Rueko Studio

We are delighted and excited to announce that Cape Town Pride has won the bid to host WorldPride in 2028. This is the first time a WorldPride will be held in Africa.

Cape Town Pride beat fellow bidder Guadalajara Pride, Mexico, after the bid was presented to members of InterPride at the 42nd Annual General Meeting & World Conference which was held from 23 to 27 October 2024 in Medellín, Colombia. The membership met to network, share knowledge, attend workshops and caucuses, and take care of InterPride’s business. This included awarding the license for WorldPride, a global event organized by a full member organization. Out of the 500 eligible voters, 198 ballots were submitted. 53% voted in favour of Cape Town Pride. 44% voted in favour of Guadalajara Pride. Three percent (3%) of the voters abstained.

InterPride Co-Presidents Ymania Brown, Hadi Damien, and Rahul Upadhyay commented: “We congratulate Cape Town Pride for winning the license to host WorldPride in 2028. We look forward to supporting them to deliver their bid, which promises to be a strong and impactful WorldPride. We also congratulate Guadalajara Pride for an excellent application.”

Cape Town Pride CEO Tommy Patterson said, “We are thrilled at the news and for this support shown by our world LGBTI+ family. The team did a wonderful job, and we all forged great friendships and allies from Pride groups from all over the globe”.

Cllr Roberto Quintas, who represented the City of Cape Town, said; “It was an incredible privilege to be a part of the World Pride Cape Town 2028 Bid Team in Medellin, Colombia, in October. This means a lot for the many LGBTQIA+ people without a voice, and who live in fear of persecution, prosecution and worse in the region and on the continent. We are thrilled to announce that we “brought it home” and that our Mother City, on the southernmost tip of Africa, will be hosting this global event in four years’ time.”

WorldPride is an international event that features a human rights conference, an arts and culture program, social events, as well as a march to highlight LGBT realities across the world. It gathers Pride organizers, local and international speakers, artists, activists, politicians and participants across all walks of life.

The next WorldPride takes place from 17 May to 8 June 2025, in Washington DC, USA, followed by WorldPride Amsterdam, in The Netherlands, from 31 July to 8 August 2026

Past WorldPride editions have taken place in Rome (2000), Jerusalem (2006), London (2012), Toronto (2014), Madrid (2017), NYC (2019), Copenhagen (2021), and Sydney (2023).

 

         

 

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About InterPride:

InterPride is the international organization that brings together 548 Pride organizers from 76 countries across the world to network, share knowledge, and maximize impact. To this goal, Pride organizers design InterPride’s structure, programs, and initiatives to better support them at the local, regional, and global levels. InterPride also owns the label WorldPride, which the membership licenses to a member organization through a direct vote.

Major street artwork titled Embracing Openness is creation of local artist Ellena Lourens

Belgium has today proudly unveiled in Cape Town a landmark street artwork- an inspiring wall mural to celebrate openness and diversity in the lead up to world-famous Cape Town Pride and as part of Belgium’s call to the world to embrace openness to diversity. Located in the city centre, Embracing Openness is the work of South African artist Elléna Lourens, renowned for her vibrant wall murals and distinct artistic style.

Embracing Openness has been commissioned by the FPS Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Belgium, in collaboration with the Consulate General of Belgium in Cape Town against the backdrop of this year’s International Public Art Festival (IPAF). The work is part of Belgium’s ongoing campaign which invites societies to embrace openness so all can benefit from the virtues of an open, tolerant, and inclusive society which can ensure progress and prosperity for all; values shared by both Belgium and South Africa.

“We are extremely proud to have unveiled this incredibly creative work. The choice of a wall mural was a logical one for us because street-art is highly engaging form of art public spaces and so it’s the ideal platform for this important message,” explained Mathias Bogaert, Consul General of Belgium in Cape Town, “From the moment of conceptualisation, Elléna knew exactly the openness message we wanted to convey. Embracing Openness echoes the spirit of Belgium as home to diverse communities and cultures for whom this value is key to progress.”

Lourens’ unique image embodies themes of love, unity, understanding, and acceptance. The artist’s use of her signature vibrant palette and subtle interplay of shapes are conceived to offer passersby a warm embrace and to provide them an opportunity for a celebration of diversity and for reflection on the struggles for openness.

“For me this commission connected strongly with my approach to art, I wanted to create something impactful yet warm so striking but not intimidating, to communicate what it feels like to embrace openness. The location means it will be visible to all celebrating pride”, commented Elléna Lourens, “Embracing Openness is very much about all the vibrancy of our cultures, by representing the diversity in two ways, in terms of love but also by offering a diversity of perspectives”.

Together, Belgium and South Africa are diversity pioneers. Last year, Belgium celebrated the twentieth anniversary of the legalisation of same-sex marriage, Belgium being the second country in the world to take this step. In the same pioneering spirit, South Africa was the first country on the continent to do the same.

The Embracing Openness mural is located at Alfred street, back of BP station, Greenpoint, Cape Town, 8001.

 

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About the artist

South African artist Elléna Lourens began working on personal and collaborative creative projects while in school. Since then, she has further pursued illustration, street art, painting and embroidery. Her style lends itself to the past in its representation of ancient symbols, patterns and colour schemes, while voicing an intuitively current aesthetic that resonates and seeks to redefine emotional iconography. She has immersed herself in the creative world. Working alongside established artists as well as furthering her own practice.

 

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About Belgium

Located in the heart of Europe, Belgium is a highly developed nation of over 11.5 million people with a reputation for innovation, hard work, partnership, and multilingualism. Strategically located between Germany, the Netherlands, France, and Luxembourg, and only a stone’s throw from the UK, it lies at the centre of the richest and most densely populated area in Europe. A member of the European Union, Belgium enjoys full access to the world’s most advanced single market and customs zone which ensures extensive frictionless trade.

Belgium boasts a highly developed transport infrastructure, including the second largest seaport in Europe . Belgium is home to world-leading research and innovation facilities, multi-national corporations, and artisanal businesses supported by the investor-centric approach of public services.

About embracing openness

Embracing openness is a country branding campaign launched by Belgium in May 2023. The goal of the campaign is to improve the awareness and reputation of Belgium globally as a country open for innovation, partnerships, and diversity.

Belgium is a staunch believer in the power of openness for innovation to tackle today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. Even when other countries decide to go about it alone. Notable Belgian pioneering industries that are celebrated by the campaign include green tech (offshore wind & green hydrogen), pharmaceuticals, academical research, and others.

Belgium’s openness for innovation is flanked by its openness for partnerships and diversity. Belgium’s capital Brussels is the second most diverse city in the world and home to the largest diplomatic community globally. Belgium is also a proud member and host to a wide range of international organizations, with Brussels as the home of many European institutions.

With the Embracing Openness campaign, Belgium seeks to spread a positive message of openness on the international scene. To embrace innovation, partnerships, and diversity as drivers for a prosperous and sustainable future.

The Embracing Openness campaign is currently visible on social media, at Brussels Airport, and at diplomatic events worldwide. For more information, see:

• https://embracingopenness.be/en
• Belgium on LinkedIn
• Belgium on Instagram
• Belgium on Facebook

Embracing openness in cape town

To celebrate openness in South Africa the FPS Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Belgium, in collaboration with the Consulate General of Belgium in Cape Town, created a custom mural to celebrate Belgian and South African openness for diversity. Belgium was the second country worldwide to legalise same-sex marriage for couples, South Africa the fifth.

Located in the city centre of Cape Town, the mural is the work of South African artist Elléna Lourens, renowned for her vibrant wall murals.

The Embracing Openness mural is located on the Pride Wall at the back of BP station at Alfred street, Greenpoint, Cape Town, 8001. It was formally unveiled to the world on Sunday 18 February, in advance of the Cape Town Pride on March 2^nd 2024.

Contact

Lies Deneys

Economic and Public Diplomacy Attaché

Consulate General of Belgium in South Africa

liesbeth.deneys@diplobel.fed.be

 

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About Baz-Art

Baz-Art is a non-profit organisation established in 2016, which focuses on producing art in public spaces and creating opportunities for street artists.

We believe that art speaks louder and allows for impactful storytelling. Our vision is to grow a greater consciousness and awareness of the powerful impact of urban art and public placemaking , as well as the potential of the creative sector in Africa.  When using art as a storytelling tool, the sky is our only limit.

Social media platforms:

Instagram @bazart_official

Facebook Baz-Art

Youtube Baz-Art

About IPAF 2024

Baz-Art believes that Art should be accessible to all. Public art and placemaking can be used as a development strategy for job creation, tourism stimulation and heritage celebration. With the 8th edition of the International Public Arts Festival, their goal was to focus on: public placemaking and ground-breaking public artworks while generating economic development.

This year’s theme “CoACT | CoLLAB,” focused on creative collaboration across various disciplines, sectors, and cultures; strengthening ties and forging connection through communal action.

The heart of the festival was Company’s Garden where they curated a holistic experience for their visitors including workshops, food & drink vendors and a chill zone. It was also the starting point for guided street art tours through Cape Town CBD, allowing people to see and experience street art murals from 2024 and 2023.

We invited the public to explore the city and its creativity over the festival period; experiencing new and thought-provoking public art pieces, all created through artistic collaboration.

Social media platforms:

Instagram @ipaf_festival_sa

Facebook Ipaf festival sa

 

Contact for Baz-Art & IPAF

Kathleen Pretorius

by Evan Tsouroulis

In October 2023, Keith Coventry, the backbone of the Cape Town Pride organisation, passed away unexpectedly. He was perhaps not as well-known as Tommy Patterson, the CEO of Cape Town Pride and his husband of over 40 years, as he was happy to be in the background and was quite shy until he got to know you. But once he was comfortable with you, he could be flamboyant and a bit extra. Sometimes his persona a party girl hid his intelligence and his commitment to LGBTIQ+ rights.

I met Kitty in Harare in the early 90s when he and Tommy moved back to Zimbabwe. Kitty is how he was introduced to me and that’s what I always called him, although I was told to refer to him as Keith in front of his mother. Well, that didn’t last long. At first, we tiptoed around each other, each one unsure of what to make of the other. But we slowly became friendly, as I was a guest at Tommy’s and Keith’s legendary New Years Eve costume parties, and they used to attend salons at my home. After a while we became firm friends. After we all moved to Cape Town in the mid-2000s, we worked together on a couple of projects. In 2010, Tommy, Kitty and I started up OUT Africa Magazine, of which I was editor for a few years, and most recently we worked closely together at Cape Town Pride. Of course, we sometimes had a difference of opinion, but it was always a pleasure to work with him. He got things done even though in the case of Pride he got very frustrated at the level of bureaucracy he had to endure when submitting applications for event permits and liquor licences. But he had his way of dealing with it and did so without complaint. It is only now that he is not here that we have come to realise how much he did to keep Pride running.

Apart from the two projects where we worked together, I have to mention that Kitty was a Trolley Dolley with South African Airways in the early 80s. He absolutely loved it and would probably still be doing it had Tommy not said, “It’s SAA or me”! Thereafter, he worked with Tommy in their publishing business as well as other notable ventures. In the 80s they owned Club 58 in Johannesburg, and then the Backroom Bar in Cape Town in the 2000s. I recently discovered that he founded the first gay publication in South Africa called Coming Out, which pre-dated EXIT newspaper.

Kitty was fantastic storyteller often regaling us with hilarious stories of gay life in the Rhodesian army and in Johannesburg in the 80s. He loved the theatre, Barbra, Liza and the usual suspects, travelling, reading, entertaining, his personal trainer, his spaniels, over-tipping his favourite bartender at Crew Bar. He enjoyed his life which he left too soon.  Of course, I’m sad he’s gone, but when I think of him, I cannot help but smile.

Coming out is a process of understanding, accepting, and valuing your sexual orientation/identity. It involves both exploring your identity and sharing your identity with others. Coming out can be a gradual process or one that is very sudden. The first step usually involves coming out to yourself, often with a realisation that feelings you’ve had for some time make sense if you can define them as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or queer.

Coming out can be a very difficult process. Our society strongly enforces codes of behaviour regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, and most people receive the message that they must be heterosexual and act according to society’s definition of their gender. For gay, lesbian, and bisexual persons, there may be a sense of being different or of not fitting into the roles expected of you by your family, friends, workplace or greater society. Coming out involves facing societal responses and attitudes toward LGBTQ people. You may feel ashamed, isolated, and afraid.

Although coming out can be difficult, it can also be a very liberating and freeing process. You may feel like you can finally be authentic and true to who you are. You may find a whole community of people like you and feel supported and inspired. Even if it’s scary to think about coming out to others, sometimes the reward can be worth the challenge that coming out entails.

Individuals do not move through the coming out process at the same speed. The process is very personal. It happens in different ways and occurs at different ages for different people. Some people are aware of their sexual identity at an early age, and others arrive at this awareness after many years. Coming out is a continuing, sometimes lifelong, process.

Once you accept that you’re lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer, you can decide to be out to others or to stay “in the closet.” You are the only person who can decide when and how it is safe to come out. You may decide to come out in one part of your life and not in another. For example, some people are out to their families but in the closet at work; some people are out at school but in the closet with their families.

Six Stages to Coming Out

• Stage 1 – Identity Confusion: You begin to wonder whether you may be homosexual. Along with other thoughts and feelings, you may experience denial and confusion.

• Stage 2 – Identity Comparison: You accept the possibility that you may be gay and face the social isolation that can occur with this new identity.

• Stage 3 – Identity Tolerance: Your acceptance of your homosexuality increases, and you begin to tolerate this identity. Although confusion and distress concerning your sexual orientation decreases, you may feel increased isolation and alienation as your self-concept becomes increasingly different from society’s expectations of you. In this stage, you often begin to contact members of the LGB community.

• Stage 4 – Identity Acceptance: You have resolved most questions concerning your sexual identity and have accepted yourself as homosexual. You have increasing contact with the LGB community

• Stage 5 – Identity Pride: You begin to feel pride in being part of the LGB community and immerse yourself in LGB culture. In turn, you have less contact with the heterosexual community. Sometimes you may actually feel angry with or reject the heterosexual community.

• Stage 6 – Identity Synthesis: You integrate your sexual identity with other aspects of yourself so that it is just one part of your whole identity. The anger you may have felt toward the heterosexual community or the intense pride you may have felt in being homosexual decreases, and you can be your whole self with others from both groups. You feel more congruence between your public self and your private self.

Considerations in Coming Out

• Pick someone who you feel is very supportive to be the first person you come out to.

• When you come out, think about what you want to say and choose the time and place carefully based on what will be most safe and supportive.

• Be prepared for an initially negative reaction from some people. Some individuals need more time than others to come to adjust to what they have heard from you.

• Don’t give up hope if you don’t initially get the reaction you wanted. Remember that you have the right to be who you are, and to be out and open about all important aspects of your identity including your sexual orientation. In no case is another person’s rejection evidence of your lack of worth or value.

• If you have already come out to others whom you trust, alert them that you are coming out and make time to talk afterwards about how things went. Find trusted allies who can help you cope with your experiences.

• Get support and use the resources available to you.

Resources for LGBTQ Students

For gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer people the coming out process can be both difficult and liberating. For most people, it takes time to know who you are. It is okay to be confused or to be uncertain about whether or how to come out. Remember, you are not alone. There are many others with the same questions and concerns that you have. There are also people and organisations that can support or mentor you. It’s important to find the help you need from the resources available to you. Here are some resources that may be helpful.

Online and Written Resources:

One safe means of beginning to come out to yourself is through reading about how others have dealt with similar issues. There are many books and articles available on all facets of LGBTQ life. These can include clinical studies on LGBT people, coming out stories, and resources for allies and families of LGBTQ individuals.

• A list of general books on LGBTQ issues

• A list of coming out books for individuals and their families or friends

Other books related to coming out:

• Now That You Know. Betty Fairchild & Robert Leighton. New York, NY. Harcourt Brace and Jovanovich, 1989.

• Beyond Acceptance. Carolyn Welch Griffin, Marina J. Wirth & Arthur G. Wirth. New York, NY. St. Martin’s Press, 1997.

• Straight Parents/Gay Children. Robert A. Bernstein. New York, NY. Thunder’s Mouth Press, 1995.

Online resource for allies friends and family: Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)