Palapye Pride: Courage, Community & LGBTQ+ Rights in Botswana

Palapye Pride marked a courageous step for LGBTQ+ rights in Botswana, overcoming social stigma and legal battles. Community support and activism fuel the fight for equality and inclusion. Grassroots effort is key.

“When the sun climbed on 1 Nov., 2025, Pride morning in Palapye, the open space where the march was set up to start was empty. I stood there attempting to look tranquil, however within, my upper body really felt tight. I was fretted that no one would come. It was the first-ever Pride in Palapye, a semi-urban village where social standards, religious beliefs, and tradition are deeply woven into daily life.

AGANG’s Role in LGBTQ+ Support

AGANG Community Network is dedicated to continuing this work and producing safe and helpful spaces for LGBTIQ+ people, their family members, close friend, and allies. Pride is not just a day of fun.

Seipone Boitshwarelo is a feminist, activist, social justice healer, and owner of AGANG Community Network. Bradley Fortuin is a social justice lobbyist and a consultant at the Southern Africa Litigation Facility.

That’s when I recognized that individuals weren’t late, just that they hesitated. And their worry made sense. Appearing honestly in a small community like Palapye is an extreme act. It disrupts silence. It tests norms. It compels exposure. Exposure is effective, however it is never very easy. We marched with courage, drawing from the deepest parts of ourselves. We marched with giggling that broke via the tension. We marched not because it was very easy, however because it was necessary,” narrates protestor Seipone Boitshwarelo from AGANG Community Network, which concentrates on friends and families of LGBTIQ+ people in Botswana. She is likewise a BW PRIDE Honors nominee for the Healing and Justice Award, a group which acknowledges contributions to health, psychological health, and recovery for the LGBTIQ+ area across Botswana.

Legal Advances for LGBTQ+ Rights

In March 2016, in the Attorney General of Botswana v. Rammoge and 19 Others case, likewise known as the LEGABIBO enrollment instance, the Botswana Court of Allure stated that “members of the gay, lesbian, and transgender area, although no doubt a small minority, and unacceptable to some on spiritual or other grounds, develop part of the rich variety of any type of nation and are totally entitled in Botswana, as in any type of other modern state, to the constitutional protection of their self-respect.” Flexibility of association, expression, and setting up is a foundation for autonomous and public participation, as it enables all people to arrange around shared rate of interests, raise their collective voice, and influence societal and cultural modification, in addition to legislative reform.

Instead of producing a democratic area for every voice, the process sidelined and got rid of an entire area. When the state chooses to ignore court orders and disregard communities, it becomes clear that visibility needs to be reclaimed with alternate ways. It is an extreme insistence on belonging, rooted in neighborhood and strengthened with intersectionality with family members, allies, and pals that decline to allow our tales be gotten rid of.

The Botswana courts, shortly after in 2021, stated that outlawing same-sex sexual relations is unconstitutional since they breached rights to personal privacy, freedom, equal rights, nondiscrimination, and dignity. Despite these lawful success, social stigma, social, and spiritual resistance continue to impact the everyday lived experience of LGBTIQ+ individuals in Botswana.

Pride as a Political Statement

The Palapye Pride event was not moneyed, however community members still showed up and contributed water, a sound system, and someone even printed products. AGANG Community Network is dedicated to continuing this job and producing safe and supportive rooms for LGBTIQ+ individuals, their families, close friend, and allies.

Financing for human rights and LGBTIQ+ campaigning for has been adversely affected since January 2025, and existing funding is extremely competitive, uneven and limited, particularly for grassroots companies in Botswana. The Palapye Satisfaction occasion was not moneyed, however community members still revealed up and donated water, an audio system, and someone even printed products.

Community Engagement is the Key

I maintained asking myself if we were being naive. Perhaps individuals weren’t all set. Probably fear was mosting likely to win. For the initial half an hour, it was me, a couple of religious leaders and a handful of parents. That was it. The silence was loud, and every second seemed like it extended into hours. I expected to see the queer community appearing in numbers, curtained in shade and exhilaration. Rather, just the wind was relocating.

Pride is both an event and a political declaration. It came about as a response to systemic oppression, specifically the criminalization and marginalization of LGBTIQ+ people around the world, consisting of in Botswana at some point. It becomes part of the recognition, equal rights, and assertion of human rights. It additionally advises us that freedom and equal rights are not instantly universal, and continued activism is needed. A pointer of the well-known stating by Fannie Lou Hamer, “Nobody is complimentary till everybody’s complimentary.”

One of one of the most tactical decisions made by the AGANG Area Network was to involve parents, religious leaders, and local area participants, acknowledging their worth in incorporation and assistance. Hence, their presence in the march was not symbolic, however it was willful.

Showing up openly in a small area like Palapye is a radical act. We marched not since it was very easy, yet because it was essential,” tells protestor Seipone Boitshwarelo from AGANG Area Network, which focuses on family members and friends of LGBTIQ+ individuals in Botswana. She is likewise a BW PRIDE Awards candidate for the Recovery and Justice Honor, a group which acknowledges contributions to wellness, mental wellness, and recovery for the LGBTIQ+ neighborhood across Botswana.