By Nicholas Snow
Oxford-based activist Dennis Hambridge founded the non-governmental organization (NGO) Gay Activists Alliance International with prominent Nigerian activist Davis Mac-Iyalla in order to highlight inequality and human rights abuses towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and other gender variant people (LGBTI). “We also highlight women’s rights regardless of sexuality and also the Worlds AIDS Campaign,” explained Dennis about the all-volunteer organization.
“Our activists work from home. We don’t have official offices,” he added, “and our main communications are over the internet, with Messenger or Skype. Due to severe homophobia and trans-phobia in many countries, some activists will use an alias for safety.”
Dennis stressed, “No matter in what country or continent, inequality and human rights abuses are no different.
We all have the common goal of making it a better and fairer world for the persons we campaign for. How you tackle that from country to country or continent can significantly vary. What we can do in a free society, you are not able to do in one that is not, or in ones that oppress LGBTIQ persons and women—such as being able to protest or seek funding for LGBTIQ groups in Africa or parts of Asia.”
“I identify myself as a gender queer,” clarified Dennis, who did not come out until 2003 after both his mother and stepfather had died. “We are a very close knit family. All my family and relatives have been so supportive. I am not aware of any of them treating LGBTIQ persons any differently than heterosexual people. I don’t think my mum would have approved had they treated LGBTIQ persons differently.”
“I believe I really knew about my sexuality when I was about ten years old,” Dennis continued. “Like many in those days, I hid it. I got married young. I was so confused about my sexuality and hid behind alcohol. I became over the years dependent on alcohol to help keep me hiding everything. Eventually I could hide no more and confessed to my wife.”
Dennis learned of the beginnings of the Gay Activists Alliance when he was downloading gay symbols to give out at a pride event. He learned about the Lambda symbol, the ancient Greek Spartan army and the Sacred Bands of Thebes, and studied philosophy. “I then learned of the heroics of such people like Brenda Howard, Marsha P. Johnson, and Sylvia Rae Rivera, among other great names involved with the GAA after the Stonewall riots of 1969.”
“I have always strongly believed that there are three main topics that bring people together in harmony,” said Dennis, “Music, sport and the arts. Regardless of gender or sexuality, sports stars and music stars need to come forward to be counted and take a stand for equality and human rights.”
“The GAAI needs assistance and funding in getting resources to our campaigners—this can range from educational literature on LGBTIQ issues and on HIV/AIDS, etc,” explained Dennis. “We need to supply laptops for outreach work and find safe areas to use them in. Currently many activists use internet cafes which leave them extremely vulnerable to being caught, beaten or even worse. Those who do have laptops or other access to the internet can pay inordinate prices compared to their living means.”
Dennis stressed, “Most LGBTIQ persons in areas like Africa and Asia, once their sexuality, or Transgender or Intersex identity, are known, would be near unemployable and/or thrown out of their homes to fend for themselves. We struggle to find the costs of a decent meal and first aid to those we assist who again would properly be out of work, penniless and under threat of violence,” Dennis added.
He told me about an experience that changed him. “At a conference in Austria, I stood up in the bar of the hotel and quoted the words of Archbishop Desmond Tutu from an article for the 60th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The African contingent stood, sang, and chanted Tutu’s name while doing their tribal dancing—I felt enormous pride, as they had never heard what Tutu had said.” Dennis paused. “My mother regularly used to say to me,” he continued, “‘No one is above you.’ One day I said back, ‘And no one is beneath me. I am equal to all and all are equal to me.’”
For more information about Dennis and his colleagues, visit http://www.gayactivistsalliance.org.
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