1768: Alex Kofi Donkor on Humanism in Ghana, Leaving the Church, LGBT Rights, and Human Rights Advocacy
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): Medium (Personal)
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2026/10/17
“One of the key things from the videos and the documentaries was that homosexuality is another sexual orientation. It is not going to go away. It is a sexual feeling, which will stay. If you are gay, be yourself and live your life, or deny yourself and go the way of society and try to appeal the way of society for the rest of your life, it is always an individual decision but the tendencies will never go away.”
“At that time, I began to face reality. I began to work gradually towards accepting myself. But, I was still holding church positions. And gradually I began to move away from church because I felt like I do not want to contradict my sexuality and religion.”
“There were a lot of people, like me. So, gradually, I begin to pull out of the church. In 2017, I finally decided, ‘I am not going to suffer this church again,’ especially so much toxic rhetoric that is discriminatory and subjects others to disrepute, violence, and abuse.”
“I was like, ‘I want to understand who I am and the course that I want to take in life.’ There are so many injustices going on. There is a need to talk about such issues, and let people know about such injustices and abuses that others are going through.”
“Around the same time, I identified as a humanist and then as an activist (LGBT activist), and a human rights advocate. So, I then began to work towards this identification and how best I can help through those identities created by me.”
“Then again, one of the reasons for pulling out of the church. I went through some of the conversations and teachings, and preachings, in the church. It was lacking in terms of basic logic and basic critical thinking. It did not make much sense.”
“Something that does not make much sense to me. Why should I still involve myself in it? [Laughing] I pulled out, finally, from a church in 2017.”
“Humanism is, basically, looking at the very basis of humans with rights, dignity, respect, and wellbeing, as well as critical thinking and analysis of everything that one is exposed to.”
“If a person is coming to ask you to look at issues critically and to look at things from the human rights perspective, it is an amazing way to get people to debunk some of the notions from religions and its sentiments.”
“One thing that really scares me is silence. Silence scares me a lot, especially on issues where everyone is quiet about it. We all speak from our common places. The simple places where we highlight human rights and LGBT issues.”
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