The time has come again for all progressive bodies in
Johannesburg to reclaim Pride and their streets. We call on all of you who are
queer, and all of you who are Black, and women, and landless, and economically
marginalised, and every single one of you who demand justice for all bodies now
to join us in the third annual Johannesburg
People’s Pride protest celebration on 21 November 2015.
The theme of this year’s protest celebration is a Call to Action
under the theme of ‘GLOW in the Dark: Night Revolution’. In the context of
sustained violence perpetrated against us, we who are queer and Black, women, migrants, landless and dispossessed suffer a constant and fear to
inhabit our streets freely after dark, the theme expreses a desire to reclaim
the night and assert our right to celebrate and be free from violence while
doing so.
This year’s theme is also an homage to Simon Nkoli and the Gays
and Lesbians of the Witwatersrand (GLOW) organizations, which made large
contributions to the struggle for freedom for LGBTIAQ people in South Africa.
We commemorate GLOW for it was they who, more than twenty years ago, formed the
foundation for a united struggle against all injustice led by queers, as we do
today.
This year, we also highlight our solidarity with and support
for trans bodies in South Africa, the continent and the world
over who continue to suffer stigmatisation, marginalisation and erasure from
society - even within gay and lesbian communities. We recognise that all of our
respective freedoms are intimately bound up in each other's, and that it is
crucial to the strengthening of our movement and the realisation of our vision
for a just and free society that we unite against the multiple oppressions that
operate on every single one of our bodies.
This year we will assert once again our rights to gather freely,
we will join the ongoing call for the decolonisation of institutions of higher
learning. We assert our rights to free education and an end to the exploitation of workers. Again we exclaim:
ALL
FREEDOMS FOR ALL PEOPLE, NOW!
The GLOW in the Dark protest
celebration will have of three main activities around Constitution Hill:
Activity 1: Queer History Tour of
Braamfontein and Hillbrow (15:00 – 17:00)
Activists familiar with the queer history of Braamfontein and Hillbrow
will congregate 2 groups of 20 people each at constitution hill. These two
groups will be led on a two-hour walking tour of Braamfontein and Hillbrow. To
manage the size of the groups, the tour will be pre-booked.
Activity 2: Picnic and Edutainment
at Constitution Hill (15:00 – 17:00)
There will be a picnic and edutainment programme beginning in
the late afternoon. The edutainment programme will consist of Writing/Poetry,
Photography/Video Making, Banner/Placard Making, T-shirt Printing,
Drawing/Painting, Performance Art, Music/DJs and Activist Speakers and a braai
and party. There will be food and drinks vendors, and participants will be
allowed to bring their own food and refreshments.
Activity 3: March (17:30 – 19:00)
The march will leave from and return to Constitution Hill with a
route through Hillbrow and Jobber Park and will include guerrilla theatre as a
key feature.
Activity 4: Queer Celebration
Concert (19:00 – 00:00)
A live music concert will be held at Constitution Hill. Queer
singers, performance artists, and DJs will be invited to share the stage
throughout the evening
Issued by: JPP Working Group
For
further information, contact:
Kwezilomso
Mbandazayo
Sekoetlane
Phamodi
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