Legacy Pulse with Pepe Onziema

Winning in court is not the same as winning in real life. In this final segment of our deep dive into strategic litigation, Pepe reflects on the complex realities of seeking justice within legal systems that were never originally built for marginalized communities. Drawing from over three decades of activism and firsthand experience as a plaintiff in landmark Ugandan cases, this episode challenges...

In the second part of our conversation on strategic litigation, we discuss what our successes and shortcomings have been over the years and where we go from here.

"Strategic litigation." It sounds like a "sexy" term , but for the queer community in Uganda, it’s been a high-stakes rollercoaster of survival, resistance, and bold defiance. In this episode of The Legacy Pulse , our host Pepe Onziema takes us behind the scenes of the legal battles that defined a movement . We’re moving past the "passion" of just hanging out in bars and straight into the courtroo...

"Love in the Time of Scarcity: HIV, Care & Survival" What does it mean to care when the world stops caring? In this deeply moving episode, host Pepe Onziema welcomes Josephine Mukwaaya , executive director of COPTEC, for an intimate conversation about love, survival, and service in Uganda's HIV advocacy movement. Josephine opens up about: Living with HIV and caring for others liv...

What does liberation look like for queer lives in Uganda? In this compelling second episode, host Pepe Onziema sits down with lawyer, feminist, and fiery lesbian Godiva Akullo to explore the complexities of thriving—not just surviving—as LGBTIQ+ people in a hostile society. From teaching law to fighting back in courtrooms, from chosen family to the power of love, Godiva and Pepe dig deep into: Fem...

From Whispers to Roaring: 20+ Years of Queer Organizing in Uganda What does queer liberation actually look like? Join Pepe Onziema as we embark on a profound journey through two decades of LGBTIQ+ organizing in Uganda—a story of courage forged in shadows, visibility claimed against all odds, and joy that refused to be silenced. In this first episode, Pepe takes us from the fragile, coded whispers...

Welcome to The Legacy Pulse What happens when history tries to erase you? You tell your own damn story. In the upcoming debut episode, host Pepe Onziema opens the vault on Uganda's LGBTQ movement—starting with their own awakening. This is the origin story you haven't heard: the moment when living authentically became an act of resistance, when personal truth collided with political reality, and wh...