GLR November-December 2025

as “deviant” or “immoral,” criminalizing practices that had been revered. In Angola, chibados were driven underground, their rituals suppressed as paganism that clashed with colonial Christianity. Por tuguese accounts from the 17th century branded them as anomalies, erasing their sacred status and forcing many to conceal their identities. A recollection from a hor rified Portuguese Jesuit published in 1625 described “certayne Chibadi , which are Men attyred like Women, and behave themselves womanly, ashamed to be called men; are also married to men, and esteeme that unnatural damnation an honor.” Sim

mation is part of a broader African move ment in which activists invoke precolo nial histories to challenge colonial-era laws. In countries such as South Africa and Botswana, decriminalization efforts cite indigenous gender diversity, inspiring similar pushes in Angola and Nigeria. These efforts extend beyond borders, informing global queer liberation. Two spirit identities in Africa parallel those of Indigenous people in the Americas, where colonization similarly disrupted the ac ceptance of fluid genders. By circling back to these roots—reclaiming, rein venting, and redefining—African activists

Queen Nzinga (1583-1663) of Ndongo & Matamba ruled as a man and kept 50 chibados in her court.

ilarly, British colonial laws in Nigeria, including the Criminal Code Act of 1916, outlawed “unnatural offenses,” targeting yan daudu and associating their femininity with vice. The Bori cult, once a vibrant tradition, was marginalized as superstition, push ing yandaudu to the fringes of society. This imposition did not merely suppress chibados and yan daudu ; it reshaped African worldviews. Colonial education and legal systems entrenched patriarchal binaries, marginalizing women and gender-diverse people alike. In West Africa, for ex ample, colonial borders and the transatlantic slave trade exac erbated ethnic divisions, weakening communal structures that had supported fluid identities. Post-independence, many African nations retained these laws, blending them with rising religious conservatism—Islamic in the north, Christian in the south—to perpetuate stigma against LGBT people. The result was a legacy of erasure in which indigenous gender diversity was labeled “un-African,” despite historical evidence to the contrary. Yet the resilience of these gender-nonconforming groups en dures. In the 21st century, activists are reclaiming these legacies, drawingon chibado and yandaudu traditions to fuel contempo rary LGBT movements. In Angola, the Associação Íris Angola , founded in 2013 and legally recognized in 2018, stands at the forefront. As the country’s primary LGBT organization, Íris ad vocates for rights through lobbying, HIV prevention efforts, and cultural events. In 2024, the group organized the first Miss Trans Angola pageant, celebrating trans visibility and echoing chibado fluidity. By 2025, this pageant had evolved into an annual gala, with the Miss Trans Angola 2025 event blending tradition with modern defiance. Íris also pushed for including sexual orienta tion in the national census, fostering data-driven advocacy. The organization’s work seeks to revive chibado spirits, and it has hosted festivals that recreate ancient rituals while addressing cur rent issues such as healthcare discrimination. In Nigeria, yan daudu persist despite persecution under Sharia law in northern states, where same-sex acts can lead to severe penalties. In recent decades both yandaudu and karuwai have been subject to periodic condemnation by political and re ligious figures, who’ve sometimes encouraged both police and civilians to abuse these already marginalized groups. But mod ern yan daudu like Aisha remain defiant, continuing to per forming at weddings and markets, blending Bori traditions with activism. Organizations such as The Initiative for Equal Rights support safe spaces where yan daudu host youth gatherings, sharing stories of ancestral worth to combat stigma. This recla

contribute to a decolonial narrative. For instance, the term “two spirit” itself, coined in 1990 for Native American contexts, res onates in Africa as a tool for visibility, promoting community recognition amid fluidity. As Aisha’s words demonstrate, these figures remind the world that gender diversity is timeless, urg ing a future in which honoring the past can be a mechanism for dismantling lingering colonial chains. In reflecting on these traditions, one sees not isolation but in terconnection. Chibados and yandaudu , once bridges between worlds, now link historical resilience to modern struggles. Their legacies challenge us to view queer histories as global tapes tries in which African threads enrich the whole. As the conti nent evolves, embracing these two-spirit identities fosters true liberation—for Africa and beyond. LESSONS IN DRAG A Queer Manual for Academics, Artists, and Aunties KAREEM KHUBCHANDANI with LaWhore Vagistan FROM

“ Lessons in Drag is like the most virtuosic of drag performances: both erudite and wildly entertaining.” —Gayatri Gopinath , authorof Impossible Desires Paper $29.95

Distributed by the University of Chicago Press www.press.uchicago.edu

November–December 2025

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