Reimagining Pride: An Ethical Community Approach

Joburg Pride, Africa’s first Pride march, has dramatically changed from the first Pride of 1990. It is now a depoliticised and commercial event that takes place in spaces far removed from the everyday realities of most LGBTIAQ+ South Africans. Pride marches and events have the potential to operate as disruptive spaces—spaces that challenge the status quo, claim space for marginalised identities and contextualise the LGBTIAQ+ experience within the broader South African experience. Pride has the potential to be the political vehicle it once was, drawing attention to, and organising to address hate crimes, for instance. However, the organisers do not appear to be interested in pursuing this political aspect of Pride, and instead are drawn to sponsorship and an “apolitical” position that will retain funding from large corporations. Drawing on an anti-racist queer feminist historical study of Joburg Pride from 1990 to 2013, this article proposes an approach to Pride that could see it return to its political roots. This article applies Terry Cooper’s concept of ethical community to Pride, arguing that a more ethical and inclusive Pride is possible, and that establishing an ethical Pride community can counter the violence that many still experience outside of the LGBTIAQ+ community, and within.