonment and death in her country, Aderonke was not believed and she languished in the asylum system for years with her claim being repeatedly refused by the UK authorities. After a 13-year long battle Aderonke was finally granted refugee status.

Aderonke shares how she has used her journey, and the tools she learned struggling to get refugee status, to now provide services for others through her charity which supports LGBTIQ refugees and people seeking asylum and campaigns for global LGBTIQ equality - standing against hate crimes and supporting communities who face constant harassment, hate crimes and discrimination heaped on them by an ignorant society because of their sexuality or sexual preferences and or gender identity.

You can support the African Rainbow Family charity here:

https://africanrainbowfamily.org/

Aderonke was born and raised in Nigeria where being gay is illegal. When she was found to be a lesbian she suffered intense persecution. Aderonke fled to the UK to seek asylum.

You can support the African Rainbow Family charity here:

https://africanrainbowfamily.org/

Previous Episode

I ran away from God - Luzie from Kenya (TW: suicide, violence, homophobia)

Luzie talks about her struggle growing up as a Lesbian in Kenya. She opens up about the spiritual violence she suffered and being made to believe that it's demonic to be attracted to the same sex.

Luzie shines a light on how gay clubs become a safe haven for many LGBTQ folks- drinking to numb the pain- and even more dire, using it as place to sleep when they become homeless once they're rejected and kicked out of their homes.

Luzie also shares about being shunned from her family at the same time that she is the sole caretaker for her mom who has dementia. She hopes to be a pastor one day to other LGBTQ folks in Kenya so they don’t have to suffer like she has.

Paypal info to help Luzie care for her elderly mom and her daily expenses:

[email protected]

Next Episode

Asylum, a manifesto for LGBTQ refugees with Edafe Okporo

Edafe Okporo is a global gay rights activist, the founder of Refuge America, and one of the most visible voices on the issue of displacement.

Edafe grew up in Nigeria where religion played an important role in his childhood. Edafe shares how he was guided to pray the gay away and how he became a pentecostal pastor in this effort. An interaction with an older closeted priest made him realize he was in for a life of suffering and needed to come out to live an authentic life.

Edafe talks about becoming an advocate and getting involved in LGBTQ organizations after losing many friends to AIDS due to homophobic laws and stigmas which prevent many from getting tested and treated.

Due to this work, Edafe was the victim of violence from anti- LGBTQ groups in Nigeria which resulted in him seeking asylum in the US to save his life.

Edafe tells us more about the asylum seeking process and how and why he created Refuge America to help the many LGBTQ refugees who come to the US to live safely.

He is the author of ASYLUM, A Memoir & Mainfesto, a poignant memoir and urgent call to action for immigration justice, out June 2022.

https://www.edafeokporo.com/book

https://www.refugeamerica.org/