Updated! People’s Pride 2015 to “reclaim the night”

UPDATE (20/11/205): A number of last-minute changes have been announced regarding the event, including the cancellation of the post-march concert due to “unforeseen technical difficulties.” Here are the updated details:

Activity 1: Picnic and Edutainment at Constitution Hill (14:00 – 16:00)
There will be a picnic and edutainment programme that will consist of writing/poetry, photography/video making, banner/placard making, T-shirt printing, drawing/painting, performance art, music/DJs, activist speakers and a braai and party.

There will be no braai, sale of food or drinks. Alcoholic beverages of any kind are strongly discouraged and neither JPP nor the management of Constitution Hill will be held responsible for any arrest, injury or any criminal or civil liability for unauthorised consumption on site. Please do not bring any alcohol into the march and preceding activities.

Activity 2: Queer Tour Queer History Tour of Braamfontein and Hillbrow (14:30 – 16:00)
Activists familiar with the queer history of Braamfontein and Hillbrow will congregate 2 groups of 20 people each at Constitution Hill. These two groups will be led on a one-hour walking tour of Braamfontein and Hillbrow. To manage the size of the groups, the tour will be pre-booked.

Activity 3: March (16:00 – 17:30)
The march will leave from and return to Constitution Hill with a route through Hillbrow and Joubert Park and will include guerrilla theatre as a key feature.

All activities will cease at 17:30. Please disregard the below event details.

In an LGBTI first for the city, this year’s Joburg People’s Pride will see participants marching at night, later this month.

The group announced that its 2015 event will take place on Saturday the 21st of November from 15:00 at Constitution Hill in Braamfontein.

The march itself will start at 17:30, kicking off at Constitution Hill through Hillbrow, and back to Constitution Hill.

The theme is “GLOW in the Dark: Night Revolution”, and is intended to “express a desire to reclaim the night and assert our right to celebrate and be free from violence while doing so.”

The event, said the group, is in the context of “sustained violence perpetrated against us; members of the LGBTI community, black, women, migrants, landless and dispossessed and a resulting fear to inhabit our streets freely after dark.”

The theme is also a homage to the late iconic activist Simon Nkoli and the organisation he co-founded, Gays and Lesbians of the Witwatersrand (GLOW), which made major contributions to the struggle for freedom for LGBTI people in South Africa.

This year’s event will furthermore “create visibility for the trans* community in South Africa, and educate members of the LGBTI community about the issues faced by its trans* members”. It will also “assert our rights to free education and an end to the exploitation of workers.”

The GLOW in the Dark Pride celebration will consist of four activities, based around Constitution Hill.

Queer History Tour in Braamfontein and Hillbrow (15:00 – 17:00)
Activists familiar with the queer history of Braamfontein and Hillbrow will congregate two groups of 20 people each at Constitution Hill. These two groups will be led on a two-hour walking tour of Braamfontein and Hillbrow. To manage the size of the groups, the tours will be pre-booked.

Picnic and edutainment at Constitution Hill (15:00 – 17:00)
The edutainment programme will consist of writing/poetry, photography/video making, banner/placard making, T-shirt printing, drawing/painting, performance art, music/DJs, activist speakers and a braai and party. There will be food and drinks vendors. Participants will be allowed to bring their own food and refreshments.

The march (17:30 – 19:00)
The march will leave from and return to Constitution Hill with a route through Hillbrow and Joubert Park and will include guerilla theatre as a key feature.

Queer celebration concert (19:00 – 00:00)
A live music concert will be held at Constitution Hill. Queer singers, performance artists, and DJs will be invited to share the stage throughout the evening. The headline act will be singer and author Nakhane Touré, a contender in Mambaonline’s Sexiest Man of the Year Survey, brought to you by WeTheBrave.co.za.

Johannesburg People’s Pride was launched in 2013 as a response to what the group claimed was the commercialised, depoliticised and exclusionary nature of Johannesburg Pride. It takes a more radical political and anti-capitalist stance and links LGBTI equality to all other struggles for equal rights. The group has organised two successful Pride marches in 2013 and 2014.

For more information on People’s Pride 2015, visit the Facebook event page.