By Imaan Moosa
Edited by Yumna Bodiat
Keitumetse Fatimata Moutloatse shares with us the experiences that led to her becoming the all-powerful woman who has staged and led protests and sat in on bill reformation in Parliament.
There are women whose energy captivates like a siren’s song. Their presence commands immediate attention and when they speak, audiences are entranced.
On September 13, 2019, protestors occupied the streets of Africa’s richest square mile in Sandton and gathered outside the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. At the forefront of the march and elevated on a small balcony above the crowd was Keitumetse Fatimata Moutloatse.
Hair sheathed in a doek and lips stained cobalt blue, she took the mic and introduced herself as chairperson of Black Womxn Caucus (BWC).
It started off as more of a support group for black women because at the time it seemed like the violence was being directed at black women. Those were the more dominant stories. here was a historical, geographical, political and social need for us to be deliberate how prioritising the lived experiences of women, more specifically black women, and so Black Womxn Caucus was formed.
Formed in 2017 in response to the murder of 22-year-old Karabo Mokoena who was killed by her ex-boyfriend, BWC aims to build a continental movement. The current focus is against gender-based violence. At the epicenter of the platform is the feminist discourse, which is used as a tool for black women to collectively think about what it means to be 'Black' and what it means to be 'woman'.
Moutloatse maintains that the caucus has "created an important platform that is deliberate about practically implementing intergenerational dialogue through Black Girls in Caucus, Bereka Mosadi and Black Womxn Caucus, which represent different generational groups but also represent different ideas, ideologies, political stances, needs, desires, and demands".
This was manifest in the night vigils held at Wits University for Uyinene 'Nene' Mrwetyana, the University of Cape Town student who was raped and murdered in late 2019. According to Moutloatse, the vigils were a means to mourn, rally support, and most importantly, prioritize safety in institutions of higher education. While noting the sanctity of Nene's life, Moutloatse also provides a brutal but necessary truth.
Uyinene's death was not a unique death in the sense that it could have really been anyone. The conditions of the context were not unique and are the lived realities of many university students, where we are continuously confronted with violence in our institutions of higher learning and society at large.
Not only did Uyinene's tragic murder bring to us some of the consistencies and conditions of unsafeness in our institutions, but it was also an affliction of the larger society of the serious cry for an end to gender-based violence and femicide.
The #SandtonShutdown, Moutloatse noted in her address, was a way to “mobilize to ensure that the private sector [is held] accountable for their apparent silence in the fight against gender-based violence and femicide”.
Her words reverberated in the hearts of activists, civil society organizations, and businessmen and women present. She spoke and they listened.
Photos: Provided
Moutloatse is a strong woman. Strong women are not born but are made. Like the women who came before her, she has overcome trials by fire. She has danced on the edge of danger and has emerged from the ashes broken but not beaten.
In a society founded on racism, sexism, and patriarchy, she often finds herself subjugated before she is given a chance to be herself and prove her worth. It is for this reason that she chose to reclaim her power at 17-years-old.
Political activism has given me a voice to dare, to think, to change and to question. I am a feminist and I believe strongly in feminism. Feminism for me means agency. I don’t want to underestimate the importance of and the power of being able to have a choice. That is important and that is powerful.
It is easy to forget that Moutloatse is only 25-years-old. The stoic set of her shoulders and the measured cadence of her voice belies her age. She is brave, but she is also soft and she is not ashamed of her vulnerability.
I think [being a woman] means to be daring, to be brave and gentle, and fragile, and vulnerable. To be able to look at things with foresight. To not only think of the betterment of now but of years to come.
Worrying about the future and the lives of generations yet to come is strenuous. Similarly, activism is exhausting work. When asked how she deals with activism fatigue and burnout, Moutloatse reminds us that self-preservation is a political tool itself, too.
“It is a revolutionary act and I don’t think we should shy away from that,” she says. “I often go into a cocoon and redirect energy into myself and my family.”
Although self-care is important, the social work honors student is quick to bounce back and rally to the frontline. There is more work to be done and more women to empower.
A note from Keitumetse Moutloatse:
“There is a Chinese proverb that says, ‘One generation will plant the seed. The next generation will enjoy the shade.’ I think I am part of the generation that has been given the responsibility to water and grow this tree, and we are slowly feeling the shade but it is not good enough. That is why we continue with the work that we do.”
Follow Keitumetse Fatimata Moutloatse on her personal Twitter
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