Hungochani: The History of a Dissident Sexuality in Southern AfricaIn the vivid tapestry of global queer cultures Africa has long been neglected or stereotyped. In Hungochani, Marc Epprecht seeks to change that by tracing the history and traditions of homosexuality in southern Africa, modern gay and lesbian identities, and the vibrant gay rights movement that has emerged since the 1980s. He explores the diverse ways African cultures traditionally explained same-sex sexuality and follows the emergence of new forms of gender identity and sexuality that evolved with the introduction of capitalism, colonial rule, and Christian education. Using oral testimony, memoirs, literature, criminal court records, and early government enquiries from the eighteenth century to the present, he traces the complex origins of homophobia. By bringing forth a wealth of evidence about once-hidden sexual behaviour, Epprecht contributes to the honest, open discussion that is urgently needed in the battle against HIV/AIDS. Homosexuality - or hungochani as it is known in Zimbabwe - has been denounced by many politicians and church leaders as an example of how Western decadence has corrupted African traditions. However, a bold new gay rights movement has emerged in several of the countries of the region since the 1980s, offering an exciting new dimension in the broad struggle for human rights and democracy unfolding on the continent. |
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Hungochani: The History of a Dissident Sexuality in Southern Africa Marc Epprecht Limited preview - 2004 |
Hungochani: The History of a Dissident Sexuality in Southern Africa Marc Epprecht Limited preview - 2004 |
Hungochani: The History of a Dissident Sexuality in Southern Africa Marc Epprecht No preview available - 2013 |
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Popular passages
Page 286 - This Matter of Women Is Getting Very Bad': Gender, Development and Politics in Colonial Lesotho. Pietermaritzburg, South Africa: University of Natal Press, 2000. Ferguson, James. The Anti-politics Machine: "Development," Depoliticization, and Bureaucratic Power in Lesotho.
Page 6 - ... of violence against women; c) identify the causes and consequences of violence against women and take appropriate measures to prevent and eliminate such violence; d) actively promote peace education through curricula and social communication in order to eradicate elements in traditional and cultural beliefs, practices and stereotypes which legitimise and exacerbate the persistence and tolerance of violence against women; e) punish the perpetrators of violence against women and implement programmes...
Page 281 - Bleys, Rudi C. 1995. The Geography of Perversion: Male-Male Sexual Behaviour outside the West and the Ethnographic Imagination. New York: New York University Press.
Bibliographic information
| Title | Hungochani: The History of a Dissident Sexuality in Southern Africa |
| Author | Marc Epprecht |
| Edition | illustrated |
| Publisher | McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP, 2004 |
| ISBN | 0773527516, 9780773527515 |
| Length | 317 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |