SistaazHood is a

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

n activist and advocacy support group embedded at the organisation Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT). The Sistaaz Hood supports the rights and health of

transgender women A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...

and

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

s. The group was founded in 2010 and is based in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

. The group is also known for their various photographic collaborations with artists, amongst them the fashion project, ''Sistaaz of the Castle'' in collaboration with photographer, Jan Hoek and

fashion design Fashion design is the art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction, and natural beauty to clothing and its accessories. It is influenced by diverse cultures and different trends and has varied over time and place. "A fashion design ...

er, Duran Lantink, and

InterseXion ''Intersexion'' (2012) is a documentary about intersex people. The film was researched and presented by activist Mani Mitchell, New Zealand's first "out" intersex person.

, with artist Robert Hamblin. InterseXion was exhibited at Iziko South African National Art Gallery.

About

SistaazHood was founded in 2010 and represents transgender women in Cape Town who are sex workers, many of whom are

homeless Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

. The organization provides community spaces for transgender women. The group was founded by Netta Marcus, Cym van Dyk and Leigh Davids. Marcus brought the women together and they were able to live outside the

Castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

walls. By 2019, there were around 40 members. SistaazHood is working to decriminalize sex work. SistaazHood also fights

transphobia Transphobia consists of negative attitudes, feelings, or actions towards transgender or transsexual people, or transness in general. Transphobia can include fear, aversion, hatred, violence or anger towards people who do not conform to socia ...

in the police force and

police violence Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...

against transgender women. The group has helped the police draft new Standard Operating Procedures in dealing with transgender and homeless people and the law. They are affiliated with Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce, a group that advocates for the removal of laws against sex work. SistaazHood also works with the Triangle Project and Gender DynamiX.

''Sistaaz of the Castle''

''Sistaaz of the Castle'' is a photographic and fashio] collaboration between members of SistaazHood and photographer, Jan Hoek, and Duran Lantink, a fashion designer. The project began in 2014. Women from SistaazHood described the dresses they wanted to wear and Lantink created them for the photo shoots. The collaboration led to the creation of a

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

called ''Sistaaz of the Castle'' which donates 100% of the profits back to SistaazHood. The magazine had a printing run of 1,500 copies. The magazine has been able to spread the word about the group, educating the community about them, and also helped give the women a sense of purpose.

InterseXion

InterseXion ''Intersexion'' (2012) is a documentary about intersex people. The film was researched and presented by activist Mani Mitchell, New Zealand's first "out" intersex person.

is a multidisciplinary art project mandated by The Sistaaz Hood support group in 2010 in collaboration with artist Robert Hamblin. The final outcome of the project was a traveling exhibition consisting of photographs, voice work installations and quotations from group members about their work and private lives. The purpose of the exhibition was to advocate around issues that showed how poverty and gender inequality correlates to the identity of the group members.

References

External links

Official site
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Sistaaz of the Castle
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Sistaaz of the Castle
(2016 video) {{Authority control 2010 establishments in South Africa LGBTQ political advocacy groups in South Africa Transgender organizations Sex worker organizations Prostitution in South Africa

About

''Sistaaz of the Castle''

InterseXion

See also

References

External links