By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Independent News ExpressIndependent News Express
  • Home
  • International
    InternationalShow More
    United Nations
    4th International Conference On Financing For Development Delivers Renewed Hope And Action For Sustainable Development
    6 days ago
    The African Development Bank and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) scale up drive for sustainable urbanization in Africa
    AfDB, UN-Habitat Scale Up Drive For Sustainable Urbanisation In Africa
    7 days ago
    UN
    North Africa: Green Climate Fund Approves Record $300m For FAO-designed Projects In Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, The Sahel
    1 week ago
    UNICEF
    How Wars Across Middle East, North Africa Affecting Children – UNICEF
    1 week ago
    UNDP
    UN Development Programme Welcomes Historic Deal On Sustainable Development Even Amidst Global Turmoil
    1 week ago
  • Africa
    Africa
    Show More
    Top News
    AfDB Boss, Adesina To African Mayors: Let Us Act To Transform Africa’s Cities
    2 years ago
    2023 UN Water Conference: Nigeria Shares Success Stories In New York
    2 years ago
    First English Slave Fort In Africa Uncovered On Ghana’s Coast
    2 years ago
    Latest News
    At Gender Statistics Forum, African Leaders Urge Renewed Commitment To Quality Gender Data
    2 days ago
    Ooni’s Wife, Olori Temitope Enitan-Ogunwusi Takes Ile Ife Royalty To ADWIN Launch In Cote d’Ivoire
    4 weeks ago
    Independent UN Body Finds Systemic Racism Against Africans And People Of African Descent
    4 weeks ago
    Public Exit: Why South Africa Businesses Are Moving To Private Cloud
    1 month ago
  • Corporate News
    • Media Outreach
  • Politics
    Politics
    Show More
    Top News
    APC Groups In Southwest Revolt, Dump Tinubu/Shettima Ticket For Atiku
    2 years ago
    Mbah’s Victory In Enugu State Excites Nilayo Sports Boss, Olopade
    2 years ago
    Tinubu Is An Actualiser, He Worked Hard To Win Presidential Election – Prince Mohammed
    2 years ago
    Latest News
    Lagos LG Poll: Tunde Disco/Ganiyu Obasa Intensify Campaign In Agege
    2 weeks ago
    PHOTOS: Vinod Obasa Joins Other Lagos APC LG Candidates At Sanwo-Olu’s Reception
    2 weeks ago
    Lagos Lawmaker Praises Tinubu For Helping Nigeria Breathe Again
    1 month ago
    LG Election: Stakeholders Appeal To APC Not To Allow Chairmen Run For 3rd term
    2 months ago
  • News
    • Agriculture
    • Breaking News
    • Tech
    • Maritime
    • Crime
    • Art & Culture
    News
    Show More
    Top News
    Ondo Governor, Akeredolu Begins Construction Of First Flyover In Akure
    2 years ago
    Celebration Of Life: Reverend Adewumi Jegede Of Later House Of God Assembly Buried Amid Pomp
    1 year ago
    Pa Abdulfatah Amoo Ayanwale
    Pa Ayanwale Dies At 76, Fidau Prayers Holds 8 August
    2 years ago
    Latest News
    She Was an Amazon Who Left Indelible Marks — Ayorinde Pays Tribute to Late Ambassador Adefope
    1 day ago
    IMSUAA 2025 Convention Mascot: A Symbol Of Love, Unity And Cultural Diversity
    2 days ago
    Lagos Hosts Groundbreaking Revenue Recovery Summit
    2 days ago
    CFE Foundation Seeks Sponsors to Sustain Humanitarian Programs Amidst Funding Challenges
    6 days ago
  • Entertainment
    • Comedy
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Concert & Events
    Entertainment
    Show More
    Top News
    GOtv
    Yuletide: GOtv Improves Signal Quality In Abuja, Rivers State
    3 years ago
    It’s Easter Holidays with Top Entertaining Programs Showing from this Week on GOtv
    2 years ago
    Hi-Life Fest: Show Progresses With Six Contestants, Features Frederick Leonard As Guest Judge
    2 years ago
    Latest News
    Purp vs Raymu: Who Will Be Crowned The Next Nigerian Idol?
    2 days ago
    Local Content Powers African Dreams
    5 days ago
    The Drama Returns As BBNaija ‘No Loose Guard’ Reunion Premieres June 23
    2 weeks ago
    You Can’t Fake it — James Omekwe On MultiChoice’s Impact On African Filmmaking
    4 weeks ago
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
    • Love & Life
    • Food & Drink
    • Travel & Tourism
    • Relationship
    • Sex
    Lifestyle
    Show More
    Top News
    NCC, NICO To Leverage Telecom Channels To Promote Nigerian Cultural Heritage
    1 year ago
    Believe In Healing Power Of Blood Of Jesus – Bishop Tells Congregants
    2 years ago
    Lagos Seeks Strategic Partnership To Drive Tourism
    4 months ago
    Latest News
    Noble Call to Service: Inside the Induction of 104 New Knights of St. Mulumba
    3 weeks ago
    Joining The Knighthood Brings You Closer To God -Sir Eva Njemanze
    3 weeks ago
    Africa Tech Festival Unveils Strategic Themes For 2025 Event,
    4 weeks ago
    Lagos SWAN Joins UN To Celebrate World Nutrition Month At Unilag Confab
    1 month ago
  • Business
    • Banking & Finance
    • Oil & Gas
    BusinessShow More
    Petralon's Nigerian Drilling Campaign to Boost Offshore Oil Output
    Petralon’s Nigerian Drilling Campaign To Boost Offshore Oil Output
    2 days ago
    Year 2025
    How Nigeria Can Unleash Its Economic Potential – IMF
    3 days ago
    GTCO Plc Becomes 1st West Africa’s Financial Services Institution To Achieve Listing And Trading Of Its Ordinary Shares On London Stock Exchange
    3 days ago
    Unity Bank
    Unity Bank Empowers Young Entrepreneurs With ₦16M Business Grant
    6 days ago
    NNPCL Board Accused Of Planning Lavish Party In Rwanda Amidst N210tn Financial Scandal
    3 weeks ago
  • Health
    Health
    Show More
    Top News
    Lagos Moves To Tackle Neglected Tropical Diseases In 20 LGAs
    2 years ago
    2 Billion Genetically Modified Mosquitos To Release In The US
    Dangerous New Mosquito Breed Invades Ghana
    2 years ago
    IAS 2023: Health Leaders Celebrate Australia's HIV Success
    IAS 2023: Health Leaders Celebrate Australia’s HIV Success
    2 years ago
    Latest News
    SSB Tax: Industry Actors, Paid Mouthpieces Slammed Over Campaign To Stop CAPPA
    12 hours ago
    CAPPA Warns Nigerians On Excessive Consumption Of Sugar-sweetened Beverages, Says Nigeria Is In The Throes Of Public Health Crisis
    1 day ago
    Rising Non-communicable Diseases: WHO Wants Higher Taxes For Sugary Drinks, Alcohol, Tobacco
    4 days ago
    Online Education Can Enhance Clinical Guideline Use By Over 50% 
    4 weeks ago
  • More
    • Sports
    • Aviation/Transportation
    • Deliverance Hour
    • Industry & Labour
    • Insurance
    • Interview
    • Judiciary
    • Metro
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Religious
    • Romance
    • Science & Discovery
Reading: Criminalising Cross-dressing Worries Nigerians
Share
Notification Show More
Aa
Independent News ExpressIndependent News Express
Aa
  • Home
  • International
  • Africa
  • Corporate News
  • Politics
  • News
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Business
  • Health
  • More
Search
  • Home
  • International
  • Africa
  • Corporate News
    • Media Outreach
  • Politics
  • News
    • Agriculture
    • Breaking News
    • Tech
    • Maritime
    • Crime
    • Art & Culture
  • Entertainment
    • Comedy
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Television
    • Concert & Events
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
    • Love & Life
    • Food & Drink
    • Travel & Tourism
    • Relationship
    • Sex
  • Business
    • Banking & Finance
    • Oil & Gas
  • Health
  • More
    • Sports
    • Aviation/Transportation
    • Deliverance Hour
    • Industry & Labour
    • Insurance
    • Interview
    • Judiciary
    • Metro
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Religious
    • Romance
    • Science & Discovery
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • Advertise
© 2022 Foxiz News Network. Ruby Design Company. All Rights Reserved.
Independent News Express > Blog > Features > Criminalising Cross-dressing Worries Nigerians
Features

Criminalising Cross-dressing Worries Nigerians

Last updated: 2022/08/03 at 11:50 AM
3 years ago
Share
SHARE

Trans women and men and non-binary people in Nigeria are nervously eyeing a parliamentary proposal that seeks to criminalise cross-dressing.

It aims to amend the Same-Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Act (SSMPA) and defines cross-dressing as the “practice of wearing clothes usually worn by a person of the opposite sex”.

Anyone found guilty could end up with a six-month prison sentence or a fine of $1,200 (£980).

It may not make it to the statute books, but it has highlighted the oppression that the LGBTQ+ community in Nigeria has felt for years.

- Advertisement -
Ad imageAd image

In 2014, then-President Goodluck Jonathan signed the SSMPA into law. It forbids same-sex partners from living together or any “public show of same-sex amorous relationship” among other measures, which essentially criminalises Nigeria’s gay community.

When the SSMPA was discussed nearly a decade ago, the lawmakers said they were simply reflecting the prevailing values of Nigerian society.

“We are protecting humanity and family values. In fact, we are protecting civilisation in its entirety,” one of the backers of the law, Senator Ahmed Lawan, said at the time.

But the trans woman and designer Fola Francis, 28, says the proposed amendment “honestly scares me”.

“The cross-dressing bill is a very dangerous bill that is going to affect so many trans and non-binary people.”

Even in the current climate, without any new law, she said she had not been able to live in her apartment for several months “because I got death threats from my neighbours due to them finding out I’m a trans woman on social media when my videos went viral”.

She is now sheltering with friends in another part of the country.

“I get death threats all the time through comments and DMs.”

Bobrisky
Bobrisky, seen here in 2016, made fun of the anti-cross-dressing proposal

Bobrisky – probably Nigeria’s most high-profile cross-dressing personality, with 4.5 million followers on Instagram – mocked the efforts to change the law by sarcastically tweeting that it would help solve the country’s security problems and power shortages, as well as improve Nigeria’s reputation abroad and reduce inflation.

Famous drag queen James Brown highlighted the exemption the proposed law would give to entertainers, goading the amendment’s supporters.

“Do your research before you come for me. My job is to entertain… Don’t underestimate the power that I carry. Ask my fans,” she posted on Instagram.

National Assembly member Muda Lawal Ulnar is behind the proposed amendment. He has not explained his motivation, which may only come out when the bill goes for its second reading.

But a comment on a legal affairs website from a supporter of the amendment indicates the logic.

Lawyer Manfred Ekpe said the National Assembly should be allowed to set standards for a “morally upright society”.

As well as citing verses from the Bible and the Quran, Mr Ekpe argued that cross-dressing eroded the moral standards of young people and children.

“There is nothing wrong in making the law to prohibit conduct likely to lead to the promotion of offensive conduct or commission of an offence such as homosexuality,” he wrote.

There is clearly the feeling that a man wearing women’s clothes or vice-versa would somehow encourage people to have a same-sex relationship.

Nigeria is generally a conservative society and people who step outside the norms can be targeted.

A recently shared tweet embedded a video showing a man who, it said, was reeling from an attack because he had been wearing women’s clothes.

Person wearing a red top
Trans man Lolu Vangei “Jordyn” wonders if women who wear trousers will also be caught up in the ban

This kind of treatment comes as no surprise to designer Lolu Vangei “Jordyn”, who is a 23-year-old trans man. He has been assaulted in public.

“Even before the bill, I had already started getting loads of transphobia,” he told the BBC.

“I went to the market one day with my binders on [which can be used to flatten the chest], and some man just touched my chest area to feel it. I interrogated him for doing that, and he slapped me before beckoning his male friends to come to see a ‘woman that dresses like a man.”

Looking at the proposed changes to the law, anyone – straight or gay – could in theory be profiled and arrested for simply wearing clothes or accessories that do not conform to someone’s idea of how men and women should appear.

“To start with, I think it’s nonsense,” Jordyn said. “What happens to a straight woman who wears shorts and baggy jeans, or a straight man that loves braiding his hair, wears chains, or even tank tops?”

These are obvious problems with the proposal which may see it to fail.

But for queer, trans and non-binary Nigerians it is a reminder of how central clothes are to how they see themselves.

“Clothing helps trans, non-binary and genderqueer people to, in a way, set into their identities,” Francis said, signifying the importance of dressing expressively, and how this anti-cross-dressing measure could have an adverse effect on Nigeria’s fashion community.

“Restricting people to a particular [way of dressing] based off of the binary genders is very dangerous for us.”

LGBTQ+ people can be prone to mental health conditions like body dysmorphia and body dysphoria – where they are anxious about their physical appearance.

As a result, clothing and fashion become fundamental ways to deal with those issues.

“I started [fashion label] Vangei out of my own necessity because it can be confusing to shop as a trans person in Nigeria, and not getting things that fit right,” Jordyn said.

“So I decided to create a genderless brand for people that didn’t feel good about themselves, and didn’t want to identify as either men or women.”

Jordyn focuses mostly on custom-made pieces because it allows him the opportunity to concentrate on fit and style, a problem many trans and non-binary people face when shopping.

Emerie Udiahgebi
Emerie Udiahgebi says if the bill became law it would not put them off being open about their non-binary identity

“Not very many people understand the struggle it is for non-binary people to shop for clothes,” said 25-year-old designer Emerie Udiahgebi, who recently came into their non-binary identity.

But these young designers do not want the cross-dressing bill to be just the concern of the fashion industry.

There are plenty more mainstream designers making clothes for the LGBTQ+ community who activists think should be speaking out. They are actually the ones who could have more of a political impact.

But their silence may reflect a fear of not wanting to be singled out.

Udiahgebi is worried about the impact that the cross-dressing bill could have if it became law but is determined it will not make a difference.

“There’s going to be a lot of extortions, there’s going to be a lot of arrests. I don’t know about anyone else, but I don’t see a possibility of my disregarding all the stress it took to come into full acceptance of who I am.”

Source: BCC

You Might Also Like

Tobi Peters, The Broadcaster Who Manages Asisat Oshoala’s Brand And Other Top Nigerian Footballers

Uzoma Asagwara: Making Brave Success In Canadian Politics, Sports

30 Years After, Families, Friends Remember The Late Olajide Thomas

NDSF: Bayelsa Star Tells Story Of How She Nearly Quit Volleyball

Olabanji Oladimeji: A Multifaceted Nigerian Talent Making Global Waves

TAGGED: Cross-dressing
INadminNG August 3, 2022 August 3, 2022
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Whatsapp LinkedIn Telegram Email Print
Previous Article What Is Monkeypox And Why Is It spreading?
Next Article APFAN Plans To Visit Lekki Junior Strikers Owner Over Future Programmes
about us

Independent News Express (iNews Express), a publication of 4Ds Nigeria Limited, is birthed out of the desires of the founding fathers to report News as it is.

We value Professionalism, Excellence, Service, Creativity and Integrity.

The Company

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy & Policy

Quick Links

  • Advertise with us
  • Newsletters
  • Deal

Categories

Find Us on Socials

© Independent News Express. All Rights Reserved.
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?