[TSE 17.1 (2011) 51-74] (print) ISSN 1355-8358 doi: 10.1558/tse.v17i1.51 (online) ISSN 1745-5170 © Equinox Publishing Ltd 2012, Unit S3, Kelham House, 3 Lancaster Street, Shefeld, S3 8AF. When Sodomy Leads to Martyrdom: Sex, Religion, and Politics in Historical and Contemporary Contexts in Uganda and East Africa John Blevins 1 Associate Research Professor Interfaith Health Program Hubert Department of Global Health Emory University Rollins School of Public Health 1518 Clifton Road Northeast Atlanta, GA 30329 USA john.blevins@emory.edu Abstract This article examines the shifting interpretations of homosexuality in colonial and post-colonial contexts in east Africa. In 1886, Mwanga II, the king of the Baganda kingdom, executed forty-fve male pages of his court. All forty-fve were recent converts to Christianity and many accounts of the execution highlight the pages’ refusal to submit to the king’s sexual demands as the cause of their execution. Over the last one hundred and twenty-fve years, the story of the martyrs has been used to support a broad spectrum of political, cultural, and religious claims. By examining the event in both historical and contemporary contexts, this paper iden- tifes broader fault lines within those contexts in relation to Christianity, Islam, colonial power, and post-colonial politics in east Africa. Keywords: Baganda martyrs; Christianity; homosexuality; Uganda. In 1886, Mwanga II, Kabaka 2 of the African nation of Buganda executed forty-fve of his male subjects, either by burning or beheading. All of the men were recent converts to Christianity, twenty-two to Roman Cathol- icism and twenty-three to Anglicanism. In 1964, Pope Paul VI canon- ized the twenty-two Roman Catholic martyrs, marking 3 June (the day of their death) as their feast day; the Anglican Communion also com- memorates the martyrdom on 3 June. This date is a national holiday in present-day Uganda, a day set aside to remember this event and hon- 1. John Blevins is Associate Research Professor, Interfaith Health Program, Hubert Department of Global Health. 2. Kabaka is the Baganda word for “King.”