Sunday, April 15, 2007

Property of the State: LGBT Oppression in the South African Army

New media has allowed many minorities whose culture and values are continuously suppressed from the public eye to tell their stories to the global community. This video entitled "Property of the State" documents the LGBT soldiers who fought for the South African Military and its policies that discriminated against any form of homosexuality and transgendered people. Those who were caught by the military for displaying any tendencies that would lead to accusations against them as being gay would choose to be incarcerated in a mental institution by the military rather than handed over and humiliated by the local authorities. Those in the institutions were deemed as property of the state and many faced involuntary lobotomies and shock therapy, while others were forced to endure surgical sex changes - the military's ultimate "cure". This short video gives us a glimpse of their story:

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