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'I am not a fan of discrimination and bullying of anybody on the basis of race, on the basis of religion, on the basis of sexual orientation or gender.'
President Obama is making his way through Kenya and despite warnings from local political and religious leaders, he's not staying mum on LGBT issues.
In the east African nation, where same-sex acts carry a penalty of up to 14 years in prison, Deputy President William Ruto referred to America's recent marriage equality ruling as the allowance of "gay relations and other dirty things."
"Yeah. Well, I disagree with him on that, don't I?" Obama asked BBC reporter Jon Soppel, then recalling his last trip to Senegal where he was "very blunt" about his belief that "everybody deserves fair treatment" including LGBT people and women:
I am not a fan of discrimination and bullying of anybody on the basis of race, on the basis of religion, on the basis of sexual orientation or gender. And I think that this is actually part and parcel of the agenda that's also going to be front and centre, and that is how are we treating women and girls.
And as somebody who has family in Kenya and knows the history of how the country so often is held back because women and girls are not treated fairly, I think those same values apply when it comes to different sexual orientations.
The President is also facing pressure from human rights groups, who are urging him to put the "pressing human rights concerns" in Kenya and Ethiopia "at the forefront of your discussions."
After Kenya, Obama will become the first U.S. President to travel to Ethiopia, where he'll meet with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn and address the African Union. Ethiopia has the second highest non-acceptance of homosexuality with a same-sex acts carrying a penalty of up to 15 years.
Les Fabian Brathwaite -- and other dirty things.
