Radical. African. Lesbian. Feminist.
When the Coalition of African Lesbians was formed, the dream was to create a public political space for lesbian feminist voices to emerge, be visible and influence the ongoing private and public debate about our sexual and gendered lives as […]
I remember my former partner – Zanele Muholi, with whom I co-founded Forum for the Empowerment of Women (FEW) in Johannesburg – coming home and telling me about “Tommy Boys”, a publication on lesbian oral history research. She was desperate […]
When I was asked to write something for the tenth anniversary of the Coalition of African Lesbians, I wanted to dig out old reports and documents to recap facts, names and dates of the founding phase. But then I decided I want […]
It was at the Johannesburg International Airport that a seemingly disparate group of women gathered on 22 August 2004. Initially scattered, warm greetings and hugs brought them together as they recognized one another from previous forums and meetings and spoke […]
Nine years after first learning of the Coalition of African Lesbians, I was just back from a meeting of sexual rights activists where two CAL members made me reflect, made me laugh, and made me just so glad they were […]
In April 2015, the Coalition of African Lesbians was granted observer status at the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) – hereinafter referred to as the African Commission, representing a milestone in the pan-African work of CAL. This […]
African feminism has come of age. For this reason, it is necessary to celebrate the rich tapestry of women organising across the continent for the basic dignity and essential value of human beings in all their diversity. Feminist struggles have […]
The Coalition of African Lesbians (CAL) illustrates the triumph of feminist lesbian activism and movement building on a continent where lesbo-, homo- and transphobia are rife. It is within this hostile environment that lesbians and the trans-community are continuously forging innovative […]
I am the issue you set out to address, But somewhere you lost me, this much you must confess You used to desire, to bring about some change But now you’ll discover that things remain the same. You’re stuck […]
Richard Dawkins once said that ‘Science replaces private prejudice with public, verifiable evidence.’ This was especially true, and necessary for sexuality and gender activists in Uganda, when they launched, and presented their report, Expanded Criminalisation of Homosexuality in Uganda: A […]
This conversation is a very chicken-and-egg kind of conversation. What are you first? An African? A woman? Or a lesbian? What identity do we value the most above all the ones that often lead to controversial conversations? This has been […]
English