An archive of histories/herstories/theirstories affecting
and influencing the trans, gender diverse and
intersex movements in Africa
Categories are displayed alphabetically at the top of the Timeline and can be used to filter the results to focus on the research theme chosen. For example, ‘All’ will show you all topics, while ‘Intersex’ will display all entries related to intersex movements and moments.
Alternatively, use the search bar in the menu at the top and bottom of screen to find more specific information.
Categories relating to gender, sex characteristics and sexual orientation have flag icons and colour groups to visually distinguish them from one another:
The Ugandan parliament passed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill into law on as the Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2014 (previously called the “Kill the Gays bill” on 20 December 2013. The Ugandan President signed his assent to the Anti-Homosexuality Act on 24 February 2014. The Act criminalised any sexual acts and relations between people of the same sex. The maximum […]
The Transgender Network of Liberia (TNOL) was founded by Karishma Richards-Kwofie in 2014. The organisation was initially under the umbrella of the NGO Stop AIDS in Liberia (SAIL). When TNOL sought registration status as a legal entity in order to rent office space, open a bank account, and apply for funding at the Liberia Business […]
In January 2014, Rikki Nathanson, a Zimbabwean trans woman and modelling agency director was detained by police* after Farai Mteliso, a Zanu-PF Youth League leader, performed a citizen’s arrest on her. She was arrested for being a ‘criminal nuisance’ because she visited a bar in Bulawayo, dressed as a woman, and allegedly used the bathroom […]
1er février 2014 — Fondation de Young Queer Alliance, Maurice / 1 February 2014 — Founding of Young Queer Alliance, Mauritius Fondée le 1er février 2015 par Fokeerbux Najeeb Ahmad, Young Queer Alliance travaille avec des personnes lesbiennes, gays, bisexuelles, trans, queer, intersexuées et asexuelles (LGBTQIA+) — principalement des jeunes, mais pas exclusivement — à […]
Prominent anti-Apartheid and intersex activist, Sally Gross, who founded the first intersex rights organisation in Africa (Intersex Society of South Africa), passed away on 14 February 2014. In 2000, Sally secured the first known mention of intersex in national law, with the inclusion of “intersex” within the definition of “sex” in the anti-discrimination law of the Republic of South Africa. […]
Nikilas (Nikki) Mawanda, an intersex activist from Uganda and founder of an NGO in the country*, was granted LGBTIQ+ asylum status in the U.S. on 20 March 2014. Asylum was granted months after fleeing his home in Uganda due to the state-sanctioned violence of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which was passed by the Ugandan parliament earlier […]
24 April 2014 — Founding of Rights for All (RIFA), Rwanda Founded on 24 April 2014 by Madine Mukandayisenga, RIFA (Rights for All) is a Rwandan organisation based in Kigali, focusing on youth, working to promote the rights and well-being of lesbian, bisexual, trans and intersex (LBTI) persons, female sex workers and LBTI persons with […]
31 May 2014 — 2nd Trans Health, Research and Advocacy Conference, South Africa Trans and Intersex Africa (TIA), Social, Health and Empowerment Feminist Collective of Transgender and Intersex Women of Africa (S.H.E), and Gender DynamiX (GDX) hosted the 2nd Trans Health, Research and Advocacy Conference in Cape Town, South Africa between 31 May and 2 […]
In June 2014, Somalian-born Canadian photographer, Abdi Osman, held an exhibition named ‘Labeeb’ at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. The project features large photographs and a short double-projection video of Sumaya Dalmar, a trans woman originally from Somalia. The double projection, which shows two videos playing simultaneously, underscores the artist’s attempt to engage with […]
Founded in Kenya in 2014, the Malindi Desire Initiative (MDI) began as a support group for transgender people living with HIV. The organisation was officially registered as an ITGNC organisation in 2016. The Malindi Desire Initiative was born from the question, “How far are you willing to go for a community you love?” In answering […]
In June 2014, Ugandan LGBTQIA+ activist, Victor Mukasa, created a Youtube channel, Kuchu TV, which aired between 2014 and 2015. The TV station was used as a platform to give daily updates from within the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, and provided information to activists and advocates working with LGBTQIA asylum seekers in the Camp. […]
In an important series of 5 episodes aired on 29 June 2014, LGBTQIA+ rights activist, Victor Mukasa, provided context to the violence in the Kakuma Refugee Camp, using his TV platform, Kuchu TV. The episodes highlighted that the central issue for LGBTQIA+ refugees in the Camp was the violence perpetrated against them because they were […]
The Cape Town Declaration on Gender Incongruence of Childhood (GIC) was publicly released in June 2014, requesting the removal of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Classification of Diseases (ICD) diagnoses that pathologise gender diversity in children and youth. The Declaration was issued by a working group of 40 delegates from 11 countries who met […]
26 February 2014 — Founding of Tranz Network Uganda (TNU), Uganda Tranz Network Uganda (TNU) is an indigenous not for profit umbrella organisation for trans and gender diverse persons organisations in Uganda and was established by Williams Apako and Jay Mulucha on 26 February 2014 with the aim of supporting coordination and collaboration among trans […]
In July 2014, Liesl Theron stepped down as the Director of Gender Dynamix (GDX). Liesl co-founded GDX and served as Director for 9 years. She was succeeded by GDX’s first black* leader, S’bu (full name excluded for safety reasons, but available by request), who served from August 2015 — February 2016. After S’bu’s short term, […]
On 3 July 2014, a 4-part series about further violence in the Kakuma Refugee Camp aired on Kuchu TV, a platform created by Ugandan LGBTQIA+ activist, Victor Mukasa. Victor’s work at the Kakuma Refugee Camp started in 2014 after the first attack on the Ugandan LGBTQIA+ refugees in the Camp. You can read more about […]
Transgender Education & Advocacy (TEA) filed a judicial review application to the Kenyan High Court on 10 July 2014 seeking an order to compel the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentist Board, and the Ministry of Health to develop medical guidelines for the treatment of trans persons. This case was dismissed on 4 February 2015.
In a historic court battle initiated in 2013, Transgender Education and Advocacy (TEA) won a landmark case in Kenya’s High Court on 23 July 2014. After being denied the right to register as an NGO, the organisation sued the Kenyan NGO Coordination Board for discrimination and violation of their fundamental human rights. In his ruling, […]
In August 2014, trans women from 14 African countries including Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe came together at a meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa to discuss a shared envisioning of the feminist movement and its politics. An outcome of this meeting was the African Trans Feminist Charter.
On 1 August 2014, the Ugandan constitutional court dismissed the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which had caused controversy both in Uganda and across the world. The court ruled that the Anti-Homosexuality Bill was null and void, citing procedural irregularities during its passage and asserting the vote cast on the Bill in Parliament technically lacked the necessary quorum to have been […]
There are many African organisations and individuals who over the years have contributed in invaluable ways to the story of the trans, gender diverse and intersex movements who are not yet included on our Timeline.
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