Category Archives: We were (t)here

2014 Aug. 9: A video of the first Mpumalanga Pride

The 1st MPUMALANGA Gay Pride held on the 9th August 2014 consisted of the following groups: Lowveld LGBTI (Mbombela, Barberton and surrounding locations) Emalahleni LGBTI ( Witbank, Middleburg) GLOM (Ermelo and surrounding townships ) GLOSS (Standerton, Secunda) Kwandebele LGBTI (KwaMhlanga … Continue reading

Posted in 1st Mpumalanga Pride, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Arguments, Art Activism, Art Edutainment, Art for Humanity, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Art Solidarity, Articles, Articulation, Artists, Arts, As we are, Awareness workshops, Black lesbians in remote areas in South Africa, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Artists, Blackness, Butch identifying lesbian, Came out of the closet, Claiming blackness, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collaborations, Collective, Collectivism, Commemorating the queer youth we lost along the way, Comments from the audience, Commitment, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community Mobilizing, Community organizing, Community outreach, Community work, Department of Justice (DoJO, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Video archive, Visual activism, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here | 4 Comments

2014 Aug. 9: “I am not a lesbian by choice”

‪ My name is Sphiwe Sesana Mbatha. I am a very funny person, I love people and I love happy endings. I am a very dedicated when it comes to work, and I’m a fast learner too. I am ambitious … Continue reading

Posted in (IT) Information Technology, 1992 November 14, Daveyton, English and Xhosa, Gender Based Violence (GBV)., Kuzimisela Primary School, Mr Lesbian Daveyton, Silence, South Africa, Speaking for ourselves, Sphiwe Sesana Mbatha, Struggling, Style, Stylish, Support, Supporting each other, Survivor, Teaching, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Visual activism, Visual activism is a language, Visual Activist, Visual democracy, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, Visual sense, Visual Voices, Visualizing public spaces, We Are You, We Care, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, What black lesbian youth wants, When Love is a Human Right, Woman, Women's power, Women's Work, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Womenonwomen, Words, Writing is a Right, Xhosa is a South African language, Young black female photographers, Young Black Women and Photography, Young talent, Young Women and Visual Activism, Youth voices, Zulu is a language | 5 Comments

2014 Aug. 11: PFLAG Workshop hosted by GALA and US Embassy

  A two-day workshop aimed at developing LGBTI-ally support, and advocacy network, is hosted by the US Embassy and GALA at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. The event started on August 11 and is facilitated by Jody Huckaby who … Continue reading

Posted in 20 Years of Democracy, Academics, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, Allies, Alternative family, Chad Wesen, Health, heterosexuals, Homosexuality, Jody Huckaby, LGBTI community, lgbti issues in South Africa, Parenting, PFLAG in South AFrica, Political Officer for Human Rights, South Africa, South African Black Female Photographers, South African Visual Activism, Speaking for ourselves, Struggling, Subject of Art, Support, Teaching, Terms and conditions, textbooks, The Chroniclers, Together we can, Togetherness, US Embassy delegates, Visibility, Vision, Visual activism, Visual Activist, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, 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, Women loving women, Young Women and Visual Activism | 1 Comment

2014 Aug. 8: To be honest I love how I look

My name is Katiso Kgope, and I was born on September 18, in 1995. I was born in Glen Wood hospital, Benoni my parents are Mandla Kgope and the late Mpho Kgope – Monyake. I was given the name of … Continue reading

Posted in "Scratching the surface", 1995 -, 20 Years of Democracy, Acceptance, Act, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, Alternative career choices, Another Approach Is Possible, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Activism, Articles, Articulation, Attention, Baring, Beautiful faces, Beauty, Beauty pageantry, Beauty queens, Before You, Being conscientized, Being Scene, Birthdate, Black, Black bodies, Black Queer & Gifted, Black Queer Born Frees, Black Queer Born Frees in SA townships, Blackness, Body, Body Politics, Cameras, Celebrating Youth Month in SA, Chains, Characters, Claiming, Claiming blackness, Claiming mainstream spaces, Collectivism, Comfort, Comments from the audience, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community Mobilizing, Community outreach, Daveyton, Documentation; Filming; Photography; Community, Documenting our own lives, Education, Emotional support, Empowerment, English, Evidence, Exchanging Queer thoughts, Experience, Exploration, Exposure, Expression, Eyes, Facing You, Family, Family and Friends, Fashion, Feelings, Female being, Finances, Friendships, Gender articulation, God is with us, God's will, He(ART), Honesty, Human rights, Humiliation, I was (T)here, Identity, Interpretation, Interviews, Katiso Kgope, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Language, Lessons learnt, Liberation, Life, Life Stories, Living by example, Love, Love is a human right, Loved, Lovely words, Media works, Memories, Modeling, Moments in herstory, New York, No artificiality, Opinion, Ownership of the self, Owning our bodies, Perception, Photography, Photography as a therapy, Platform, Politics of existence, Politics of representation, Portrait, Power of the Voice, Privilege, Proud to be, Queer visibility, Queer Youth, Questioning, Questions & Answers, Readers, Readings, Reason, Recognition, recognized, Respect, Respect & Recognition from our community, Response, Seeing difference, Self acceptance, Self discovery, Self love, Self-worth, Sharing knowledge, Sharing thoughts, She, South Africa, South African townships, South African Visual Activism, South African Youth, Speaking for ourselves, Special event, Studying, Style, Stylish, Support, Talented, Textualizing Our Own Lives, Together we can, Togetherness, trans bodies, Trans Youth, Transgender visibility, Transgender Voices, Transgenderism in Africa, Transwoman, Visual activism is a language, Visual Activist, Visual democracy, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, 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, Womanhood, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Youth voices, Zanele Muholi, Zulu is a South African language | 3 Comments

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 26: The luxury was on another level at the 2014 Design Indaba

  Five months later… by Yaya Mavundla How often does a black transwoman from the rural areas get to meet Victoria Beckham in person; have breakfast in the same restaurant with Carlos Santana, fly around Cape Town in a helicopter? … Continue reading

Posted in "There are few good men", 2014 Design Indaba, Acceptance, Act, Acting, Activists Act, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Art Activism, Art Activism in South Africa, Art Edutainment, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Art Solidarity, Art Therapy, Articles, Articles; South African Celebrities; Arts; 2013 Feather awards; Lerato Dumse; Song; Dance; Kelly Khumalo; Thembisile Ntaka; Brenda Mntambo; Recognition; Thami Kotlolo; Gays & Lesbians; 5th Feather, Artist Talk, Artists, Arts, As we are, Athi Patra Ruga, Attention, Audience, Awareness workshops, Before US, Before You, Being conscientized, Being Scene, Black Lesbian, Black Lesbian professionals, Black Queer & Gifted, Blackness, Body, Body Politics, Cape Town, Characters, Clear with own plan, Communication strategies, Community, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative activist, Creative writer, Cultural activists, Description, Designers from around the world meet in Cape Town, Details, Different positions, Documentary, Documenting realities of the townships, Dress code, Dress sense, Elegance, Emotional support, Empowerment, Entertainment, Event, Evidence, Exchanging Queer thoughts, Experience, Expression, Facilitation, Fashion, Friendships, Gender expression, Gender naming, Interpretation, Know Your SA Queer History, Laughter, Lindeka Qampi, Luxury, Nandi Mntambo, Our lives in the picture, Participants, Participation, Poster, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, Recognition, recognized, Records and histories, Reflection, Relationships, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, revolution, Sexuality, Sharing knowledge, Solidarity, South African Artists, South African Visual Activism, State of Art, Style, Support, Supporting each other, Transwoman, VIP area, Visual Arts, Visual democracy, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual narratives, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We were (t)here, When Love is a Human Right, Yaya Mavundla | Leave a comment

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 16: Through the eyes of young women photographers

  2014 June, 3rd Lindeka Qampi sharing her PhotoXP experience to Valerie Thomas “I am proud of the Aurora visual project. It is a very powerful and strong project, if I were to compare it with previous projects I have … Continue reading

Posted in 20 Years of Democracy, Act, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, albino, Alternative career choices, Another Approach Is Possible, Aurora Girls High School, Beauty, Before You, Begging, Being conscientized, Black lesbian visibility, Bringing photography to schools, Cameras, Career, Collaborations, Collective, Collectivism, colored, Comfort, Commemorating the queer youth we lost along the way, Comments from the audience, Committed, Communication strategies, Community, Community based media, Community Mobilizing, Connected souls, Connections, Contests, Contributors, Corruption, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative activist, Death, Documenting realities of the townships, Experience, Housing, Humiliation, Independence, Inkanyiso media, Intellectualism, Interpretation, Intervention, Interview, Interviews, Invisibility, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, Lack of Resources, Life, Life Stories, Lindeka Qampi sharing her PhotoXP experience to Valerie Thomas, Living by example, Love, Love is a human right, Matters of the He(Art), May her soul rest in peace, Media works, Memories, Modeling, Moments in herstory, Motherhood, My collaborators: Linda Mankazana, My name is Zanele Muholi, normal black, Open relationships, Opinion, Orange Farm, Organizations, Our lives in the picture, Poverty, Power in our hair, Power of the Arts, Power of the Voice, RDP, Readings, Real, Reason, ReClaim Your Activism, Recognition, recognized, Records and histories, Reflection, Related links, Relationships, Reports, Respect & Recognition from our community, Respected person, Response, Reviews, revolution, Sadness, School portraits, Seeing difference, Seeking help, Self discovery, Self recognition, Self-worth, Sexual Politics education in South Africa, Sexuality, Sharing knowledge, sickness, Social responsibility, Society, Solidarity, South African Artists, South African politics, South African Youth, Soweto, Struggling, Support, Supporters, Supporting each other, Supportive mother, Teaching, Teaching young women photography, Textualizing Our Own Lives, The Fair Ladies, the writers, Together we can, Togetherness, Tomboy, Touch, Townships, Visual activism, Visual activism is a language, Visual Activist, Visual Activist in the classroom, Visual history, Visual history is a Right not a luxury, Visual Language, Visual narratives, Visual Power, 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, Woman, Womanhood, Women loving women, Women who have sex with Women, Women's power, Women's struggles, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Young black female photographers, Young black lesbian traditional healer, Young Black Women and Photography, Young talent, young women, Young Women and Visual Activism, Youth voices, Zulu is a South African language | 18 Comments

2014 July 12: Being treated like a Queen in Durban

by Sfiso ‘Candice’ Nkosi It is Thurs. 26th June 2014, my friend, Precious Maqojana and I left for Durban Pride from Johannesburg Park Station at 22:00. We stopped in Montrose for some refreshments and a bathroom break. I was starting … Continue reading

Posted in 1987 -, 2013 Miss Simply Blue, 2014 Durban Pride, Acceptance, Act, Acting, Activism, Activists, Activists Act, Adoring, African, African Queer Beauty, Alternative family, Another Approach Is Possible, Archived memories, Archiving Queer Her/Histories in SA, Art Is A Human Right, Art is Queer, Artists, Arts, Attention, Beautiful faces, Beauty, Beauty queens, Before You, Being Scene, Black bodies, Black lesbian activism, Black Lesbian Artists, Black lesbian visibility, Blackness, Body, Brave, Characters, Communication strategies, Community, Community Mobilizing, Community work, Crea(c)tive senses, Creating awareness, Creative Writing, Culture of reading and writing, Details, Disappointment, Empowerment, Experience, Exposure, Expression, Feelings, Female Photographers, Friendships, From Tsakane to Durban, Gender, Gender naming, Grateful, Gratitude, Hobbies, Human Beings, I can't do it ALONE, I was (T)here, I-N-K-A-N-Y-I-S-O, Identity, Inkanyiso media, Inner feelings, Insulted, Interpretation, Issue of toilets for transwomen, Know Your SA Queer History, Knowledge, KwaZulu Natal, Memories, Modeling, Our lives in the picture, Participants, Participation, Photographs, Power of the Voice, Queens, Sbonelo Muholi, Society, Sponsored trip, Toilets, Transwomen, UkhoziFM, We Are You, We Care, We love photographs, We Love Photography, We Still Can with/out Resources, We were (t)here, Women's power, Women; Voices; Writings; Education; Traditions; Struggles; Cultures, Words, Writing is a Right, Young Black Women and Photography, Zanele Muholi | Leave a comment