By Buziwe Nocuze
- Funeka Soldaat started Free Gender in Khayelitsha in 2008 after a lesbian was murdered and she saw a need for local activism.
- Free Gender supports LGBTQI+ people facing discrimination and violence, including two women who were allegedly threatened with rape and murder by a taxi driver.
The murder of a young lesbian in Khayelitsha changed Funeka Soldaat’s life and pushed her into a fight she is still leading today.
Soldaat founded the Free Gender organisation in 2008 after seeing what she believed was a painful gap in her community.
A young lesbian had been murdered and Soldaat said people supporting the court case were coming from outside Khayelitsha.
She felt somebody from the township needed to stand up.
“I formed the organisation to fight for lesbians, gays, and transgender people in the community,” Soldaat said.
“At that time, the people who were in court for the murder of the young lesbian were coming from other areas, and nobody was organising in Khayelitsha.”
Soldaat began bringing black lesbians together and building a movement that would fight for people who often felt ignored.
“We fight for the rights, respect, and recognition of lesbians, gays, and transgender people,” she said.
Soldaat believes progress has been made in gaining recognition and respect. But she says support from communities during court cases involving LGBTQI+ people remains a problem.
She is grateful to organisations that continue to stand with them.
Free Gender may have started in Khayelitsha, but its work does not stop at the township’s borders.
“We give support to any members who need it, even from other townships,” Soldaat said.
She wants communities and government to become more involved.
“We need to engage the community so that this fight can become everyone’s fight, not just that of the LGBTQI+ community.”
Soldaat said LGBTQI+ people still face hate crimes, exclusion from community activities and misunderstanding.
Reporting crimes and domestic violence can also be difficult, she said, with challenges sometimes starting at the front desk when victims seek help.
One woman who asked not to be named because she fears being targeted knows how frightening discrimination can become.
She said she was travelling with her girlfriend when a taxi driver threatened them.
The woman said they had put their feet in the space between the driver’s and passenger’s seats while waiting for the taxi to fill up.
They apologised.
But she said the driver’s response terrified them.
“We apologised, and out of nowhere, the driver said we needed to be raped, brutally murdered, and our bodies dumped in a forest where no one would see us,” she said.
The women turned to Soldaat and Free Gender for help.
Members accompanied them to the taxi association and, according to the woman, the driver was fired.
“His remarks made us uncomfortable and fearful,” she said.
For Soldaat, stories like this are why she refuses to walk away from the work she started almost two decades ago.
“I couldn’t sit back and watch back then, and even now, that’s why I am still out there fighting for those who cannot fight for themselves,” she said.
“But I cannot do it alone. That’s why I am asking communities to join and support us.”
Community member Lulama Renqe agreed that discrimination remains a problem.
“Funeka and other members must keep on fighting as they still have a long way to go,” Renqe said.
She believes more conversations within communities could help people understand and accept LGBTQI+ people.
“Some people find it difficult to accept the LGBTQI+ community. A lot of engagement can help greatly, as some see this as satanism. Only a few of us understand them, and we support them,” she said.
For Women’s Month, Soldaat has one more wish: she wants lesbian women and their achievements to be recognised when South Africa celebrates women.
“My wish for this Women’s Month is for messages and motivations to include lesbians’ achievements in this democracy,” she said.
After years of standing beside victims and demanding respect, Soldaat says she will continue fighting for LGBTQI+ people who need someone in their corner.
Pictured above: Funeka Soldaat from Khayelitsha in Cape Town founded Free Gender to fight for the rights and recognition of LGBTQI+ people.
Image source: Supplied
