Behind Closed Doors

Note From The Author

Frankly, no book I have written has ever been as personal as this one to me, and the reason is simply because of the fact that the subject matter treated in it is something that the Nigerian society spends a lot of their energy on.

Homosexuality in Nigeria is a topic that the government, the people, the churches; amongst others, expend a lot of energy on. On Facebook, Twitter, on blogs, people are involved in disputes about homosexuality in Nigeria. People bare their fangs and show teeth whenever the word “gay” is mentioned. Nigerians are the moral police, and that word “homo” is a taboo.

The reason? I have no idea, though what I know, I put in to good use in the pages of this book. It was not really easy writing this work, given that the Gay theme has not been readily explored in conventional literature coming from Nigeria.

Yes, it is true that being gay is severely frowned upon in Nigeria. In 2014, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan signed Nigeria’s “anti-gay” law into force and it is still in force till date. Perhaps one day that law will be revisited, or perhaps not. Only time will tell. But you see the lives of gay men in Nigeria? It’s real. Gay men are in many cases trapped in marriages they would never have gone into save for pressure from family and friends. Gay men in Nigeria cannot live and love in peace—it offends the heterosexual senses. It offends the Nigerian society as a whole. Sad as this may seem, it is the situation on ground and many people can really do nothing about it. That same hopelessness and anguish is fully replicated within the pages of this book. I hope it will not sound too gloomy for you, dear reader. Just try to enjoy the story the best you can.

Furthermore, people would read this and ponder, asking if gay people in Nigeria don't have it better right now than they did in the past, but I would answer that question in the negative. Gay people in Nigeria are a target because of their sexuality; they have been set upon, in many cases severely physically harassed, in some cases sexually abused, in many cases stolen from, beaten, and even killed. I have personally written about these on Queer Advocacy platforms like Nostringsng and Kito Diaries, links of which are found on the Internet.

So yes, while it appears that Behind Closed Doors might be dated in terms of the Time it was set in, I choose to believe that the story is timeless and still applies to Today's Nigeria, particularly as a reality for LGBT people in Nigeria.

And if there are any errors in this work, please, they are all mine.

Thank you for reading, and could I implore you to add Behind Closed Doors to your reading list on Goodreads and review same on the said Goodreads? Before ever publishing Behind Closed Doors on Wattpad I had published it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, alongside other retailers. Here is the Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53792791-behind-closed-doors I will look forward to reading your comprehensive material. Thank you very much in advance.

Lastly, I can be reached via adrianbanks2008@gmail.com if you want to talk.

Cheers,
K. A. Banks.