Category Archives: Creative Writing

2014 Dec. 13: Faces and Phases invokes memories

Book Review by Kopano Sibeko “I used to be lesbian, but now my final words are on a tombstone, because he showed me the power of a man. I could never love that, so I killed myself because I knew … Continue reading

Posted in A new visual history, Beyond SA borders, Claiming mainstream spaces, Claiming the public spaces, Collaborations, Comfort, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community education, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Community work, Confession, Confrontation, Connected souls, Connections, Consent, Contests, Conversation, courage, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Creativity, Cultural activists, Culture, Culture of reading and writing, Details, Difference, Different positions, discourse, Discussion, Diversity, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Embodies, Emotional support, Empowerment, Encounter, Endurance, Freedom, Individuals, Lesbian Love Is Possible in South Africa, Lesbianism, Lessons learnt, Life Stories, Mainstreaming our queer issues, Making a mark, Media works, Personification, Political injustices, Politics of existence, Politics of geography, Professionals, Publications, Recording, relative, Remembering, Report, Representation, Sexuality in South Africa, Sharing, Sharing knowledge, Sharing thoughts, Struggles, Support, Support is the system, Supporting each other, Supportive friends and families, Teachings, Transgenderism, Transphobia, Victimisation, Visual Activist, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, Visual diaries, Visual historical initiative | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

2014 Oct. 13: The most exquisite Miss & Mr Gay Daveyton 2014

by Lerato Dumse Sitting in a high chair and waiting for the pageant to start, Mapaseka Mthunzi braved the cold Friday night weather, to watch her daughter Sharon “Sicka Star-Ban”. Sicka is one of the fourteen participants in the third Mr & … Continue reading

Posted in Act, Acting, Activism, Affair, African, African Queer Beauty, Allies, Alternative family, Announcement, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Arguments, Art Activism, Art Activism in South Africa, Art Edutainment, Articulation, Arts, Arts & Culture, As we are, Beautiful, Beautiful faces, Beautiful people, Beauty, Beauty pageantry, Beauty pageants, Beauty queens, Before US, Blackness, Body Politics, Captioned, Captured, Caring citizens, Celebrating Youth Month in SA, Celebration, Citizenship, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Cultural activists, Culture, Culture of reading and writing, Daveyton Ekurhuleni Municipality., Daveyton township, Delegation, Democracy, Discussion, Gender activist, Gender articulation, Gender distinction, Gender naming, Heartbreak, Hearts, Homosexuality, Hope, Human Beings, Human body, Human rights, I can't do it ALONE, I love photography, I was (T)here, Miss & Mr Gay Daveyton 2014 | 6 Comments

2014 Oct. 8: Beautiful faces and kisses from Soweto Pride 2014

                                                                                … Continue reading

Posted in 10th Soweto Pride, 20 Years of Democracy, Acceptance, Acceptance speeches, Act, Acting, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, After party, Allies, Alternative career choices, Alternative family, an LGBTI organisation, Anger, Announcement, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Arguments, Art Activism, Art Activism in South Africa, Art for Humanity, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Art Solidarity, Art Therapy, Article, Articles, Articulation, Artist Talk, Artists, Arts, As we are, Attention, Awareness workshops, Background, Baring, Before US, Before You, Begging, Being conscientized, Black Lesbian Love, Black lesbian mothers, Black lesbian visibility, Black lesbians in remote areas in South Africa, black LGBTIQA, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Artists, Black Queer Born Frees, Black Queer Born Frees in SA townships, Body, Cameras, Captioned, Captured, Caring citizens, Celebrating Women, Celebration, Challenging the un-African homosexuality, Characters, Charismatic, Citizenship, Claiming, Claiming blackness, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collaborations, Collective, Collectivism, Comfort, Comment, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community education, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Community work, Complicated Lesbian Relationships, Confrontation, Connected souls, Connections, Consideration, Contestants, Contests, Contributors, Conversation, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Creativity, Cultural activists, cultural worker, Culture, Culture of reading and writing, Delegation, Democracy, Demonstration, Details, Different positions, Dignity, disappearance, discourse, Discussion, Documentary, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Dress sense, Dyke, Edited, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, Evidence, Exchanging Queer thoughts, Excitement, Experience, Expertise, Exploration, Expression, Facilitators, Facing You, Feelings, Female Photographers, Food, Forum for the Empowerment of Women (FEW), Freedom of being, Friendships, Future, Gender articulation, Gender Equality, Gender expression, Gender naming, Gender performance, Generations, Give children cameras not candies, Give credits where it is due, God Fearing people, Gratitude, Gratitude to my lover, Hate crimes Victims names, History, Human Beings, Human rights, I can't do it ALONE, I love photography, I use CANON, I was (T)here, I was here, I-N-K-A-N-Y-I-S-O, Identity, Independence, Influenced, Inkanyiso crew, Interpretation, Intervention, Interviews, Invisibility, Issues, Kiss, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Language, Legacies of Violence, Lesbian Professionals, Lesbian Youth, Lesbianism, Lessons learnt, Let us give a girl child a chance, LGBT community, LGBT rights activist, LGBTI community, lgbti issues in South Africa, LGBTIs in Africa, Life, Living, Lost Lives, Love, Love is a human right, Love is Queer, Loved, Lovely words, lover, Loving, Luxury, Mainstream media, Mainstreaming our queer issues, Matters of the He(Art), Media works, Memories, Moments in herstory, Moments in our history, Motivation, My body, Networking, Open relationships, Opening remarks, Our lives in the picture, Our Zulu Pride, Queer poetics, Queer Power, Queer South Africa, Queer texts, Queer visibility, Queer Youth, queerity, question of history., Questioning, Questions & Answers, Reflection, Reflections, Related links, Relationship, Relationship with own body, Relationships, relative, Remembering, Respect, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, Response, Reviving the culture of reading and writing, revolution, Sadness, Safety, South African Visual Activism, Speaking for ourselves, Stage, Statement, Struggle Songs, Struggling, Struggling activist, Style, Subject of Art, Support, Supporters, Supporting each other, Supportive friends and families, Teaching young women photography, Tears, together, Together we can, Togetherness, Touch, Townships, Translation, Trust, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, Visual diaries, Visual historical initiative, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, Warmth, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Well organized event, What black lesbian youth wants, When Love is a Human Right, Wishing you well, Women loving women, Women who have sex with Women, Women's power, Women's Pride, Women's struggles, Women's Work, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Womenonwomen, Womyn, Words, Writing is a Right, Years, Young black female photographers, Young Black Women and Photography, Young female photographers from Aurora, Young talent, young women, Young Women and Visual Activism, Youth, Youth voices | 10 Comments

2014 Oct. 7: Robbed while shooting

by Lerato Dumse A day meant to be filled with photography adventure which is historical educational turned bad, when three photographers were robbed of their camera, on  the 10th July 2014 in Soweto. Lindeka Qampi (45) facilitator, Thando Methane (17) … Continue reading

Posted in 2014 Cape Town Month of Photography, Aurora Girls High School, Broad day light, Captioned, Captured, Career, Caring citizens, Caring for our female youth, Case opened, Celebration, Characters, Citizenship, Claiming, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collaborations, Collective, Collectivism, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Community, Community based media, Community education, Community outreach, Community work, Conference, Confrontation, Connected souls, Connections, Consideration, Contributors, Conversation, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative activist, Creative Writing, Crime, Crime rate, Crimes, Cry the Beloved Queer Mother of the Nation, Crying, Cultural activists, Culture, Culture of reading and writing, Delegation, Democracy, Details, Different positions, disappearance, Discussion, Family, Fear, Frightened, Intellectualism, lunged, Mine, More than 67 mins, Panic, Photography, Photography as a therapy, Poverty, Robbed, Robbery, Scared, Seeking help, Self defense, Self recognition, Sharing, Sharing knowledge, Sharing thoughts, Silent voices, Social responsibility, Society, Socio-economic, Solidarity, South African Visible Arts, South African Visual Activism, South African visual history through the eyes of young women, South African Youth, Soweto, Space, Spana is a slang which means to work, Speaking for ourselves, Statement, Style, Support, Supporting each other, Survivor, Teaching, Tears, Teenagers, Testimonies from Aurora photographers, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Thando Methane, Thugs, together, Together we can, Togetherness, Transcription, Translation, Undermined, Valerie Thomas, Visibility, Vision, Visual activism, Visual activism is a language, Visual Activist, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, Visual historical initiative, Visual history, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Woman, Womanhood, Women suffering, Women's power, Women's Work, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Youth, Youth voices | 3 Comments

2014 Oct. 5: “The best day of their lives”

by Mlungisi Msomi The day I married my best friend changed my life forever! Everyone always says their wedding day is “the best day of their lives” and I believe it was for me as well… but it seems like … Continue reading

Posted in Allies, Alternative family, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Articles, Black Queer & Gifted, Body, Bonding, Brave, Civil Union in South Africa, Connected souls, Connections, Consideration, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Cultural activists, Description, Lesotho, Lindeka Qampi, Love, Memories, Memory, Mlungisi Msomi & Sekara Mafisa, Power of the Voice, Prayer, Praying, Reflection, Relationship, Reviving the culture of reading and writing, revolution, Same sex marriage, Sotho, South African Visual Activism, Style, Stylish, Support, Traditional clothing, Zimbabwe and Swaziland, Zulu is a language, Zulu is a South African language, Zulu tradition | 2 Comments

2014 Sept. 22: The period pains of documenting hate crimes

Text by Lerato Dumse   I sat down for a reflection session with photographers Lindeka Qampi and Zanele Muholi a few days after they documented Gift Makau’s funeral. Muholi requested for the interview as a way of unloading and shedding … Continue reading

Posted in 'We live in fear', 20 Years of Democracy, Articles, Brutal murders of black lesbians in South Africa, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community education, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Community work, Compiled by Lerato Dumse and Fikile Mazambani, Complicated Lesbian Relationships, Conflicts, Confrontation, Connected souls, Connections, Consultation, Contests, Contributors, Conversation, Corrective rape, Corruption, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative activist, Creative Writing, Creativity, Crime rate, Crimes, Cultural activists, Culture of reading and writing, Curative rapes, Delegation, Democracy, Department of Justice (DoJO, Description, Details, Disappointment, Discomfort, Discussion, Disebo Gift Makau (1990 - 2014), Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting hate crimes, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Education, Expression, Friends as perpetrators, Gender Equality, Heavy subject, Lerato Dumse in conversation with Lindeka Qampi and Zanele Muholi, New Task Team on hate crime launched by DoJ in April 2014, Reflection | Leave a comment

2014 Aug. 14: HEAIDS Women’s Health – ZAZI Launch

Text by Christie van Zyl Photos by Lindeka Qampi and Zanele Muholi An inspiring message of Social co-hesion and responsibility was set at the launch of the ZAZI – Know your strength campaign. The event took place at the University … Continue reading

Posted in Captioned, Characters, Claiming mainstream spaces, Class, Combating HIV/AIDS through education, Comment, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community education, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Community work, Complexities of Transitioning, Connections, Contributors, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Creativity, Cultural activists, Delegation, Democracy, Description, Details, Documentary, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Documenting realities of the townships, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, Entertainment, Evidence, Experience, Exploration, Exposure, Expression, Facilitation, Facilitators, Facing abuse and violation, Facing You, Family, Feelings, Female Photographers, Friendships, Gender articulation, Gender expression, Gender naming, Guest speakers, Health, Health bodies, Health matters, Higher learning, HIV status, HIV/AIDS, HiV/AIDS in South Africa, Human Beings, Human Equity and Art (Heart), Human rights, Hurt, Inconsiderate, Independence, Influenced, Interpretation, Johannesburg, Knowledge, Language, Lebo Mashile, Poetry, Steve Letsike, Theatre performance, University of Johannesburg, Youth, Zazi launch | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

2014 Sept. 6: Vaal Pride Photos

© Collen Mfazwe06/09/2014                                            Latest News: From Vaal LGBT group on Facebook Saturday marked a day we took our flags and … Continue reading

Posted in 2014 Vaal Pride, Activism, Activists Act, Africa, Allies, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Activism in South Africa, Art Edutainment, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Art Solidarity, Articles, As we are, Beauty, Before You, Black Lesbians, Black Lesbians & Allies Against Hate Crimes, Black Queer & Gifted, Collaborations, Collectivism, Community Mobilizing, Connections, Contributors, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Cultural activists, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Education | Tagged | 4 Comments

2014 Aug. 30: I’m a game changer, leader and activist

  My name is Lesiba Mothibe also known as Lee. I was born on the 5 August 1984 in BBH (hospital’s name) now known as Tambo Memorial Hospital. I’m the first born and have two siblings a brother and sister. … Continue reading

Posted in Abantu, Activism, Activists Act, Allies, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Activism in South Africa, Art Edutainment, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Art Solidarity, Articles, Arts, As we are, Beauty, Beauty pageants, Before You, Black Queer & Gifted, Collaborations, Collectivism, Community, Community Mobilizing, Connections, Contributors, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Cultural activists, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, Evidence, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Family, Feelings, Friendships, Gender naming, Homosexuality, Hope, Human rights, Interpretation, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Lesiba Mothibe, Life, Life Stories, Love, Love is a human right, Media works, Networking, Our lives in the picture, Photography, Politics of existence, Portrait, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Queer visibility, Readings, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, Records and histories, Reflection, Relationships, revolution, Sharing knowledge, South Africa, Speaking for ourselves, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Townships, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual Power, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, When Love is a Human Right, Writing is a Right, Youth voices | 10 Comments

2014 Aug. 30: Insightful analysis from the guest speaker

 by Lebo Mashifane On August 29, 2014, Lindeka Qampi, Zanele Muholi, Martha Qumba and myself visited Aurora Girls High School in Zola One, Soweto. It’s a school where Lindeka and Zanele are busy tutoring photography to some learners after school … Continue reading

Posted in Activism, Activists Act, Allies, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Art Activism in South Africa, Art Edutainment, Art Solidarity, Articles, Arts, As we are, Before You, Black Queer & Gifted, Collaborations, Collectivism, Community, Community Mobilizing, Connections, Contributors, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, Evidence, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Feelings, Friendships, Hope, Human rights, Inkanyiso media, Interpretation, Johannesburg, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Life, Life Stories, Love, Media works, Networking, Our lives in the picture, Photo album, Photography, Politics of existence, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Readings, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, Records and histories, Relationships, revolution, Sharing knowledge, South Africa, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Townships, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual Power, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, When Love is a Human Right, Women's power, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Writing is a Right, Youth voices | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments