Lwandle Migrant Labour Museum hosted a Men’s Imbizo on Friday 16 June, Youth Day, to change the perceptions men have about the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, queer, intersexual+ (LGBTQIA+) community.
Organised in partnership with the Cape Medical Museum in Green Point under the theme “Man under construction”, the imbizo was attended by members of organisations such as The Triangle Project and Phambili Clinic (men’s health).
Museum board member Yandisa Magagana said the objective was to build a solid society, one in which everyone can live in peace and harmony with their fellow human being.
To achieve this, he added, it is important to remove the stigmas gays and lesbians suffer and endure from the community.
According to Magagana, the event was held for the second time. “We started this initiative last year after a trend on social media about all men being trash,” he pointed out. “Then the museum decided to do something about it and called all the men together to try and find ways to address this perception. This year our focus was on the ‘LGBTQIA+ Community’, trying to get as many men as possible under the same roof to discuss their sexual orientation and find common ground. The aim was to bridge the gap among men so that they stop pointing fingers at one another and instead come up with the solutions to build a better society together.”
Magagana said although there was some tension between straight and gay men, they were encouraged to focus more on building a better society than on sexual orientation. He said there was a need for a shift in mindset, to move away from easy stereotyping, in step with the expectations of the times.
Speaking on behalf of The Triangle Project, Lyton Mandemwa said the imbizo’s purpose was to empower and educate men about LGBTQIA+ lifestyles and how to deal with them. The non-governmental organisation (NGO), based in Observatory, advocates for LGBTQIA+ human rights.
Mandemwa said it also encouraged men to visit facilities to receive help with HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) testing, trauma counselling, legal advice, anti-retroviral (ARV) and TB-treatment adherence, referrals for accessing ARVs, PrEPs (pre-exposure prophylaxis, preventative medicine for people at risk of contracting HIV through sex or other means) and PEP (post-exposure prophylaxis emergency treatment to prevent HIV), among other interventions. The NGO also provided counselling and mental-health support, and outreach.
Mandemwa urged parents and communities to support and embrace gay and lesbian children instead of chasing them away. He described the event as a forum for the kind of discussions the community needed.
