WSU RESIDENCE OFFICE CREATING SAFER SPACES FOR LGBT+ STUDENTS

The Walter Sisulu University residence unit has sought to eradicate the persecution of students who identify as non-gender-conforming through fostering conversations that enforce an acceptance and understanding of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT+) community in the institution’s living and learning spaces.

In October, the residence unit hosted an institutional LGBTQI+ Workshop with students from its four campuses, themed: Understanding Me, Informing Others.

The sole purpose of the workshop was to uncover the underlying issues that perpetuate the mistreatment of gender non-conforming students, as well as sensitise the WSU community and students themselves to the issues and lived experiences of LGBT+ students.

Workshop facilitator from the Sexual Health and Empowerment Collective, Phumelele Nkomozakhe said that despite South Africa having one of the most progressive constitutions, the experiences of students reflected the reality of [our] society.

“These issues do not come in a vacuum; they reflect realities of our own country. While South Africa has one of the best laws which include queer people, it lacks implementation. Therefore, you will find queer South Africans carrying a museum of trauma even though they supposedly live in a country which claims to protect them. The side effects of this include and affect how queer WSU students navigate their academics, mental health & the relationship they have with their bodies. 

Many traumatic stories, which involved name-calling, cyber-bullying and abuse were shared by students who expressed an immense fear of living and learning in spaces that made them feel like less than human.

Second year Bachelor of Law student, Yamkela Ndwangu said: “Growing up in a society that used to call me all sorts of derogatory names was very traumatic. Even at home I experienced judgement and rejection from my own father. I think this is a great initiative by the university because these sorts of initiatives are the reason I can associate with people and be comfortable with myself.”

Residence Unit Officer, Kay Mbali said that they had identified a lack of comprehension of what it means to be queer, even from queer students themselves, leading to a deeper discrimination and victimisation of queer students.

“In interacting with the queer students in residences, we noticed a few things, but what stood out is the fact that as WSU, being a rural University, we have queer students who do not even understand themselves, or what it means to be queer. We saw that discrimination by their peers is only half the problem, and the other half is empowerment or the lack thereof,” said Mbali.

Mbali added that their wish was for the WSU LGBTQ+ Envoys to go back and teach the people around them about their life and experiences in order to cultivate a culture of inclusivity and tolerance.

By Yanga Ziwele