Visibility as Resistance: Powerful Portrait Exhibition of Displaced LGBTIQ+ Individuals

In a moving tribute to resilience, defiance, and human dignity, Fruit Basket — alongside its partners UNHCR, United Nations Human Rights, the Embassy of the Netherlands in South Africa, and the Irish Embassy in Pretoria — unveiled a stirring exhibition of portraits capturing the lived experiences of 15 LGBTIQ+ refugees, asylum seekers, and displaced persons.

The exhibition, launched on Monday in commemoration of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), honours the strength and authenticity of those who continue to fight for a life of safety and self-expression.

A Platform for Silenced Voices

Held at Victoria Yards in Johannesburg, the exhibition titled Putting a Human Rights Face to LGBTIQI Displaced Persons in South Africa is more than a visual display, it’s a platform for silenced voices, a celebration of survival, and a clarion call for justice.

Each portrait is paired with personal narratives, amplifying the complex realities of those forced to flee their homes in countries such as Kenya, Lesotho, Nigeria, Uganda and Zimbabwe due to violence, persecution, and discrimination.

“These portraits are acts of defiance. They are testimonies of resilience, vulnerability and power,” said Thomars Shamuyarira, Director of Fruit Basket, in his opening remarks. “We exist to say we are here, we matter, and our stories must be heard.”

The Power of Visibility and Collaboration

Founded in Johannesburg, Fruit Basket is a grassroots organisation led by and for displaced LGBTIQ+ individuals. It provides safe housing, psychosocial support, and most crucially—visibility.

Shamuyarira, who is himself a displaced queer person, reminded guests that for LGBTIQ+ individuals, displacement is not only about borders, but also about emotional, psychological, and spiritual exile. “Being forced to leave who you are, how you move, or who you love behind is a trauma that lingers, especially when safety and legal recognition remain out of reach.”

The photo portraits and text accompanying them were created by Luiz De Barros, a South African communicator, journalist, photographer and filmmaker who is also the founder and editor-in-chief of MambaOnline. He said the project was an organic collaboration with the participants. “I hoped to highlight their dignity and strength,” he said, adding that “it’s a great privilege to be able to share these stories.” De Barros expressed hope that the project would spark a sense of empathy and shared humanity among those who engage with it.

Diplomatic Support for LGBTIQ+ Rights

Ambassador Joanne Doornewaard of the Netherlands commended the power of collaboration behind the exhibition and reflected on the ongoing global challenges facing queer refugees. “The photo exhibition… reflects the complexity of the lives of LGBTIQ+ forcibly displaced persons in South Africa,” she said. “Fleeing persecution, violence, and discriminatory laws in their home countries, they often face a new set of challenges—xenophobia, homophobia, and inadequate access to support services—in host countries meant to offer refuge.”

Doornewaard reaffirmed the Netherlands’ commitment to LGBTIQ+ rights through global diplomacy and local initiatives such as the Human Rights Fund and the Shelter City Program. “We continue to work together and strive to ensure that South Africa truly becomes a place of refuge and a haven for all LGBTIQ individuals, regardless of their origin.”

A Call to Action

Representing the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Ms Abigail Noko stressed the transformative role of community in advancing human rights. “IDAHOBIT serves as a powerful reminder of the progress we have made,” she said. “But people continue to face violence, discrimination, and exclusion simply for being who they are. This is not just a violation of human rights—it is contrary to our shared humanity.”

Noko spotlighted the 2025 IDAHOBIT theme, The Power of Communities, as fitting for the exhibition’s spirit: “At its core, community means empathy and solidarity. Let the powerful pictures and stories of this photo exhibit grow the community and be a step towards a future where everyone can flourish—no matter who you are or whom you love.”

As global displacement rates surge—driven by conflict, climate change, anti-LGBTIQ+ laws, and societal breakdowns—the exhibition delivers a timely and urgent message. For many, safety remains elusive even within supposedly progressive nations. In South Africa, the first country in the world to enshrine protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation in its Constitution, internal displacement of queer individuals continues quietly and invisibly.

Fruit Basket’s exhibition challenges that invisibility. It insists that recognition, protection, and inclusion must extend beyond legal texts and into lived reality. It urges us to expand our notions of community, to ensure human rights do not stop at borders or identities.

As Shamuyarira concluded, “Let this exhibition be a moment of reflection but also a call to action. We deserve more than survival. We deserve belonging, joy, and freedom. Love, resistance, and pride.”

The free exhibition will remain open at Victoria Yards in Johannesburg for the rest of May.