SA LGBT rights advocate to take up US journalism fellowship

Angelo C Louw, who was one of the youngest ever editors of a South African print publication, has been accepted for the prestigious Hubert H. Humphrey fellowship.

Louw, who is currently Adovacy Officer at the Studies in Poverty and Inequality Institute (SPII) in Johannesburg, leaves this month to take up the opportunity at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism in Washington D.C.

The 29-year-old joins 10 other experienced professionals from around the world who aim to develop their leadership skills, network, and knowledge in the area of cause communications.

This media-meets-advocacy field looks at how media can be used to educate, raise awareness, and make a significant difference. By using his hard-earned media presence to highlight the issues that he’s advocating for – including HIV awareness, LGBT rights activism and advocacy for a decent standard of living – Louw hopes to achieve a tangible change in society through cause communications.

“I want to live in a world where a six-year-old can decide: ‘I want to be a doctor or lawyer or filmmaker or poet’ and pursue that dream without any reservations. We don’t live in that world, and that is what I am fighting for,” says Louw.

After a year-long application process, Louw was accepted as one of two fellows from the African continent to attend the programme. Started in 1978, the programme has been attended by 4,600 Fellows from 157 countries who have gone on to become acclaimed media representatives, human rights lawyers, and national advocacy officers for prominent organisations in their respective countries.

Most significantly, Louw is interested in increasing media representation of marginalised groups in order to change media narratives and have a real world impact. He says he is interested in learning how media can be shaped for different backgrounds, as “it is important to take in the intercultural factors at play in South Africa where cultural background is correlated with the socio-economic status, and we can’t ignore that as media creators.”

Louw has made an impact in the media field as the Editor in Chief of the loveLife magazine (2012 – 2015) and as a journalist and writer for publications such as Playboy South Africa, TVplus and The Witness newspaper.