I recently found myself part of a group process developing a resource around addressing xenophobia and Afrophobia and looking at the rights of refugees and asylum seekers.
This work has exposed me to young people on the continent and their ideas around addressing these issues. As the process unfolded, I found myself wondering; do we, as South African LGBTQ people, care about the rights and well-being of other LGBTQ people from other parts of the continent who are in this country for any number of reasons?
Xenophobia and the rights of foreign nationals, particularly other Africans, have been topical issues for some time. During the last election season, we saw one political party publicly and proudly campaign on their promise to rid the county of illegal immigrants.
This political party, performed surprisingly well in the elections, which suggests that there are indeed people who agree with efforts to kick illegal foreign nationals out of the country.