Healing from hate-crime in an unsafe and exposed position : Black lesbian women in South Africa

Abstract: In March 2011 the South African government agreed to address the issue of “corrective rape” due to a petition made by a lesbian activist group. The knowledge of how many women that are raped in South Africa because of their sexual orientation is impossible to achieve since the South African police do not make any distinctions of the motive behind the rape when it is reported. There are “Gay advocacy groups” that claim that there are 10 cases of corrective rape every week just in Cape Town, but these figures have not been confirmed. The gravity of the problem is still eminent as women come forth witnessing about the hate-crimes committed against them.      This study is an attempt to gain knowledge about the situation for these women that exist under the radar of official statistics. Through interviews the study tries to shed light on how the women perceive their situation and through theories from the professional field of social work the aim is to analyse their recovery process, if there is one, after being the survivor of hate crime.      This research shows that the women lived in an exposed position filled with fear, making them alienate from society. The study also found that the women face a number of problems that interfere with their process of recovery and healing. It also disclosed factors that made healing possible even in a violent society like the South African. The support system that surrounded the women was scarce in regards to for example family, but the greater when including the LGBTI community. The research lifts forth how social work can change the lives for people living in an exposed position in society.