Category Archives: Proud lesbian

2014 July 26: “I was born this way and I cannot change the skin that I live in”

My name is Refilwe Pitso but am popularly known as ‘Fifi’. I was born and raised in Daveyton, Benoni in Johannesburg. I was born on the 27th of December 1991 and I was raised by my mother. She is a … Continue reading

Posted in 1991 -, 2nd Prince, Ackermans, Articles, Beauty, Black Lesbian, Black lesbian beauty, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Born Frees, Characters, Claiming blackness, Claiming mainstream spaces, Community, Community Mobilizing, Community outreach, Competition, Contestants, Contests, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Daveyton, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting realities of the townships, Edited, Family, Family support, Feelings, Female masculinity, Gender naming, Hobbies, Hope, Human Beings, I am not the only one, I can't do it ALONE, I use CANON, I was (T)here, Identity, Lack of Resources, Lack of sponsorship, Lesbian Youth, LGBTI community, Life, Living by example, Loved, Matric, Memories, Moments in herstory, Mr Valentine, Our lives in the picture, Owning our bodies, Pageant, Participants, Participation, Perception, Photo Expressions, Politics of existence, Portrait, Possessed, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Previous life stories, Privilege, Proud lesbian, Proud to be, Queer Beauty Pageants in the townships, Queer Power, Queer visibility, Recognition, recognized, Records and histories, Refilwe in Faces and Phases series, Refilwe Pitso the winner, Safety, Sexuality, Sexuality in South Africa, Shop assistant, Single parent, South Africa, South African Artists, Team Dress Fresh, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Togetherness, Tomboy, Visual history, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, We Are You, We Care, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Woman, Women loving women, Women's power, Women's Work, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Young talent, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi | 5 Comments

2014 July 18: Women’s Day lecture at UFS

    Featuring the  portrait of Siphiwe Mbatha, August House, Johannesburg, 2012 © Zanele Muholi     Previous lectures   2014 June 17:  Muholi’s Ryerson University (RIC) talk   and   2014 April 29:  Muholi to speak at UC San … Continue reading

Posted in Activists Act, Announcement, Articles, Arts, Black lesbian visibility, Confrontation, Connections, Crea(c)tive senses, Creative activist, Details, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting realities of the townships, Education, Evidence, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Faces & Phases portraits, Facing You, Family, Feelings, Friendships, From Johannesburg to Free State, Gender, Gender naming, Johannesburg, Lesbian beauty contests, Lesbian Love Is Possible in South Africa, Moments in herstory, Our lives in the picture, Participants, Participation, Photographs, Photography, Photography as a therapy, Portrait, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Privilege, Professional black lesbians in South Africa, Proud lesbian, Queer visibility, Queer Youth, Readings, recognized, Relationships, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, Sexual orientation, Sharing knowledge, Siphiwe Mbatha, South African Black Female Photographers, Supporting each other, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Townships, Visual activism, 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, When Love is a Human Right, Women's power, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, young women, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi | 12 Comments

2014 July 14: A healer is laid to rest

All photos by Charmain Carrol 12/07/2014                                                                   May … Continue reading

Posted in Acceptance, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Africa, African, Africanised, Alternative family, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art for Humanity, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Articles, Bereavement, Black Lesbians, Charismatic, Chief mourner, Death, Evaton cemetery, Family and Friends, Few people, Health, Herbal medicine, Human Beings, Johannesburg, Loss to the black lesbian community, Lost Lives, Love, Loved, Myths, Photographs from the funeral, Prophecy, Proud lesbian, Queer Power, Real, Reason, Recognition, Records and histories, Relationships, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, Sadness, Self-worth, Sexuality, Sharing knowledge, Silence, Snakes, South Africa, South African townships, South African traditions, Speaking for ourselves, Support, Supporters, Supporting each other, Survived by..., The traditional cloth, traditional healers, Traditional healing, We love photographs | 2 Comments

2014 July 12: From Soweto to Paris for the love of photography

  Teaching photography to young women at Aurora Girls High school with my 3 collaborators/ facilitators: Lindeka Qampi (SA photographer and activist), Linda Mankazana (SA educator and activist) and Valerie Thomas (French physician and activist). We started the visual project … Continue reading

Posted in About PhotoXP, Aurora Girls High School, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community Mobilizing, Community outreach, Community work, Conference, Connected souls, Connections, Cultural activists, Emotional support, Empowerment, Exhibition, Freedom of being, French is a language, Guest speakers, I-N-K-A-N-Y-I-S-O, Invisibility, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Lack of sponsorship, Language, Lessons learnt, Life Stories, Lindeka Qampi, Love, Love is a human right, Mainstream media, Media works, Memory, Open relationships, Participants, Penetrating mainstream spaces, Photo Expressions, photographers, Photographs, Photography as a therapy, Political Art, Politics of existence, Politics of representation, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Presentations, Professional black lesbians in South Africa, Professionals, Proud lesbian, Publication, Queer & Straights, Queer Power, Questioning, Questions & Answers, Readers, Readings, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, Records and histories, Response, Social responsibility, South African struggle, South African townships, South African Visual Activism, Soweto, Speaking for ourselves, Students, Subject of Art, Support, Supported by French Institut - Johannesburg/ Paris, Supporting each other, Uncategorized, Valerie Thomas on 2014 Photo XP, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, Writing is a Right, Young Black Women and Photography, young women, Young Women and Visual Activism, Youth voices, Zulu is a South African language | 18 Comments

2014 June 26: When photography is our religion

  All Photos by Lerato Maduna © 27/11/2012 What:  Faces and Phases exhibition opening When:  2 Years ago (27th November 2012) Where:  Goethe-Institut Südafrika, 119 Jan Smuts Ave, Parkwood. Johannesburg.    Where are they now?   Ayanda Moremi got married to … Continue reading

Posted in Acceptance, Adoring, African Queer Beauty, AlJazeera, Allies, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Activism in South Africa, As we are, Beauty queens, Before You, Black & White, Black Butches and Femmes, Black lesbian activism, Black Lesbian Artists, Black Lesbian Congregants, Black Lesbian Dancers in South Africa, Black Lesbian Men, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Born Frees in SA townships, Body, Butch identifying lesbian, Celebrating Youth Month in SA, Characters, Church is not the closet, Commemorating the queer youth we lost along the way, Communication strategies, Community, Community Mobilizing, Community outreach, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creativity, Details, Different positions, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Dyke, Education, Empowerment, Evidence, Exchanging Queer thoughts, Exhibition opening, Experience, Exposure, Faces & Phases portraits, Freedom of being, Gender activist, Gender distinction, Gender expression, Gender naming, Gratitude, Joy, katharina.von-ruckteschell-katte, Laughter, Lien Heidenreich-Seleme, Life Stories, Living by example, Love, Love is a human right, Matters of the He(Art), Moments in herstory, Networking, Open relationships, Opening remarks, Photo album, Photo Expressions, Photography, Politics of existence, Politics of representation, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Presentations, Privilege, Professional black lesbians in South Africa, Proud lesbian, Queer Africans speaking for themselves., Queer community, Queer Education in SA, Queer Edutainment, Queer texts, Queer visibility, Questions & Answers, Sharing knowledge, Speaking for ourselves, Special event, Writing is a Right, Young talent, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi is the winner, Zulu is a South African language | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

2014 May 11: Limpopo Pride photos

by Collen Mfazwe (2014 May 10, Limpopo)       More photos to be added later…   Previous photos from Limpopo Pride 2013   2013 May 11:  My last hour                    

Posted in Networking, Pride March, Privilege, Proud lesbian, Queens | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

2014 March 28: What we did is history now

      © Zanele Muholi Where:  San Francisco Golden Gate Bridge Country:  United States Featuring:  Selaelo ‘Sly’ Mannya and Valerie Thomas When:  14th March 2014 Camera used:  Canon 6D with 85mm lens. f stop: 2.8 How: The photos were … Continue reading

Posted in Connections, Contributors, Evidence, Experience, Exposure, Family, Feelings, Gratitude, Human Beings, I can't do it ALONE, I was (T)here, Knowledge, Love, Love is a human right, Media works, Networking, Open relationships, Our lives in the picture, Performance, Photography, Politics of representation, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Proud lesbian, Queer Power, Queer visibility, Recognition, Records and histories, Reflection, Relationships, Sharing knowledge, Speaking for ourselves, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Visual Power, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, Zanele Muholi | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

2014 March 14: A video of Ayanda and Nhlanhla Moremi’s wedding

  4 months later … marital bliss. Ayanda Magoloza got married to Nhlanhla Moremi on the 9th Nov. 2013 in Katlehong. They exchanged the vows at Kwanele Park in Katlehong. Their wedding union was blessed by Pastor Tebogo Moema of Dominion … Continue reading

Posted in Acceptance, Acceptance speeches, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, African Queer Beauty, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Articles, As we are, Ayanda & Nhlanhla Moremi, Beauty, Black Butches and Femmes, Black lesbian wedding, Black Queer & Gifted, Blackness, Characters, Collaborations, Collectivism, Commitment, Committed, Community, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Democracy, Details, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Faces & Phases portraits, Family, Family support, Fashion, Feelings, Gauteng, Gratitude, Homosexuality, I can't do it ALONE, Ihawu members, Independence, Inkanyiso crew, Intervention, Johannesburg, Know Your SA Queer History, Language, Lesbian Love Is Possible in South Africa, LGBT rights activist, Life, Life partners, Life Stories, Living by example, llobolo, Love, Love is a human right, Moments in herstory, Nqobile Zungu, Our lives in the picture, Photo album, Photo Expressions, Photography, Power of the Voice, Privilege, Professional black lesbians in South Africa, Proud lesbian, Public spaces, Queer community, Queer Power, Queer visibility, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, Records and histories, Relationships, Religion, Scriptures, Self acceptance, Sexual orientation, Sharing knowledge, South Africa, South African Civil Union Act (2006), South African townships, Textualizing Our Own Lives, To Have & to Hold book, Together we can, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, 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 Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, When Love is a Human Right, Womanhood, Women who have sex with Women, Women's power, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures | Tagged , | 8 Comments

2013 Feb. 1: Maybe it was not meant to be!

by Charmain Carrol I am back from Europe and am reflecting on all the things I did, people I met, and what a wonderful and productive time I had.  But I cannot stop thinking about how this trip almost never … Continue reading

Posted in Dejected, Expression, I can't do it ALONE, I was (T)here, Identity, Independence, Inkanyiso crew, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Lack of sponsorship, Life, Living by example, Organizations, Politics of existence, Politics of geography, Power of the Voice, Presentations, Proud lesbian, Recognition, Records and histories, Reflection, Respect & Recognition from our community, Reviews, Sexual minorities, Sharing knowledge, Socio-economic, Speaking for ourselves, Struggling activist, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Women's power, Women's struggles, Women's Work, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Writing is a Right | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment