The Ghanaian Embassy in the United States is not happy after Philadelphia’s Lincoln University revoked its offer of an honorary degree to Ghana’s president at the last minute, allegedly due to an anti-LGBTQ+ bill currently moving through the nation’s parliament.

President John Dramani Mahama was set to visit the school to receive the degree while visiting the United States to address the United Nations General Assembly in New York. A statement from the university to the Philadelphia Inquirer said only that the cancellation was “due to unforeseen circumstances,” but the Ghanaian Embassy seems confident it is related to the anti-LGBTQ+ legislation.

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The bill currently moving through parliament, the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, would punish same-sex acts with a term of up to three years for same-sex relations and five years for “willful promotion, sponsorship or support of LGBTQ+ activities.”

A similar bill was introduced in the West African nation in 2021. Two preemptive cases were filed against the bill, but Ghana’s supreme court dismissed them both unanimously because the president had yet to approve the bills.

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A statement from the embassy making the rounds in Ghanaian media says the cancellation was fueled by Mahama’s perceived views on LGBTQ+ people after certain stakeholders expressed concern. This despite the fact that parliament has not yet passed the bill, and so he has not yet been asked to sign it.

The exact wording of the statement varies across publications, but the embassy essentially affirmed Lincoln University’s right to uphold its own values while also slamming the school for allowing something currently moving through the democratic process to represent Mahama’s views. It also expressed anger that the cancellation took place so close to the planned event, when the president was already in the United States and ready for the visit.

In an op-ed for Erasing 76 Crimes, writer Melanie Nathan slammed Mahama for allegedly playing a “double game” on the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, expressing his plans to sign the legislation to folks in Ghana while changing his language when speaking to American audiences.

“The certainty dissolves into procedural language, deflection, and appeals to democratic process,” Nathan wrote. “But for those with lived experience, for those already persecuted or fleeing Ghana, this is much more than mere nuance, it is life altering duplicity.”

Lincoln University has deep historic ties with Ghana, as the country’s first president, Kwame Nkrumah, earned his undergraduate degree there. As such, a statement from Mahama said he would “continue to hold that institution in high esteem” and that “the grounds of Lincoln” will remain “hallowed grounds for Ghanaians.”

“We cannot separate Lincoln University from Ghana’s story, and we will continue to hold it in the highest regard,” he said.

A scheduled visit to Temple University did take place during the president’s trip to Philadelphia. “We have made venues available for third-party organizations, including political parties or campaigns, regardless of their political viewpoint or stance,” said a statement from the school. “The presence of any speaker on campus is not an endorsement by Temple University of the speaker or their views.”

“Temple University unequivocally opposes the exclusion of or discrimination against members of the LGBTQIA+ community. Temple takes pride in providing an inclusive and welcoming environment for all students, faculty, staff, alumni, neighbors, and friends regardless of their race, nationality, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or identity.”

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