ABSTRACT
This chapter illustrates how a South African lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and intersexed (LGBTI) movement organization, Behind the Mask (BtM), attempts to generate safe spaces for sexual and gender diversity in South Africa and throughout Africa. It considers queer and social movement theories of visibility to understand the organization’s visibility strategies. The history of the South African LGBTI movement proves that racial and sexual politics go hand in hand. The South African gay movement emerged in the late 1960s in response to the apartheid government’s police raids on white gay clubs and private parties in Johannesburg’s suburbs. As an organization, BtM addresses issues of interest to African LGBTI persons, such as hate crimes, poverty, HIV/AIDS, and unemployment. In its early years, BtM was housed within the Gay and Lesbian Archives of South Africa. BtM promulgated the message that homosexuality is African to counter rhetoric from conservative political and religious leaders who believe that homosexuality is unAfrican.
