Gays in New York thought they had it bad when the gay marriage bill was shot down last week. Imagine being sentenced to death for having gay sex.

The Ugandan government is considering life imprisonment as a penalty for violators of its law against homosexual activity, and may institute the death penalty for "repeat offenders." Even bystanders who merely see two men having sex and fail to report it could face up to three years in prison.

But don't roll your eyes at the backward ways of some foreign culture halfway around the world. A few conservative Americans may have actually inspired this draconian measure. Last spring, three right wing anti-gay activists led a march in the capital city of Kampala, as part of the Family Life Network of Uganda, an organization dedicated to the "restoration of family values and morals to Ugandan society." They were there, according to one of the men, to combat "anti-family Western agitators" who "plan to spread sexual anarchy throughout the world under the guise of 'human rights' and 'family planning.'"

The men's presence at the conference, according to several sources, gave momentum to the anti-gay movement in Uganda.

The three Americans represent the growing "ex-gay" movement in the U.S. -- men who once had sexual relations with men but have largely adopted a religion-focused stance against their former lifestyle with the intention of "straightening out" others like them.

But an oppositional force in Uganda has swelled to fight those who would like to see gay men rot or die in prison. Groups and Websites like Gay Rights Uganda and GayUganda are working tirelessly to stop the country's parliament from passing this law.

Let's hope they succeed.

[Image: Wikimedia Commons]