This Pride Month, a bold campaign led by LGBTQIA+ human rights organisation Triangle Project is using love as protest. Through the “Show Ghana Love” movement, South African couple, Lue and Rue, have travelled to Ghana to “love bomb” its iconic landmarks, boldly expressing their love in public spaces where such acts are criminalised for local same sex couples.
From Black Star Square to UNESCO World Heritage Ussher Fort [Slave Museum], the couple have turned the streets of Accra into a stage for a radical expression and celebration of love. Captured in a striking digital photo series, the message is disarmingly simple: “We’re showing Ghana love for those who can’t.”
In Ghana, where queer love remains outlawed and dangerous to display, the act of a romantic same sex couple holding hands, kissing, and claiming space publicly is a direct challenge to the country’s proposed Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill which makes identifying as a person in the LGBTQIA+ community, comes with a proposed prison sentence of 3 years or more. A bill that could soon introduce even harsher penalties for queer existence.
“To queer Ghanaians, we want this campaign to be a reminder that [they] are seen, valued, and deeply loved, even when the world tries to tell [them] otherwise. You are not isolated or forgotten; there is a continent and a global community standing with you in solidarity,” says a spokesperson from Triangle Project. “For all Ghanaians, it’s a call to recognise that LGBTQIA+ people are part of the fabric of society, and deserving of respect, dignity, and protection. Love is not something to fear, but something to celebrate.”
The campaign, under the hashtags #ShowGhanaLove and #LoveBombGhana, invites global audiences to participate by sharing public messages of pride and solidarity. What began as a photo series is now a movement, one that’s mobilising voices across the continent and beyond. Triangle Project is also calling for South Africans to sign a petition urging international institutions, including the UN, to condemn Ghana’s anti-LGBTQIA+ bill. At a time when it would be easier to turn away, #ShowGhanaLove dares us to turn up. Because sometimes the most political thing two queer Africans can do is love out loud.