Portrait

Born: 14 June 1974Sierra Leone
Died: 29 September 2004Freetown, Sierra Leone · aged 30

Human rights activistSierra Leone

FannyAnn Eddy

A Sierra Leonean activist who insisted that LGBTQ people be seen and protected.

FannyAnn Eddy was born in Sierra Leone in 1974. The civil war that devastated the country formed part of the background to her life, including time spent in southern Africa. She returned to Sierra Leone determined to build support for people who were expected to remain invisible.

In 2002 she founded the Sierra Leone Lesbian and Gay Association. The organisation offered practical and emotional support while recording harassment, arrests and violence. Eddy lived openly as a lesbian and pressed officials to recognise the needs of a community they often denied existed.

In April 2004 she addressed the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva. She described how official silence enabled abuse and left LGBTQ people afraid of the police, their families and their neighbours. Her testimony linked the demand for recognition with access to safety and basic services.

In September 2004 she was killed in her organisation’s office in Freetown. Human Rights Watch reported that she had been raped and murdered and called for a full investigation. She was 30 and left a young son. The circumstances and motive of her killing remained disputed.

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