Cape Town Pride hits back at Somizi’s accusation that Pride marches lack ‘inclusivity’

Organisers of Cape Town Pride marches have hit back at Somizi Mhlongo’s claims that the city’s Pride events are not truly inclusive, saying not only do they strive for inclusivity, they go over and above to ensure they reach everybody who may need them, including LGBTQI+ community members in townships.

The response from Cape Town Pride came after a video Somizi posted to share his experiences and observations of Pride marches in SA ignited a heated conversation on his TL.

Somizi took to his Instagram earlier this week to post a 10-minute video breaking down his views on what he feels Pride march organisers could do better in the future to be inclusive, not racist and not classist. He specifically mentioned the Pride marches in Cape Town and Johannesburg.

Committee member of Cape Town Pride Matthews Van As sent a statement to TshisaLIVE in which the organisation refuted Somizi's claims.

“We, at Cape Town Pride, always strive for inclusivity. Our organising committee is a true representation of the population mix of Cape Town. We believe in accessibility through outreach with stakeholders in communities through transportation and support to get to Cape Town Pride.

“Cape Town Pride consists of more than 30 events that cater to the needs of every sector of the community and in various locations to highlight the wants and needs of those communities. The festival is only one part of a multifaceted visibility event. We are involve with iKasi Pride which services communities most in need of visibility and as such moves locations every year,” said Matthew.

In his video, the Idols SA judge spoke specifically about Johannesburg and Cape Town Pride marches, saying they appear to be inclusive when, in reality, they are not inclusive at all.

“I have always had an issue with Joburg Pride and Cape Town Pride. I've always had an issue because I find it not to be inclusive at all. From the outside, it looks inclusive because when we march there are blacks, Indians and whites but deep down there isn’t inclusivity,” said Somizi.

 “You look at the committees that run Pride, you look at the locations that host Pride, they are where it will be suitable for white queer people to be comfortable.”

Somgaga said he has never ever heard of a {ride march that catered for all citizens in the country, especially in townships where the communities are predominantly black.

TshisaLIVE eached out to the Pride Of Africa organisation which organises Pride marches in Johannesburg for comment in response to Somizi's accusations. 

The organisation had not responded by the time of publishing this article.