This crime is often committed against women because of the false belief that they can be cured from their sexual orientation. Many other misconceptions exist around homosexuality and this further fuels the already high rate of hate crimes committed against people of homosexual orientation. Black women are often targeted because of their race, social status and because it is believed that being lesbian is ‘un-African’.
Despite the fact that the South African Constitution offers protection against harm, hate crimes against these women continue.
Wee’s research tries to discover just how such women experience and make meaning of corrective rape. Little is known about corrective rape in academic circles and this study hopes to add psychological knowledge to improve counselling and other services for survivors of corrective rape.
Wee aims to conduct interviews with corrective rape survivors, during which they will talk CONFIDENTIALLY about some of their experiences. The interviews will last approximately 90 minutes. The interviews will be audio-taped and thereafter transcribed.
Once ready, Wee will share the results of the research with those interviewed.
If you can help with this important research, please contact Lizelle de Wee, Researcher and Clinical Psychologist, on lizelledw@uj.ac.za / 011 559 2928.