BEING GAY IS GHANAIAN.

I cleaned of the dust on my oxfords with my blue handkerchief, flipped it over and cleaned
my face dry of the sweat droplets running down my face. As I rose to stand straight, I saw a
silhouette of a male figure walking in my direction. I squinted to make out who it was. It
was Tesi. As he crossed the street, walking towards me, he wore the familiar smile that
warms my heart. We embraced each other warmly. I hadnt seen him since I had gotten
back from the US, two weeks before. Within ten minutes of our walk towards his office, we
had caught up on highlights of each others last year. I ranted about the cold weather in
Michigan as well as my new love for coffee. He complained about the meager national
service pay and how it was much less than he anticipated. We got to the gates of the office
building. It was an old storey building. There was a small painted sign nailed to the gate
that read Center for Human Rights Advocacy.
Ready? Tesi said with a nervous smile. I smiled back confidently in affirmation. We
walked up the stairs to the reception. He introduced me to the receptionist. Hey
Amanda, This is my friend, shes an intern from Daily Graphic. Shes here to
interview Director. Amanda smiled at me and said. Welcome my dear, would you
like some water or anything to drink? I declined. Tesi shared a momentary giggle
about an inside joke with her, he then excused himself to return to work. I sat,
fidgeting with my phone as I waited to interview Mr. Charles Sackey. Briefly after
Tesi, disappeared into the back offices.
A man walked into the reception. He wore a blue shirt and a matching African print
bow tie. He talked in a high-pitched voice and made lots of hand motions. After
complaining about the bad service he received from a kenkey seller, he left the
reception and disappeared into the back offices. After he left, Amanda said
distastefully, mtchewe, ewie) pii ts). Nk33 s)), ehi3 gboo ak3 kojo basiaa ji l3. (He
talks too much, this is all he knows. Hes not even embarrassed that he is
homosexual). I looked up from the shock of the derogatory comment to find her
staring straight at me. I suppose she was looking for some form of approval. I could
feel the pressure to react. She had spoken in Ga(my native dialect). She had
established camaraderie. My saving grace came from the back offices. Ms
Mantey? He said, looking straight at me. I got up relieved, smiling a little too
enthusiastically. He smiled back and introduced himself as Mr. Charles Sackey. We
exchanged pleasantries as we walked into his office. He offered me a seat in front of
him and began the conversation.

Mr. Sackey: So Esi off the record, could you please tell me a little about yourself. Esi
mentioned you live in the US?
Me: Certainly Mr. Sackey. Im Esi Mantey. I spend most of my time in the States for
school. I am third year student, studying Communications. Im just home for a
Christmas break
Mr. Sackey: Interesting. Thats good to know. Great use of ur vacation, interning.
Good for you dear. (Smiles). Lets proceed.
Me: So Mr. Sackey, I heard about your NGO through Tesi, I must say you do great work. Im
sure as Selasi has probably mentioned to you, Im particularly interested in the work your
NGO does with LGBTs.(lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders). Could you tell me more
about that?
Mr. Sackey: Well Esi, our organizations main focus for this particular group is with
issues of discrimination. As you might know people in minority groups are usually
targets of discrimination, so as expected we come across many cases of of hate
crime and abuse. So as and when we can, we do our best to deal with these issues.
Me: Right. So, Mr. Sackey. Im not very conversant with the laws of the nation, but
Im quiet sure there is a law stating the illegality of unnatural carnal knowledge ,
unnatural carnal knowledge is defined as all sexual relations beyond the generic
penile penetration of a man into woman. I surmise then that based on this
definition, LBGT sexual relations are punishable by law. Arent you concerned that
your organization is promoting illegal actions in advocacy issues that concern
LGBTs?
Mr. Sackey: You make a strong point in stating the illegality of unnatural carnal
knowledge. Bear in mind that the law refers to an act and not an identity. Besides
this point, there are many other acts that are illegal under unnatural carnal
knowledge but not punished by the law. Have you heard of anyone being sanctioned
for cunnilingus? I suppose not but technically it can be classified under unnatural
carnal knowledge.
Me: Mr. Sackey, well then I suppose we can rightly conclude then that there is a rare
chance anyone would be sanctioned for unnatural carnal knowledge. I guess for
LGBTs their identity can some what be suggested as an implication of the
involvement in unnatural carnal knowledge. Besides the issue, a more daunting
issue is that our culture greatly frowns on LGBTs.

Mr. Sackey: I am very much aware of that, and it is a major flaw. In fact eradicating this
misconception is one of our passions and my team and I are working tireless on projects to
dispel these misconceptions.
Me: Please expound on these projects you are referring to.
Mr. Sackey: We go on trips to villages and small townships, where we rally the youth to talk
to them about having an LGBT identity. We emphasize the fact that the concept LGBT is not
a western idea. We focus on creating a gay Ghanaian identity. Surely as we continue to
debunk this myth, our community would grow to be more accepting.
Me: Hmmm, creating a gay Ghanaian identity, thats a peculiar way to put it. In the next ten
years, how do you think this would play out in terms of policy making?
Mr. Sackey: In the next ten years, we hope and trust that our policy makers would orient
the laws of the nation to be intentionally inclusive of LGBTs. Currently we have some
government officials that fund these educational trips, whose names I cant share for
obvious confidentiality purposes. But to answer your question, I believe there is much
hope to hold on to.
Me: Thank you so much. I think this is all I need. I appreciate your time and your
contribution.
Mr. Sackey: Sure Ms. Mantey. When am I to expect the story in the news paper?
Me: Hahaha! The senior editor would decide that. I just write the stories but I will be
in touch. Thanks once again. Great meeting you.
Mr. Sackey: Good. Glad we had this conversation. Pleasure meeting you too. Have a
good day.
Later that night, I lay on my bed transcribing the interview onto my laptop. As I
ended the transcription, I paused for a while to recapture in my thoughts, the last
moments in Mr. Sackeys office.
I sat in front of Mr. Sackey for another five minutes. He didnt notice I was
deliberately prolonging my stay in his office as I pretended to put my things
together. I am still not quite sure why I stalled. At first I thought it because of an
unexplained unsettled feeling I had after the interview. Honestly, I think the real
reason was because I was subconsciously reprimanding him and I wanted him to

hear my thoughts. Did he know that the success of his projects would mean the
dismantling of my cultural heritage? My Ghana? I judged him even more when his
phone rang. Emirika by Kojo Antwi started to play. I remember freezing for a
moment when he answered the phone. hey babe By then, he had noticed I was
still there and gave me a slightly disapproving look. I rushed out of his office
wondering who babe was. I was battling with the thought that babe could be
anyone, male or female. Obviously there was no tangible reason for me to harbor
that thought, but it just seemed justified.
I caught myself lost in my thoughts when I heard my phone ring. I picked up the
phone and answered the call. Hey babe, said the voice on the other end. It was
Pebbles. Hi babe, I said nervously. Hoping my disorientation from abruptly picking
the phone call wasnt obvious.