Ugandan Gay Couple Celebrate 10 Years: Faith and Love
In a country where their love could cost them their freedom, Edward and Steve have spent a decade building something beautiful — in secret. From a chance meeting in a university dorm room to finding their way back to faith, they have survived through laughter, prayer, and an unshakable commitment to each other.
In Uganda, love like Edward and Steve’s is an act of quiet rebellion. It doesn’t parade itself through streets lined with rainbow flags. It survives in the shadows — whispered in safe rooms, exchanged in knowing glances, sustained by prayer.
This year, they celebrate ten years together. Ten years of learning, unlearning, forgiving, protecting, bending the system, and holding hands when no one is watching. In a country where their love could cost them their freedom, they’ve found ways to make it priceless.
A Meeting by Mistake — Or Maybe by Design
Edward hadn’t planned to meet Steve that day.
He’d agreed to meet a persistent Facebook acquaintance at Lumumba Hall, Makerere University. Inside the room, two men sat on opposite beds. Edward didn’t know which one he was there for, so he took the risk of choosing the bed with the cuter guy. Fate, it seems, prefers a little mischief — the man he sat next to wasn’t the one he’d come to see.
That was Steve.
The conversation that day didn’t ignite a love story — not yet. But two days later, when Edward fell ill, Steve got his number and called, wishing him a quick recovery. The next day, Steve appeared at his hostel door. And the day after that, Edward returned the visit. This time, Steve made the first move.
“It was a detour,” Steve says, smiling. “The kind of turn in the road you only realize was fate when you look back.”
A Decade of Becoming
Ten years later, they describe their journey not as perfect, but as enduring.
“It’s been full of joy, tears, fights, forgiveness,” Edward says. “We’ve learned to love each other’s quirks. I watch TV series now because Steve loves them.”
Steve calls it “a never-ending lesson.” They had both been healing from failed relationships, determined not to let old scars bleed into something new. They had no examples of how two men could build a life together here — no elders to guide them, no public stories to learn from.
“We had to be our own role models,” Steve says. “We had to inspire ourselves.”
Love in a Dangerous Place
Being openly gay in Uganda is not just frowned upon — it’s a crime. The couple learned early on how to navigate a system stacked against them. They introduce themselves as brothers or cousins to landlords. They avoid neighborhoods where stares feel like warnings.
“My hostel back then was one of the most cruel places to be gay,” Steve remembers. “But we moved in together just a month after meeting. We’ve been bending the rules ever since. It’s sad, but when we do it together, it feels almost like an adventure.”
What keeps them steady is support, caution, and prayer. Prayer especially.
Finding God Again
For Steve, faith was something he’d walked away from.
“I left the Anglican church in 2014,” he says. “I was tired of hearing bigotry preached from the altar. I became a self-proclaimed atheist.”
But in 2016, the same friend who introduced him to Edward invited him to what Steve thought would be a debate. It turned out to be a church.
“I couldn’t even remember the Lord’s Prayer,” he says. “But I remembered a hymn from childhood, and its lines stayed with me the whole service. I came back the next week. And the next. I realized you don’t reconcile your queerness with spirituality — you reconcile yourself with God. Religion is human. Spirituality is divine.”
For Edward, faith has always been part of the glue holding their relationship together. “Prayer is a weapon,” he says simply.
Dreaming of Marriage
It mind not be a dream for everyone but there is not doubt for Edward and Steve, If Uganda were different, they’d be married already. “Definitely,” Edward says. “We’d do it in South Africa or the U.S.”
Steve is more cautious: “I doubt it will happen here in our lifetime. But a boy is allowed to dream.” Steve’s dream is not a legal paper that demonstrates their commitment rather an opportunity to celebrate their love in the eyes of their loved ones and their friends.
If They Could Shout It from the Rooftops
Edward wouldn’t hesitate: “Steve is brilliant. His business ideas are genius. And he looks amazing in a suit.”
Steve’s eyes soften: “Edward’s science knowledge would make Einstein jealous. When he talks about biology or medicine, it’s perfect 10s across the board.”
Prayers for Each Other
Edward’s prayer for Steve: “May the Lord bless him with the company he’s always wanted, the Jeep he’s always wanted, and the wealth to support his siblings.”
Steve’s prayer for Edward: “May you get that dream job where your excellence is valued, your hard work recognized, and where the benefits are good. May you travel the world. And may you make your mother proud.”
The Meaning of Love
For Edward, love is unwavering support — looking out for each other, no matter what. Steve agrees with Edward even though he uses another term to define love. For him , love is sacrifice — waking up each day with your partner’s needs ahead of your own, and taking joy in it.
Ten years ago, their story began with a misunderstanding in a student dorm room. Today, it stands as a quiet testament to what happens when two people choose each other, again and again, in a world that would rather they didn’t.
“We bend the system,” Steve says. “We survive. And through it all, we love.” One thing is certain, the strength of their love is faith.
