Dear friends,
I grew up thinking that I was the only gay person in the world.
Growing up in Northern Tanzania, I didn't know anyone else who was like me. It was only when I moved to Dar es Salaam for college that I finally realized I'm not alone.
I started exploring the big city and its LGBT+ community and came to terms with myself being gay. But my father found out and as punishment, stopped paying my tuition. Luckily, my mother helped me go back to school later.
Many other young LGBT+ Tanzanians are not so lucky. When their parents find out about their "secret", they cut off all support and throw their children out of their homes.
With no place to go, they end up on the streets, exposed to hatred and abuse.Many of my friends have been beaten in the streets. People throw stones at us. And the police don't protect us. They round up men they suspect of being gay and force them to undergo horrific "anal tests" to find "evidence" of their sexual orientation.
That's why our group, the Eagle Wings Youth Initiative, is planning to build a shelter for LGBT+ people where we can provide safe housing and legal support for those who have been chased out of their homes, harassed, tortured, or raped.
We know we can do it – we've relocated people to safety before and we know an LGBT+-friendly landlord who will provide a space for the shelter. But in this hostile environment we struggle to find any local funding for our project. That's why we reached out to All Out for help.
LGBT+ Tanzanians have suffered through community and police harassment before, but last October things got even worse when the governor of Dar es Salaam announced he'd set up a task force to round up and arrest people suspected of being gay.
Many fled the city and some were even able to leave the country. We knew we had to get together and help those who lost everything. Eagle Wings was able to provide safety to some, but our capacity quickly reached its limit.
A proper shelter will allow us to provide sustainable and dependable support to those who are in danger. With your help we can set it up and open it in just a few weeks time.
Thanks for going All Out,
Wenty Ismail,
Programs Manager at Eagle Wings
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