We want people to see that we are here to stay, this message reverberated through the streets of Langa as members of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Intersex and others community closed the international LGBTQIA+ pride month on Saturday 29 June.
Scores of LGBTQIA+ community members from around Cape Town gathered in Langa for the inaugural LGBTQIA+ Cultural Pride in the neighbourhood.
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis attended the gathering, which formed part of the celebrations of Langa’s centenary, which began last year.
The event kicked off with a march from Washington Street opposite Zimasa Primary to Guga Sthebe. With posters aloft promoting the LGBTQIA+ community, members made their way to a packed venue for the day’s proceedings.
Anele Gqasana, the event organiser, described the gathering as the first of its kind. He said they intend to host it annually. “This is the first pride event happening in Langa, but we also blended it with a bit of our culture. We want people to see that we are here to stay. We want to raise awareness and promote acceptance of all sexual orientation and gender identities.” He appealed to the community to understand they are part of society and must be accepted.
Gqasana said the event aimed to underscore their visibility in the community and fight stigmas associated with certain communities.
“There are certain individuals who are still harassing us and calling us names,” he said. “We are appealing to the community to accept us for who we are. We are human beings like any other. We are not disabled. The only difference is sexual orientation.” He added there are a lot of people who need to be educated about the community.
Hill-Lewis reiterated Anele’s sentiments that stigma against gays and lesbians is the main challenge in many societies. He said at least 10 lesbian women get raped every day in the country “for corrective rape”.
“As a Mayor of Cape Town I want to send a message to the LGBTQIA + community that you are loved. We fully accept exactly who you are. You are wonderful and beautiful, and perfectly made in God’s image.”
Hill-Lewis added the community is embraced and accepted as full members of Cape Town society. He urged the LGBTQIA+ community not to be ashamed of their orientation.
Founder of Thandanani Foundation, a non-profit organisation (NGO) based in Khayelitsha for parents who have children in same-sex relationships, Nandipha Jovuka said parents were happy to see the event successful.
She described it as a safe space for LGBTQIA+ members to express themselves. “We are encouraging the children to disclose their sexuality. Our children deserve to be loved and live as anybody else. No-one has a right to discriminate against another because of their sexual orientation.” Jovuka encouraged parents to stand by their children instead of disowning them.
