Hidden costs of (in)visibility : an intersectional examination of homonormativity and its implications for queercide in South African townships

Abstract

In South Africa, the evolving landscape of queer rights has shown notable legal commitments towards granting queer individuals equal rights as their heterosexual counterparts. However, full legislative inclusion and societal acceptance remain elusive for many queer individuals, particularly when considering the geographical intersections of race, gender, sexual orientation, and class. Tragically, queercide continues to threaten the visibility of queer people in under-resourced geographies. In this article, we use online news reports published by MambaOnline to explore how the concept of homonormativity can be reconfigured to understand queercide in South African townships. Our findings identify 50 reported cases of queercide between January 2020 and September 2024, 47 of which occurred in socio-economically disadvantaged areas, most notably townships. The victims were predominantly Black, with gay men, lesbians and transgender women particularly vulnerable to queercide. Overall, the findings reveal a tension between homonationalist narratives of South Africa as a progressive, queer-inclusive nation and the concentration of queercide in historically marginalised Black townships. This tension suggests that legal recognition and national narratives of inclusion do not guarantee equal safety for all queer individuals. We argue for the urgent need to account for intersectional differences when analysing the privileges homonormativity may afford some, while deepening the vulnerabilities of those unable to conform to its standards.