Pierre de Vos on the Jon Qwelane Constitutional Court judgment
Constitutional law expert, Pierre De Vos analyses the recent landmark Constitutional Court judgement that found Jon Qwelane guilty of homophobic hate speech.
Christian privilege | Court will force Beloftebos to stop discriminating against LGBTQ people
Constitutional law expert Pierre De Vos explains why the owners of the Beloftebos wedding venue will almost certainly lose any legal bid to allow them to turn away LGBTQ people.
Pierre De Vos: Why the hate speech provision was declared unconstitutional and what happens next
Constitutional law expert Pierre De Vos looks at what led the Supreme Court of Appeal to dismiss the Jon Qwelane homophobic hate speech conviction and what it means for the LGBTQ+ community.
Opinion | Why court ruled against Dutch Reformed Church in same-sex marriage case
Pierre De Vos writes on why the High Court ruled against the Dutch Reformed Church in a same-sex marriage case and what it may mean for other churches.
Opinion | ‘Inxeba’ censorship a legal fiasco motivated by homophobia
Last week the Appeal Tribunal of the Film and Publication Board (FPB) finally published its reasons for reclassified the movie Inxeba (The Wound) as X18. An X18 classification means that the movie was found to be hardcore pornography and may only be shown in licenced premises where other pornography is shown or sold. Previously the […]
No, a peaceful protest on church grounds does not infringe on religious grounds
After a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) activists recently held a “silent protest” outside Soweto’s Grace Bible Church, some people argued on social media and on radio talk shows that the protest violated the religious rights of the church and its congregants. This argument raises interesting questions about the right of […]
Does God want his churches to discriminate?
The Constitutional Court last month declined to hear a case of unfair discrimination brought by Ecclesia De Lange against the Methodist Church. De Lange challenged the Church after it fired her as a Minister when she told her congregation in 2009 that she intended marrying her same-sex partner. Although Church officials knew that she and […]
GAY CABINET MINISTERS: SO WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL?
Several media outlets recently reported that Lynne Brown became the first openly lesbian cabinet Minister in South Africa after President Jacob Zuma appointed her as Public Enterprises Minister. In an ideal world the sexual orientation of a Cabinet Minister – like that of any other person – would be irrelevant. But we do not live […]
QWELANE MAY WIN HATE SPEECH CHALLENGE
Constitutional law expert Pierre De Vos argues that disgraced former journalist Jon Qwelane may be successful in his bid to overturn his 2011 hate speech conviction for his notoriously homophobic 2008 article “Call me names, but gay is NOT okay…” Jon Qwelane, South Africa’s Ambassador to Uganda (that bastion of respect for the human dignity of all), […]
WHY PRIVATE BUSINESSES CANNOT DISCRIMINATE AGAINST GAYS & LESBIANS
Recent incidents have revealed that many businesses believe they can refuse to serve gays and lesbians due to the owners’ religious beliefs. Constitutional expert Pierre De Vos explains why this is both unethical and against the law.