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By comparing Twitter data sets from 2022 and 2023 quantitively and analyzing a post-AHA corpus comprising of 611 tweets qualitatively, the results indicate that AHA 2023 produced a chilling effect on the content level but not on the activity level. The AHA2023 did thus not silence Ugandan LGBT+ activists\u2019 digital activism but appears to have impacted the content in some critical ways. Most concerning, Ugandan LGBT+ activists\u2019 explicit self-penned demands for equal human rights almost disappear. Rights demands did not disappear from the Uganda LGBT+ Twittersphere but were primarily promoted and kept alive by international development, Western bilateral partners, and human rights allies. The long-term impact of the discursive shift in Ugandan LGBT+ activism is still unfolding, and it is arguably too early to identify the impact of the aforementioned troublesome chilling effects on content. There is, however, a reason to suspect that the loss of Ugandan voices will negatively impact efforts to challenge the post-colonial amnesia that sustains erroneous beliefs around African sexuality as singularly heterosexual. This case study can serve as a critical case for understanding the chilling effects caused by heavy-handed legislation. The study also seeks to contribute methodologically by offering insights into how chilling effects in digital spaces can be studied empirically.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1007\/978-3-031-66982-8_12","type":"book-chapter","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,1]],"date-time":"2024-08-01T01:10:40Z","timestamp":1722474640000},"page":"167-180","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Understanding Chilling Effects in Digital Spaces \u2013 A Study of Ugandan LGBT+ Advocacy in the Wake of the Draconian 2023 Anti-homosexuality Act"],"prefix":"10.1007","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1194-8983","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cecilia","family":"Strand","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2024,8,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"12_CR1","unstructured":"Human Rights Watch: This Alien Legacy The Origins of \u201cSodomy\u201d Laws in British Colonialism (2008)"},{"key":"12_CR2","unstructured":"Tamale, S.: Out of the closet: Unveiling sexuality discourses in Uganda. 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