LGBTQ+ Rights in South Africa

In the early 1990s, apartheid ended in South Africa. The apartheid regime had interfered with who could love each other and live together, and this made the writers of the new constitution especially aware of the devastating effect this had on people’s lives. In addition, there had been a (mostly white) gay rights movement for a long time, and they were now speaking out. This resulted in South Africa becoming the first country in the world to have a constitution that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. This laid the foundation for the decriminalisation of consensual same-sex relations (1998), legalising same-sex marriages (2006), and allowing same-sex couples to adopt.

When same-sex marriage was legalised in other countries, it happened after years of struggle and building popular support. Ireland even held a referendum on the issue to make sure it was the will of the people. In South Africa, the law expanding the rights of its LGBTQ+ citizens was used as an instrument to shape the norms of society. Both ways of establishing laws are common, but the latter needs more effort to truly be successful.

There is little doubt that the legal status of LGBTQ+ people in South Africa is miles ahead of any other African country. Especially in the larger cities, people are open about being gay or lesbian. There are strong queer organisations and vibrant communities and night life. Cape Town is considered the most gay-friendly city in Africa.

However, despite 25 years of legal rights, there are still challenges. South Africa struggles not only with its violent past, but with its violent present. The rates of sexual violence in South Africa are amongst the highest in the world. Women’s rights organisations estimate that each minute, two women are raped in South Africa. Few women report the rape for fear of repercussions from the rapist, or for fear of the police. Harassment and sexual violence are also being used as a weapon against lesbian women, including the so-called 'corrective rape', where the idea is that being raped by men will turn lesbians into heterosexuals. Embedded in this violence is also an anger against women who 'act as men' - women who marry and support women - and by doing so threaten male authority. This has also resulted in lesbians being murdered.

The violent defence of gender roles poses a problem to many groups in society. It is life-threateningly dangerous to trans, non-binary, and other non-gender confirming South Africans. The masculine ideals harm gay men, where half of the couple is sometimes regarded as 'the woman', especially in rural areas. Traditional values that emphasise the importance of family leads to gay men feeling pressured to also have a heterosexual marriage so they can father children. There is a growing realisation that LGBTQ+ and women’s organisations need to work together to challenge the patriarchal society, whose strict gender roles not only harm the LGBTQ+ community but also limit the possibilities of cisgendered, heterosexual women. A fight for equality means changing traditional gender roles, to the benefit of all.