Kenyan Court Recognizes Lesbian Marriage

Thanks to the African Studies Department, I read an article the other day about a Kenyan court recognizing lesbian marriage. It turns out that woman-woman marriage is found in certain cultures in Kenya, specifically among the Nandi, Kipsigis, and Kalenjin. A barren woman can pay bride price to marry another woman. The second woman will then have children by men who have no claim to the children, as they belong to the barren woman, or the "husband." There is even a word that means "of a woman," meaning born to two women.

In this particular court case, the barren woman, or the "husband" died, leaving a very large estate, to which her wife and her wife's biological children claimed as their own. Other relatives of the deceased woman filed suit, but lost, as the court upheld woman to woman marriage as a recognized family institution under Nandi customary law.

Random Kate Thoughts: This is very interesting, as it goes against a commonly held belief that homosexuality is "not African" and instead something brought to the continent by Europeans. Instead, it was the religious fervor that Europeans brought to the continent that in many instances demonized already existing homosexuality. Many traditional cultures on the continent have histories of embracing homosexual individuals into their own niches in those societies.

ALSO: The article that described this court case had a very inappropriate and somewhat pornographic picture of two topless women next to it, link here. What was an article about a legal dispute regarding marriage has been degraded to the shameless exploitation of lesbian bodies. How unfortunate. Cropped picture below: