A powerful voice is silenced.Widely considered a pioneer of civil rights in an exceedingly unfriendly land, Sierra Leone's most prominent lesbian was found brutally murdered on September 29 in the offices of the gay rights organization she founded. FannyAnn Eddy Fannyann Eddy (1974 - 2004) was an activist for lesbian and gay rights in her native Sierra Leone and throughout Africa. She founded Sierra Leone's first Lesbian and Gay Association and she traveled widely, addressing the United Nations and other international groups. , the 30-year-old head of the Sierra Leone Sierra Leone (sēĕr`ə lēō`nē, lēōn`; sēr`ə lēōn), officially Republic of Sierra Leone, republic (2005 est. pop. 6,018,000), 27,699 sq mi (71,740 sq km), W Africa. Lesbian and Gay Association, had been repeatedly raped and stabbed, and her neck was broken, according to Human Rights Watch. Eddy founded the group in 2002 and in April testified before the U.N. Commission on Human Rights in Geneva Geneva, canton and city, Switzerland Geneva (jənē`və), Fr. Genève, canton (1990 pop. 373,019), 109 sq mi (282 sq km), SW Switzerland, surrounding the southwest tip of the Lake of Geneva. about the lack of gay rights and protections in her country. "Again and again, within her country's borders and beyond, she drew attention to the harassment, discrimination, and violence lesbian and gay people face in Sierra Leone," said Scott Long, director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender transgender or transgendered adj. Transsexual. Rights Project at Human Rights Watch. "Now ... there is grave concern that she herself has become a victim of hatred." |
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