African, lesbian, and married : the experiences of a black South African couple

Abstract

Although South Africa has factored the rights of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community into its constitution, this does not necessarily guarantee that those who engage in same-sex relationships enjoy these rights in practice. South African lesbian sexuality is often suppressed and silenced. This is partly due to the fact that discourses position people in power relations. Dominant sexuality discourses in Africa privilege Black African heterosexuals. The dominant discourse of Black African heterosexists that homosexuality is un-African has had and continues to have a negative effect on the Black LGBTQ community. It is not common for South African Black same-sex couples to marry. This thesis reports on an in-depth investigation of the experiences of a South African Black female married couple, who have two children. My argument is located within the paradigm of intersectionality and highlights dominant discourses of gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, and socio economic status as they pertain to marginalised social groups: in this case, a South African Black female married lesbian couple. Ten unstructured interviews were conducted with the married couple, and two with their children. The interviews were transcribed and analysed by using narrative analysis, which allows the researcher to study the experiences of a single individual or a small group of individuals. The aim of the study is to generate an understanding of how a South African Black female same-sex couple experience their identities through their life histories and daily practices, despite social disapproval. After analysing the results, considering that little research exists on the topic, I provide recommendations outlining possible further studies to investigate South African Black lesbian sexualities.