- Martin Ssempa
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Martin Ssempa Born 1968 (age 42–43)
Nalusali, Uganda[1]Nationality Ugandan Occupation Pastor Religion Christian Spouse Tracey Ssempa[2] Children Pablo, Josiah, Abigail, and Makiah
Martin Ssempa (born 1968) is an Ugandan pastor and activist, founder of the Makerere Community Church. He rejects separation of church and state, opposes the usage of condoms to prevent HIV contraction and supports abstinence plus fidelity education in the fight against sexual diseases.[3][4] Ssempa claims to be leading a crusade to "kick sodomy out of Uganda, endorsing proposed legislation in Uganda that makes certain homosexual acts punishable by life in prison or even, in some cases, death."[5][6]Contents
Early life and education
Martin Ssempa was born in Naluzaale, Masaka District, Uganda in 1968 to a single mother. He did not know who his father was. His mother was a teacher and he changed schools often as a child. Ssempa went to Kimanya Primary School in Masaka and St. Peter's Primary School in Nsambya. He then went to Rubaga Boys' Secondary School, before he completed his A level at Namilyango College. During his teenage years he became a celebrity in East Africa as the national break dancing champion.[1] In 1988, Ssempa was admitted to Makerere University.
During this time[when?] both Ssempa's brother and sister contracted AIDS. Ssempa sat by their beds as they grew sicker. When they died in 1990, he blamed their promiscuity and feared that his lifestyle would also lead to his death via AIDS; thus, he decided to take action. Ssempa converted to Evangelical Christianity at the Wandegeya Baptist Youth Center. He traveled the country with a drama group that performed in schools in an effort to educate students about AIDS.[7]
Ssempa graduated from Makarere with a Bachelor's degree in Social Science, specializing in sociology. He later received a Master of Arts degree in counseling from Philadelphia Biblical University.[1][8][9]
Activism
While Ssempa has advocated a cessation of tribal rivalries and hatred in Uganda,[10] he is a strong advocate of the Uganda Anti-Homosexuality Bill that includes the death penalty for gay men and lesbians.[11] Ssempa champions the bill by showing gay pornography in his church and at conferences. [12] U.S. President Barack Obama has referred to the bill as "odious".[12]
Of the bill, Ssempa has stated the following: "Some people have asked about the rationale of a death penalty mentioned in the Bill. There has been a lot of misinformation about this matter with headlines such as: “Gays face death penalty in Uganda”. These headlines are deliberately misleading. This penalty applies only in special cases termed 'aggravated homosexuality', which include, those convicted of unlawful homosexual rape of a child or handicapped invalid; This is a conviction of paedophilles! As highlighted in the problem of 'virgin rape cures HIV/AIDS' the offender can be a person living with HIV; a parent or guardian of the victim where there is abuse of authority! Finally is the use of drugs to stupefy the child so that they can rape them!. Clearly, the intent of this penalty is to protect weaker members of society from being victimized. Please note that for over 15 years Uganda has had the same penalty for persons who have carnal knowledge of minors heterosexually, mainly to protect against sexual abuse of girls by men. This time, this provision intends to provide equal protection of boys, among others." [13]
In 2009, Ssempa was one of several pastors who accused a rival, Robert Kayanja, of having sex with two young men. The accusations were dismissed by the police, however, the scandal stalled support for the sodomy bill.[14]
Influence
Ssempa's international influence has been exhibited through his work with a branch of the United States Agency for International Development, the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Because of his involvement in light of the anti-gay bill he backs in his own country, PEPFAR has been labeled by gay and lesbian support groups as promoting homophobia.[15][16]
In addition to his anti-gay agenda, SSempa has co-authored Uganda’s 2004 "Abstinence and Being Faithful" AIDS policy; this policy is a revision of the previous "ABC Program" -- Abstinence, Being Faithful, and Condom Usage. As well, he is a special representative of the Task Force on AIDS of Ugandan First Lady Janet Museveni.[15] Ssempa has testified before the United States Congress on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa.[17]
In the past, Ssempa was associated with Rick Warren and Saddleback Church's HIV/AIDS Initiative.[18] During this time period, he served as keynote speaker at Warren's Disturbing Voices AIDS conference; Warren has since distanced himself from Ssempa and completely severed ties with him in 2007.[19]
Parody videos
A variety of autotune remixes of a Ssempa's speeches against homosexuality have appeared on YouTube, achieving "viral" status. The most infamous example is "EAT DA POO POO", a reference to Ssempa's insistence during his sermons and speeches that gay men regularly partake of each others' feces.[20] The video was produced by Bart Baker. Other parodies, usually variations of of EAT DA POO POO, feature MC Hammer, Richard McGinty, Adolf Hitler and others.[21]
See also
References
- ^ a b c The New Vision, Martin Ssempa turned Saturday night at MUK into prime time
- ^ "Martin's Story". Martinssempa.com. http://web.archive.org/web/20070625201057/http://www.martinssempa.com/bio2.html. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ Frontline
- ^ 29 juli 2007. "Frontline/World| Uganda: Condom Controversy | PBS". YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGdnWSeu-Wg. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ Timothy, Aaron (14 August 2009). "Martin Ssempa ~ News: Christians join Muslims to fight Homosexuality". Ssempanews.blogspot.com. http://ssempanews.blogspot.com/2009/08/christains-join-muslims-to-fight.html. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "God and the Fight Against AIDS - The New York Review of Books". Nybooks.com. 28 April 2005. http://www.nybooks.com/articles/17963. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "New Vision Online : Martin Ssempa turned Saturday night at MUK into prime time". Newvision.co.ug. http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/9/657/631662/. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "A view inside the Ugandan anti-gay campaign of Martin Ssempa, Dr. Warren Throckmorton". Crosswalk.com. 10 November 2009. http://www.crosswalk.com/blogs/ewthrockmorton/11616589/. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "Uganda pastor screens gay porn in church". Capitalfm.co.ke. http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/Kenyanews/Uganda-pastor-screens-gay-porn-in-church-7515.html. Retrieved 2010-03-14.
- ^ The Independent, Guest Blog: Tribal Politics: Role of the church in peace building
- ^ Reuters: UN rights boss urges Uganda to shelve anti-gay bill
- ^ a b "Martin Ssempa, Anti-Gay Ugandan Pastor, Shows Church Gay Porn Videos". Huffingtonpost.com. 18 February 2010. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/18/martin-ssempa-anti-gay-ug_n_467157.html. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ Ssempa, Martin. "Warren Response". http://web.archive.org/web/20091225191303/http://www.martinssempa.com/warren-response.html. Retrieved 2011-01-03.
- ^ The Economist magazine; July 3rd, 2010 issue, page 45.
- ^ a b "Rick Warren's Africa Problem". The Daily Beast. 7 January 2009. http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-01-07/the-truth-about-rick-warren-in-africa/full/. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "PEPFAR money being used to 'promote homophobia', charges human rights group". Aidsmap. 19 October 2007. http://www.aidsmap.com/en/news/B990E508-29C7-4F00-A995-9DA9A58385FC.asp. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ "NOW. Transcript. November 4, 2005". PBS. 4 November 2005. http://www.pbs.org/now/transcript/transcriptNOWGL_full.html. Retrieved 2010-03-07.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ Miller, Lisa (29 November 2009). "Pastor Rick Warren Responds to Proposed Antigay Ugandan Legislation". Newsweek. http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/thehumancondition/archive/2009/11/29/pastor-rick-warren-responds-to-proposed-ugandan-legislation.aspx. Retrieved 6 December 2009.
- ^ ["http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On3etueeGIg" "EAT DA POO POO"]. YouTube. "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=On3etueeGIg". Retrieved 07 September 2011.
- ^ [" http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=eat+da+poo+poo&aq=f" "EAT DA POO POO variants"]. YouTube. " http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=eat+da+poo+poo&aq=f". Retrieved 07 September 2011.
Categories:- 1968 births
- Living people
- Ugandan activists
- Ugandan clergy
- Internet memes
- Viral videos
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