The Rock of Hope to host Eswatini’s LGBTIQA Pride celebration

June 27, 2020 - Manzini, Eswatini

(MANZINI) - Local lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTIQA+) advocacy nonprofit,  The Rock of Hope, is making history by hosting Eswatini’s LGBTIQA+ Pride celebration in Mbabane on Saturday, June 27th. The event will commence at 8:00am from Prince of Wales stadium where a parade will march around the city and return for an inclusive, family-friendly festival with live entertainment and concessions.
“Opportunities for the larger Swazi society to interact with the LGBTIQA+ community in a positive way are rare, and events that provide safe spaces for LGBTIQA+ people to celebrate their identities are sorely lacking. We think visibility is the key that will push the message and conversation further,” said Lindelwa Dlamini , Communications & Advocacy Manager at  The Rock of Hope.
Hosting the LGBTIQA+ Pride would be a giant step forward towards achieving equality, as Pride events around the world have repeatedly been shown to bring people together to stand in solidarity with the LGBTIQA+ community. Given the tremendous work Rock of Hope has done to advocate for Swazi LGBTIQA+ people since its inception in 2012, it is uniquely positioned to catalyse community engagement by hosting this historic event.
Rock of Hope warmly invites all community members to join in the Pride celebration by dressing in rainbow colours or any other clothing that represents their personal identify in celebration of human diversity. Globally, many cities have embraced the LGBTIQA+ community through Pride celebrations, but some have done this in a more flashy or extreme way than the organisers intend for Eswatini. Rock of Hope emphasises that this event will simply be an inclusive, family-friendly celebration of love and equality. Everyone is encouraged to attend, regardless of sexual orientation, race, religion, income, age, etc. The aim of this inaugural Pride event will be to celebrate the diverse identities of LGBTIQA+ people in a safe space, create visible awareness of the community, and foster inclusion and acceptance throughout greater Swazi society.
Eswatini will be the sixth country in Southern Africa to ever host an LGBTIQA+ Pride celebration, following in the footsteps of South Africa, Mozambique, Lesotho, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. International attention and support for the event has been growing since the launch of a fundraiser in late March with assistance from the global LGBTIQA+ rights organisation, All Out. With the generous support of individual donors, The Rock of Hope was able to raise enough money to host this inclusive, family-friendly celebration of diversity and love.
“If people reading this share our view that Pride has an incredible tradition across the world of raising visibility and creating change, they should support the Swazi activists. It will give this community a precious opportunity to come together in solidarity with each other and share strength and visibility in ways they would never otherwise have,” said Matt Beard, Executive Director of All Out.
To arrange interviews and for more information, please contact Lindelwa Dlamini, Communications & Advocacy Manager, The Rock of Hope at dlindelwas@gmail.com or +268 7803 6139/ +268 2505 3082
To find further details on Eswatini’s LGBTIQA+ Pride and subscribe for updates, check out Rock of Hope’s website at .