en English

About Us

Why GIN - SSOGIE?

In a time when Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) communities all over the world are organising themselves and demanding the protection under the law, continued criminalization of LGBTI identities, justified with religious rhetoric, cultural claims and customary laws, are instigating religious persecution and overwhelming violence against LGBTI people, especially in the Global South.

The impetus for the first gathering of LGBTI people of faith from different religions at the 2012 ILGA World Conference, was the conscious choice to centre the learned wisdom and voices of the LGBTI people from the Global South, dealing with these harsh realities daily.

The initiative to establish a Global Interfaith Network (GIN), to provide safe space to convene, document best practices, develop resources and together create local, regional, and international strategies for the decriminalization of LGBTI identities, was born. And to be successful GIN needed to be legitimate and relevant to all faiths and all local contexts where religion is used as a justification for discrimination against the LGBTI community and beyond.

This ethos continued to inform the leadership of the GIN Steering Committee, the composition of participants at the second global conference planned in Johannesburg, South Africa, 22 to 26 January 2014, the creating of an online community that was, and remains, accessible to and reflects the strategies of Global South LGBTI people of faith, even as we seek ways to resist modern systems of colonization and erasure through careful leadership, funding and accessibility choices.

Our History

The ILGA world conference in Stockholm 2012 provided the opportunity to organize the 1st Global Interfaith LGBTI Conference ever, as a one of many pre-conferences. The impetus for the conference was the recognition of overwhelming violence and religious persecution of LGBTI people in the Global South.

This conference centered the learned wisdom and voices of advocates from these regions. 39 people from 26 countries attended, representing 22 different organizations in the MENA region, Sub Saharan Africa, Pacific, US, and all parts of Europe, including the Balkan region and Eastern Europe.

The participants expressed a strong need to meet again in about a year after the December 2012 ILGA conference. The value of the conference is both personal and political. Many of us work in contexts where our spiritual selves are divided from our political or LGBTI selves.

The Conference, and the architecture of the network, provides a critical space for developing our awareness as LGBTI people of faith or LGBTI who are committed to addressing faith issues. The outcome is not only more confident LGBTI activists but also a stronger global movement empowered with sharper analysis and collective strategies.

I often say that one of the most cruel narratives against LGTBI+ persons, which leads to greatly damaging violence and discrimination, is that they don’t have the capacity for spirituality, or a call for it. The fundamental importance of the work of GIN-SSOGIE is that it creates and nurtures evidence to counter that narrative, and to reclaim spirituality and religion as spaces where LGBTI+ persons have choice to belong.

Victor Madrigal-Borloz | Former UN Independent Expert on SOGI

Vision

A just world in which the dignity, faith, spirituality, and human rights of persons of all sexes, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions are honoured, supported and protected.

mission

GIN-SSOGIE comprises individuals and organisations engaged with faith and spirituality. We are committed to using our beliefs and traditions to ensure that the views, values and rights of people of all sexes, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions are recognised, respected, and valued.

objectives

The GIN Statement of Values

The Global Interfaith Network For People of All Sexes, Sexual Orientations, Gender Identities and Expressions (GIN-SSOGIE / GIN) is a global network of gender and sexual minority people of faith who use their faith traditions as a source of insight and energy to advocate for the human rights of LGBTIQ++ people globally.  GIN has a specific focus on what we call Key Affected Contexts, places where violence and power collude with religion, culture and tradition most viciously to instigate homophobic and transphobic discrimination, many of which are in the Global South.

GIN recognises that there are multiple local and regional contexts and that while there are globally understood progressive concepts (for example, intersectional feminism) these may not translate fully or in the same way into different contexts.  However, GIN aspires to create safer spaces… [read more] [continuar leyendo]

Our Team

Governance and Board Members

Sedica Davids

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Board Secretary, South African Board member

Chiseche Mibenge

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Board Co-Chair, Representative for Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand (the Global North region)

Amar Alfikar

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Representative for East and South East Asia

Fr Thomas Ninan

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Representative for South and Central Asia

Ana Ester

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Representative for Latin America, Board Co-Chair

Wanjiru Kariuki

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Board Co-Chair, Representative for Sub-Saharan Africa

Tshidi Semenya

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Treasurer, South African Board member

Joey Joleen Mataele

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Representative for the Pacific

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Interim Representative for the Caribbean

Nermeen Abdelhady

GOVERNANCE BOARD MEMBER
Representative for the Middle East and North Africa

Interns

There are no Interns at the Moment

INTERN
Intern

Staff

Rev. Toni Kruger-Ayebazibwe

STAFF
Executive Director

Yahia Zaidi

STAFF
Advocacy Manager

Pierre Buckley

STAFF
Senior Collaboration Manager

Larissa Bhagarette

STAFF
Finance Manager

Shamim Salim

STAFF
Programme Manager
We Lead:
Engaging with Faith

Chantel Fortuin

STAFF
Programs Manager
Free to Be Me:
Engaging with faith

Nokuthula Dhladhla

STAFF
Regional Coordinator for the
"Religious Dialogue Partner Process" /
Capacity Building for Dialogue

GIN Staff Member

STAFF
Free To Be Me:
Engaging With Faith

Learn more...

Maatla Derrick Gadiutlwe

STAFF
Finance

Learn more...

GIN Global Ambassadors

Rev Nokuthula Dhladhla

GIN GLOBAL AMBASSADOR
Inaugural GIN Global Ambassador

Volunteers

Maha Jouini

Arabic

Michael Cousin

French

Tatjana Lehatkova

Russian

We are still looking for Spanish, Chinese and Swahili translators. If you wish to volunteer,
please contact us on info@gin-ssogie.org

Thank you very much to all our volunteers!!

Financial Statements

The Audited Financial Statements for GIN-SSOGIE NPC No 2015/142748/08 are publicly available

Our Founding Documents

During the General Members Meeting and Work Retreat (or “GIN Conference”), in November 2016,
in Bangkok, Thailand, we discussed and voted on the drafted Constitution and By-laws.
The drafts were subsequently finalised by the GIN Secretariat and sent for a final confirmation to all
GIN members, in early 2017.