33 Facts About Simon Nkoli

Simon Tseko Nkoli was an anti-apartheid, gay rights, and AIDS activist in South Africa.

Simon Nkoli's activism influenced the African National Congress to enshrine gay rights in the South African constitution.

Simon Nkoli was born on 26 November 1957 in Phiri, Soweto, to a seSotho-speaking family.

Simon Nkoli later wrote about this experience in an essay entitled "Wardrobes".

Simon Nkoli worked with his grandparents and attended primary school.

Simon Nkoli's family was poor, and their home was small and overcrowded.

Simon Nkoli supported him throughout his life, including his many arrests and the police harassment she experienced due to his anti-apartheid activism.

In high school, Simon Nkoli was involved with an organization called Young Christian Students.

Simon Nkoli spearheaded a petition opposing Afrikaans as the language of instruction at his school.

Additionally, Simon Nkoli worked at the South African Institute of Race Relations and organized food and legal aid for prisoners through the Detainees Support Committee.

Frequently arrested for his anti-apartheid activism, Simon Nkoli was held for three months in 1976 and seven months in 1981.

Around 1982, Simon Nkoli joined the Gay Association of South Africa, a mostly white organization which considered itself to be "apolitical".

When Simon Nkoli joined, GASA held its meetings in white-only spaces, a practice he persuaded them to change.

Simon Nkoli organized and spoke at rallies in support of rent strikes.

About 600 people were arrested, including Simon Nkoli, for attending an "illegal gathering".

Falsely accused of killing someone by throwing a stone at a protest, Simon Nkoli was denied bail.

Simon Nkoli spoke about GASA's "multiracial work" and stated that they were apolitical.

Simon Nkoli noticed a need for HIV education for Black South African communities; according to Simon Nkoli, the apartheid government did not provide HIV education materials in Black South African languages and denied that AIDS existed among the population.

Between July and September 1989, Simon Nkoli travelled to 26 cities throughout Europe and North America raising money for TAP and speaking about apartheid, gay rights, and AIDS in South Africa.

Simon Nkoli began his trip at the ILGA conference in Vienna and ended it at the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center in New York City.

In July 1990, Simon Nkoli reported that the police had raided the Glowbar, the only Black gay bar in Soweto and the meeting place for GLOW.

Simon Nkoli spoke in support of the Gay Games' ban on South African athletes, even though it meant that he could not participate as a runner.

Simon Nkoli talked about his desire for the end of apartheid and for South Africans to be able to compete at future Gay Games.

Around 1990, Simon Nkoli publicly disclosed that he was living with HIV, becoming one of the first openly HIV-positive African gay men.

Simon Nkoli founded "Positive African Men", a support group for Black men living with HIV in Johannesburg.

In 1994, Simon Nkoli co-founded the National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality.

Simon Nkoli assisted in the NCGLE's campaign for the inclusion of the "gay rights clause" in the South African constitution's Bill of Rights.

For 12 years, Simon Nkoli lived with HIV and was seriously ill during the last 4 years of his life.

Simon Nkoli went into a coma on 30 November 1998 and died.

Simon Nkoli is credited with influencing the attitude of the African National Congress towards being more supportive of gay rights.

Robert Colman's Your Loving Simon focused on Nkoli's imprisonment and the hundreds of letters he wrote during that time.

Simon Nkoli was honored at the gay pride parade that he had founded in Johannesburg.

The university's museum held an exhibit about Nkoli entitled: "Black Queer Visibility: Finding Simon" in 2019.