“My dream is to be a counselor and help LGBT people and to give them a hand to show them th

at they are not alone,” says Florance (pseud, 28). Now living in London with her partner, she fled Uganda when she was reported to the police for being gay. Fearing life imprisonment, Florance left behind her baby daughter and the young siblings she raised after her mother died. “It wasn’t easy for me to be here and leaving them there. One heart was here and another one was there thinking about them.” During Covid lockdown, Florance had a breakdown: “I’m on medication for depression because of those things that happened to me… they’re with me all the time… And the fact that… I was raped to conceive my daughter.” Yet she has found support. “I’ve made friends. I’ve made a family here.” she says. “I got a partner who understands me.” Florance says her strength comes from her experiences as her siblings’ carer: “You have that love. Yes, things happen, you get tired, but I’m not giving up.” Full Story

“My dream is to be a counselor and help LGBT people and to give them a hand to show them th

at they are not alone,” says Florance (pseud, 28). Now living in London with her partner, she fled Uganda when she was reported to the police for being gay. Fearing life imprisonment, Florance left behind her baby daughter and the young siblings she raised after her mother died. “It wasn’t easy for me to be here and leaving them there. One heart was here and another one was there thinking about them.” During Covid lockdown, Florance had a breakdown: “I’m on medication for depression because of those things that happened to me… they’re with me all the time… And the fact that… I was raped to conceive my daughter.” Yet she has found support. “I’ve made friends. I’ve made a family here.” she says. “I got a partner who understands me.” Florance says her strength comes from her experiences as her siblings’ carer: “You have that love. Yes, things happen, you get tired, but I’m not giving up.” Full Story

“My dream is to be a counselor and help LGBT people and to give them a hand to show them th

at they are not alone,” says Florance (pseud, 28). Now living in London with her partner, she fled Uganda when she was reported to the police for being gay. Fearing life imprisonment, Florance left behind her baby daughter and the young siblings she raised after her mother died. “It wasn’t easy for me to be here and leaving them there. One heart was here and another one was there thinking about them.” During Covid lockdown, Florance had a breakdown: “I’m on medication for depression because of those things that happened to me… they’re with me all the time… And the fact that… I was raped to conceive my daughter.” Yet she has found support. “I’ve made friends. I’ve made a family here.” she says. “I got a partner who understands me.” Florance says her strength comes from her experiences as her siblings’ carer: “You have that love. Yes, things happen, you get tired, but I’m not giving up.” Full Story