by RENEE LOTT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWUQYbf8450
Set amidst the cityscape of Kampala and the rolling hills of Ugandan countryside, the film God Loves Uganda, produced by Oscar winner Roger Ross Williams, takes an extraordinary look at the influence of conservative American evangelicals on Ugandan society. The film was recently screened before an audience of activists, religious figures, White House representatives, and Capitol Hill staffers at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) office in Washington.
Frequently switching back and forth between the United States and Uganda, Williams explores a variety of topics relating to the reach of the church in Uganda but concentrates primarily on the homophobic rhetoric born through American evangelicalism. Through excellent cinematography and an impressively even-handed approach, God Loves Uganda highlights the repercussions of the imported and heart-wrenching anti-gay sentiment that now runs deep in Ugandan society and government. It is difficult to imagine how the filmmaker, gay himself, entered into this world of extreme homophobic persecution for the entirety of its filming.
God Loves Uganda opens in a typical African street with traffic jams in every direction, women selling items from atop their heads, and children playing about. Amidst all of this is a local pastor, preaching to passersby with fervor and intensity. With this shot, Williams sets the scene for the film, intertwining religion with everyday life in Uganda.
Viewers then get their first peek into the International House of Prayer (or IHOP, though not to be confused with the chain of pancake restaurants), in Kansas City, Missouri—the U.S.-based center of evangelical power in the world with a 117-nation influence. The pastor cheers to his congregation, “We will take over the world by the power of the Holy Spirit!” IHOP performs mega masses, “saving” ceremonies, and also organizes mission trips to countries such as Uganda. A former Anglican priest practicing in the United States describes IHOP as all-powerful in countries such as Uganda.
Foreign Policy in Focus for more