Chart of the Day: The Huge Global Divide on “Acceptance” of Homosexuality

Donor countries around the world are contemplating their response to Uganda’s horrific new anti-gay law. They are doing so, in part, because there is considerable domestic political pressure to respond to this affront to human rights.

Last June, Pew Research Center released results of a fascinating global survey of attitudes toward homosexuality. They found that the more affluent and secular a country, the more likely its citizens are to be accepting of homosexuality.  That seems fairly intuitive. But what is striking to me is the enormous gap between western countries and those in the global south, particularly in Africa.

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Most ordinary Canadians and Spaniards take a look at this law and are aghast at its cruelty. But an even higher proportion of Ugandans or Nigerians are probably wondering what all the fuss is about?