The Lesbian and Gay Equality Project (LGEP), formerly known as the National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality (NCGLE), is a non-profit, non-governmental organization in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

that focuses on the expansion of

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

civil rights in South Africa and other countries in

sub-Saharan Africa Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...

. It was co-founded by

Zackie Achmat Abdurrazack "Zackie" Achmat (born 21 March 1962) is a South African activist and film director. He is a co-founder the Treatment Action Campaign and known worldwide for his activism on behalf of people living with HIV and AIDS in South Africa. ...

in 1994, and successfully lobbied for the inclusion of sexual orientation as a basis for non-discrimination laws in the country after the end of the apartheid period. The organization has continued to operate after South Africa officially legalized

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

in 2005. Its work includes "law reform, lobbying, litigation, advocacy, employment equity, leadership training and development." The late South African activist

Simon Nkoli Simon Tseko Nkoli (26 November 1957 – 30 November 1998) was an anti-apartheid, gay rights and AIDS activist in South Africa. Nkoli was born in Soweto in a seSotho-speaking family. Nkoli became a youth activist against apartheid, joining the ...

was a member of the executive committee of the NCGLE upon its formation in 1994, and was a key figure in the organization's successful campaign to include sexual orientation in post-apartheid South Africa's constitutional equality clause. As a result of this lobbying effort, South Africa became the first country in the world to constitutionally cement the rights of homosexuals, and the NCGLE could lay claim to successfully including gay and lesbian issues in South Africa's liberation struggle. After securing further rights gains through the legislature and in the courts throughout the 1990s, the NCGLE ceased to function as a coalition of member organizations and became a freestanding non-governmental organization, the LGEP, in 1999. The NCGLE was one of the most prominent gay and lesbian organization in South Africa for more than a decade. One of the foremost concerns of the organization is the continued

homophobia Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitude (psychology), attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, h ...

that is present in post-apartheid society, and it is also in solidarity with LGBT organizations in

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...

, where the Mugabe regime has placed severe restrictions on the living rights of the LGBT minority and other citizens. The LGEP was a litigant in a number of South African court cases related to LGBT rights: * ''

National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality and Another v Minister of Justice and Others ''National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality and Another v Minister of Justice and Others'' is a decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa which struck down the laws prohibiting consensual sexual activities between men. Basing its ...

'' (decriminalisation of sodomy) * ''

National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and Others ''National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and Others'', 999ZACC 17, is a 1999 decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa which extended to same-sex partners the same benefits granted to spo ...

'' (immigration equality) * ''

Minister of Home Affairs and Another v Fourie and Another; Lesbian and Gay Equality Project and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and Others ''Minister of Home Affairs and Another v Fourie and Another; Lesbian and Gay Equality Project and Others v Minister of Home Affairs and Others'', 005ZACC 19, is a landmark decision of the Constitutional Court of South Africa in which the court r ...

'' (marriage equality)

References

External links

Lesbian and Gay Equality Project
LGBT political advocacy groups in South Africa {{SouthAfrica-org-stub