Oogachaga
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Oogachaga is a Singaporean LGBTQ+ organization. The organization was founded in 1999 and offers counseling, support groups, and professional workshops. The organization also offers email/WhatsApp hotline services for people in Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
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| Formation | 1999 |
|---|---|
| Founders | Jason Wee, Steve Wong, Kenneth Lau, Clarence Singam |
| Type | Nonprofit organization |
| Headquarters | 57B Pagoda Street, Singapore 059216 |
Region served | Singapore (WhatsApp helpline serves Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia as well) |
Executive Director | Leow Yangfa |
| Website | https://oogachaga.com/ |
Oogachaga was founded in 1999 by Jason Wee with his friends Kenneth Lau and Steve Wong; it was created to be a network of support groups for young gay people.[1] The group was named after the song a hallcinated baby danced to in the show Ally McBeal; the song, "Hooked on a Feeling", begins with an opening chorus repeating "ooga-chaga."[2]
The organization initially started as a single support group in a member's living room.[3] Clarence Singam, Wee's significant other, joined as a cofounder after being invited to a support group that helped him accept himself.[4][5]
In 2000, the organization began offering a volunteer-run counseling service. The organization started providing workshops for practitioners in 2003.[2] In 2004, Oogachaga became legally registered as a nonprofit.[6] The organization's first women's support group, Oogachaga Women, started in 2005.[2][7] Oogachaga opened Singapore's first LGBT+ helpline, OC line, in 2006.[8]
In 2008, Oogachaga set up a counseling center with full time staff. The following year, they expanded their counseling services to be available over email with the launch of CARE email counseling. A small-scale transgender support pragram was launched in 2011.[2][7] In 2012, the organization launched an LGBTQ+ resource portal called Congregaytion.[2] Hotline services expanded to WhatsApp in 2013, and the next year saw the introduction of a hotline aimed towards queer women called Women on Wednesdays.[2][8]
Former executive director Bryan Choong spoke at the pre-UPR (Universal Periodic Review) session in Geneva, Switzerland at the end of 2015.[9] Oogachaga began collaborating with Pink Dot on the UPR; they made joint submissions in 2016 and 2021.[10][11]
In 2017, Minister for Law and Home Affairs K. Shanmugam visited Oogachaga's office in Chinatown to discuss LGBT issues. He spoke with Bryan Choong; they discussed drug use in the LGBT community and criticisms around that year's Pink Dot event including alleged harassment towards sponsors.[12][13] The Oogachaga and Congregaytion websites were redesigned in 2018 due to the contributions of the Canadian High Commission in Singapore.[2][14]
In May 2021, Oogachaga and the US Embassy cohosted a webinar called "The Economic Case for LGBT Equality: Exploring Global Trends with Professor Lee Badgett." Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs made a statement on the event, reminding the US embassy not to "interfere in domestic social and political matters."[15]