On 14 October 2009 the Anti-Homosexuality Bill was introduced to parliament in Uganda, sparking international outrage and condemnation. The Bill sought to further criminalise homosexuality in the country, imposing life imprisonment for those found guilty of engaging in homosexual acts,…
In August 2009, Intersex South Africa (ISSA)’s Sally Gross, U.S. academic Amanda Lock Swarr, and Gender DynamiX (GDX)’s Liesl Theron co-authored a critical think piece that was published in the Fall edition of the Feminist Studies Journal. The piece, “South…
In August 2009, the world was introduced to South African track athlete Caster Semenya as she won the 800m World Championships in Berlin, Germany and simultaneously came under public scrutiny over her eligibility to compete in women’s sport.
She improved on her 800m and 1500m records achieved at the 2008 World Junior Championships. The International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), now known as World Athletics, asserted that it felt compelled to carry out investigations on Semenya’s performance and sex after she improved her record by 25 seconds in the 1500m track event, and by 7 seconds in the 800m track race. They claimed that "this sort of dramatic breakthrough usually aroused the suspicion of drug use."
The Out in Africa (OIA) Gay and Lesbian Film Festival won its case against the South African Film and Publications Board to unban the film XXY in August 2009. At the end of February of that same year, OIA argued…
July 2009 — Launch of Eastern and Southern African Trans and Intersex Regional Exchange Programme In July 2009, South Africa’s Gender DynamiX (GDX) and Uganda’s Support Initiative for People with atypical Sex Development (SIPD) formed a partnership to host an…
17 May 2009 — The Death and Humiliation of Aunty Victoria, Tanzania Auntie Victoria was reportedly the first openly identified trans woman in Tanzania. She received gender-affirming surgery in Europe many years ago (surgery dates undocumented). When she returned to…
In 2009 the first Miss Woubi beauty pageant was held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire / Ivory Coast. The event takes its name from an Ivorian slang word (‘Woubi’) meaning ‘effeminate’ — the more feminine partner in a relationship, or as…
December 2008 — Proudly African & Transgender Art Collaboration Emerged, South Africa During the Eastern and Southern African Trans/Gender Identity Institute workshop hosted in Cape Town in December 2008, Gabrielle Le Roux collaborated with Victor Mukasa and the other individual activists…
December 2008 — First Trans- and Intersex-Specific Workshop Held in Africa: Eastern and Southern African Trans/Gender Identity Institute, South Africa In December 2008, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), today known as OutRight International, and Gender DynamiX…
22 December 2008 — Court Rules in Favour of Trans and LGBTI Activist Victor Mukasa, Uganda After a trial of three years, the Ugandan High Court ruled in Victor Mukasa’s favour on 22 December 2008. In this landmark ruling, the…
Transgender Education & Advocacy (TEA) was established by Audrey Mbugua in 2008, working to defend the human rights of trans persons in Kenya. TEA is an international human rights organisation working towards defending and promoting the human rights of transgender/transsexual…
In September 2009, the South African Film and Publications Board banned the intersex film XXY* on the grounds that they believed the film portrays child pornography. The Spanish film with English subtitles was produced by an Argentine filmmaker and tells…
Trans Bantu Zambia (TBZ), was formed on 14 September 2008 to bring about an end to discrimination against the trans community in Zambia. It is a youth-led non-profit organisation whose development objective is the improvement of the socioeconomic, political and…
Gender Dynamix (GDX)’s Tebogo Nkoana and Liesl Theron delivered presentations at the Gender Odyssey Conference in August 2008. The proposals were accepted and Liesl, who was already in previous contact with the University of Washington Associate Professor, Amanda Lock Swarr,…
On 2 June 2008, Daisy Dube, a gender-variant person, and four friends who self-identified as drag queens, went out clubbing in the evening in Yeoville, Johannesburg. Men outside the club called them izitabane,* referring to their gender identity. In resistance,…
2008 — Founding of the Support Initiative for People with Atypical Sex Development (SIPD), Uganda Founded by Julius Kaggwa in 2008, the Support Initiative for People with Atypical Sex Development (SIPD) was formed in Kampala, Uganda to create awareness and…
The African Regional Sexuality Resource Centre (ARSRC) invited Gender DynamiX (GDX) to be their guest on 17 April 2008 at the “Beginning of a Global Dialogue on Transgender Rights” discussion. The meeting took place in New York and was hosted…
The Coalition of African Lesbians (CAL) Feminist Institute in Maputo, Mozambique invited Gender DynamiX (GDX) to do a presentation on “Understanding Transgender” on 26 February 2008. This request was a result of the raised interest in trans understanding in Africa…
2008 — Matrix Support Group (MSG) / People’s Matrix Association Established, Lesotho The Matrix Support Group (MSG), also known as the People’s Matrix Association, was established in Lesotho in 2008. Although the NGO caters to the whole LGBTIQ+ community throughout…
Originally founded in 2000 as the Intersex Society of South Africa (ISOSA) by Sally Gross, Intersex South Africa (ISSA) came into being in 2008, when Sally renamed the organisation. After Sally’s death in 2014, ISSA was housed by Iranti, founded…