Maimane defends Siv Ngesi’s drag alter ego Sivanna from ‘stealing all the jobs’ criticism

One SA movement leader Mmusi Maimane has come out in defence of Siv Ngesi’s alter-ego Sivanna after she was accused of stealing opportunities from drag queens.

It has been two months since South Africans were introduced to Sivanna, who this week announced she had scored herself a gig as an Ivy Park model.

While some applauded the move, members of the LGBTIQ+ community were outraged that a “heterosexual man pretending to be a drag queen” got the gig over several “real drag queens”. 

A Twitter user said there were many drag queens who had been doing the work for years  without recognition, and accused Sivanna of “taking somebody’s space”.

“I love you, but uhm, this is the definition of [taking] up somebody else’s space. One month vs [a] lifetime of work from revered SA queens -it doesn’t sit right,” read the tweet

Maimane responded, saying Sivanna should be embraced if she is being authentic.

The user agreed with Maimane, but said it was unfair that Sivanna received recognition in such a short space of time.

Maimane acknowledged the concerns but stuck to his view that if Sivanna helps put the spotlight on drag, this should be considered an advantage for all drag queens.

Siv shared a statement from Manila von Teez, who he called his “drag mother”.

Manila explained Siv's role in shining the spotlight on drag culture and her involvement for more than 10 years.

“Reality is that no matter how hard we worked, SA really never accepted the art form. We have sent hundreds of proposals for sponsorship and brand support over the years and not had a positive response or support.

“We met Siv Ngesi a few years ago and he has been a huge supporter of drag and especially the LGBTIQ+A community,” reads part of the statement.

Manila said Siv’s social media following has helped bring attention to drag.

Last month Siv told TshisaLIVE he undertook the transformation to break down social barriers.

“I love tackling things that don’t fit into the status quo. Am I doing it for reactions? No, I wanted to do drag. I love drag and I love pole dancing. If it’s changing the status quo then so be it, but it’s not my goal.”