The Forbidden Apple: LGBTQ+ SPIRITUALITY

In Part II of this Episode, Bishop Tolton talks about his mission of creating Interconnected Justice (ICJ)- a global racial justice movement in which the continent of Africa and its diaspora build an ecosystem of self-defined and determined advocacy. Bishop Tolton works directly with leaders to build integrated justice movements connecting activists with civil society advocates, media professionals, academics, and political leaders. Bishop Tolton opens our eyes to the “invisible” influences of the West that jeopardize LGBTQ rights in Africa. You can contact Bishop Tolton and check out his mission here: https://icjustice.org/ http://tfamglobal.org/

Bishop Joseph Tolton is a legendary global faith leader and the Founder and President of Interconnected Justice - a global racial justice movement in which the continent of Africa and its diaspora build an ecosystem of self-defined and determined advocacy. Bishop Tolton shares the complexities of growing up in Harlem as a promising preacher kid with an inner conflict: feeling the devil had planted the seed of homosexuality as part of his spiritual journey. Bishop Tolton opens about about his journey from going through exoricisms to try to rid himself of the "devil", to coming to a place of self acceptance and embracing his sexuality.    You can contact Bishop Tolton and check out his mission here: https://icjustice.org/ http://tfamglobal.org/

The inimitable Dr. Stella Nyanzi is a Ugandan queer feminist activist, human rights advocate, poet, medical anthropologist, and scholar of sexuality, family planning, and public health. At the time of our recording, Stella speaks to us from Kenya where she is taking refuge due to the current regime in Uganda where she is unsafe as a very vocal opposition. Stella shares with us about her work being a vocal activist. She talks about her time in prison and using her body and sexuality as a means of protest. Listen till the end to hear Dr. Stella read a poem that she wrote while in prison.

Mary Muthui is a human rights activist from Kenya. She shares the stigma and violence she faced being noticeably queer, and what gave her the strength and courage to fight for herself and others. Mary talks to us about the practice of corrective rape- which is unfortunately common practice against LGBTQ individuals specifically lesbians. Mary survived this sexual violence against her and is an outspoken activist trying to end this practice often putting herself at risk to help others. Mary’s home is open 24/7 to victims of sexual violence and is often the first stop for those needing medical help, food, safety, and support.  Listen to learn more about the lifesaving work she does singlehandedly.  You can support Mary by donating here through Paypal: mmuthui26@yahoo.com

Coréon Dú is an award-winning Angolan recording artist, creative director, designer, screenwriter and producer.  Coréon shares how he started creating much-needed entertainment for folks his own age in Angola, and how he became a leading voice on the forefront of change with his revolutionary content. We discuss the far-reaching impact his work has had on the representation of the LGBTQ community in Angola and beyond. Listen to hear Coréon share how he incorporates his love of Africa into everything he does. 

Val Kalende is an activist and founding member of Uganda's LGBTQ MOVEMENT. Val helped launch Freedom and Roam Uganda-FARUG. She shares how taking the risk to be visible has paid off in advancing LGBTQ rights in Uganda. Val opens up about her journey of going back into the closet after being a vocal LGBTQ activist to undergo conversion therapy. Her journey is one of struggle and hope and finally coming to full acceptance of her queerness.  Find Val on Fb @Val Kalende To learn more about Val : https://76crimes.com/2022/02/02/unchanged-a-lesbian-christians-journey-through-ex-gay-life/

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/

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/

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: marienganga35@gmail.com

Ezra Chitando is a Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Zimbabwe and co-author of “Reimagining Christianity and Sexual Diversity in Africa”.  Ezra serves as Theology Consultant on HIV and AIDS with EHAIA, the Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy, of the World Council of Churches. Ezra talks about the importance of diversity of opinions and how education helps in the fight to bring about equal rights for LGBTQ folks.  Ezra speaks of his work educating about African indigenous spiritual practices and their accepting views on gender and sexuality as opposed to the oppressive teaching christianity brought about to their region. Buy his most recent book  “Reimagining Christianity and Sexual Diversity in Africa” co-authored with Adriaan van Klinken : https://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/reimagining-christianity-and-sexual-diversity-in-africa/#!/ Learn more about Ezra:  https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra_Chitando

Cedric Tchante is an activist, marketing coordinator and blogger from Cameroon, currently living in San Francisco.    Cedric talks about growing up in Cameroon where being gay is illegal. He shares how he became a vocal activist and appeared in the documentary “Born This Way”.  A first in Cameroon, this documentary showed the faces of LGBTQ folks talking about their sexuality.    With the documentary making national news, Cedric was the target of harassment and violent attacks. It was only when his loved ones were threatened that Cedric knew he must leave Cameroon and claim asylum.    Listen to hear Cedric share his experience of being a refugee in America.    You can learn more about Cedric here: https://www.huffpost.com/author/cedric-tchante   To watch the documentary “Born this way” visit: https://www.bornthiswaydocumentary.com/

Katlego Kai Kolanyane-Kesupile is a performance artist, musician, writer and LGBT artivist from Botswana. She is known for being the first public figure from Botswana to openly identify as trans. Katlego is also the first-ever TED Fellow from Botswana.  Katlego talks about the biggest misconceptions from the western media about LGBTQ folks in Botswana.  She shares her personal journey and talks passionately about the narrative for trans people that exists in Africa and how their identities are not justified by the politics of surgery.  Listen to hear how Kat sees God in everything, and what she means by “Deputy Jesus”. To learn more about Katlego visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katlego_Kai_Kolanyane-Kesupile To follow her journey visit her website: https://kkolkes.wixsite.com/kkolkes

Ssenfuka Joanita Warry (Biggie) is the Executive Director of Freedom and Roam Uganda FARUG which is a Lesbian, Bisexual and Queer diverse persons and women's rights organization based in Uganda.  FARUG’s mission is to strengthen and mobilize the voice, visibility, and collective organizing power of LBQ womxn in order to change the norms, institutions, policies, and practices that perpetuate inequality, homophobia, hetero normativity and violence in both the public and private arenas. Biggie shares the life-saving work FARUG does on a daily basis including teaching the queer community how to navigate the laws in Uganda which still criminals homosexuality. Biggie breaks down how Christianity is used as a perpetrator of violence to the LGBTQ community. BIGGIE ALSO chairs  LGBTQ Catholics- faithful souls Uganda to counter hateful speech from the church and have a safe religious space and a support group.  FARUG is currently looking for help with getting binders and other devices(which are not yet accessible in Uganda) for the trans men in their community. You can help FARUG by contacting them here: https://www.faruganda.org/contact-us/

Bis Alimi is a Nigerian gay rights activist, public speaker, blog writer, and HIV/LGBT advocate who gained international attention when he became the first Nigerian to come out on television. Bisi shares about how coming out on tv caused him to be driven out of his country and shaped his life and the legacy he is creating. He also opens up about his struggles and the journey he went through to become an advocate for others so they don't have to go through what he did. He talks about reconnecting with his ancestral spirituality once he started university and what inspired him.  Bisi is the Executive Director of Bisi Alimi Foundation https://www.bisialimifoundation.org/ which advocates for LGBT rights in Nigeria and a co-founder and director of Rainbow Intersection, https://mobile.twitter.com/UKIntersection  a forum for discussions of queer identity, religion, and race as well as co-founder of https://www.kaleidoscopetrust.com/  a nonprofit organization that campaigns for the human rights of LGBT+ people in countries where they are discriminated against. Listen to hear how a teddy bear is what Bisi finds most spiritual.  Please bear with us as the connection was weak but we couldn’t pass up this conversation.

After two years of exploring the relationship between LGBTQ people and religion, TFA is traveling abroad.  In this new season we amplify LGBTQ voices from African countries. We will hear from people who have survived gender-based violence and corrective rape, live with HIV in Africa, and those who risked their lives to work towards legalizing homosexuality in their countries.  They share these stories to bring light to these issues, teach us about the impact of colonialism and neo-colonialism, and to get support for their local organizations to change the narrative of LGBTQ people in Africa where in many places homosexuality is still criminalized. You can now listen to these stories weekly at the Forbidden Apple Podcast available on all streaming platforms.

On this final episode of The Nuanced Series, your hosts look back on the lessons learned throughout this season. From listening to others perspectives to giving ourselves permission to think differently, Melissa and Pelayo discuss how to engage in difficult yet meaningful conversations. Thank you all so much for listening. The Forbidden Apple Podcast will be back in the fall . Follow us @thhttps://www.instagram.com/theforbiddenapplepodcast Follow Pelayo's Youtube comedy series  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMpEfkPbDsE5cHYMxnHDUhA

Singer/songwriter Grace Semler Baldridge shares with us their journey from being a preacher's kid to charting on Christian music charts as an openly queer artist. Grace shares how they deconstructed and reconstructed their faith coming out stronger on the other side with a deeper and more connected spirituality. We discuss music, inspiration and relationships.  Follow Semler @ https://www.instagram.com/gracebaldridge/?hl=en https://twitter.com/gracebaldridge?lang=en

Melissa sits down with Rabbi James, Director of social justice programming at CBST to discuss being a queer liberal Jew in 2021. We discuss how it may seem at odds to stand up for more than one people's pain and our steadfast belief that all people should be free and live safely without fear. We discuss the harmful stereotypes about the Jewish people, the rise in antisemitism, and how it mutates from generation to generation often under the guise of social justice movements. Melissa and Rabbi James talk about “Tikkun Olam”- healing the world, and the use of poetry in the Torah as a way that the Jewish people have dealt with persecution for generations. Rabbi James talks about the need to develop relationships across borders and shares practical advice on how to deal with our fears and pain and turn it into love and connection. Listen and inspire change. https://cbst.org/content/rabbi-marisa-elana-james-director-social-justice-programming    https://twitter.com/marisaelana?lang=en 

Melissa and Pelayo discuss 2021 Pride and the decision of the organization that runs New York’s Pride to ban cops from the parade. Do you feel safer without cops at the pride parade? We wanna hear from our community so let us know your thoughts on this via our Instagram @theforbiddenapplepodcast or email info@theforbiddenapplepodcast.com  Sink your teeth into... www.theforbiddenapplepodcast.com 

What if the word homosexual was never meant to be in the bible? Sharon Rocky Roggio, producer and director of the documentary film 1946 joins us to discuss the film that chronicles how the misuse of a single word changed the course of modern history. Rocky also shares her personal struggle and her complex relationship with her dad, a conservative pastor, and her hope that this film heals and prevents further pain for LGBTQ folks. 1946 the movie: https://www.1946themovie.com  https://www.theforbiddenapplepodcast.com