June is considered a month of celebration for the international LGBTQIA+ community. The two historic events behind this global celebration are the Stonewall Riots of 1969 (28 June) in New York City and the US Supreme Court decision to lift all state bans on same-sex marriage for it to be legal in all 50 states, requiring all states to honour out-of-state same-sex marriage licences.

💡 Did you know: Pride Month in South Africa is in October!

We value the lived experiences of our staff and customers who are Queer and, to raise awareness of International Pride Month this year, we have temporarily updated our logo on our social media platforms to an all-inclusive version of our logo. We know that every “phobia” originates from prejudice and ignorance, that our humanity is what unites us and our differences are what enrich the world we share.

Vodacom continues to work closely with organisations that advocate for the rights and the lived experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community, including - but not limited to, Same Love Toti and Johannesburg Pride. We also use our content platforms for ongoing education and now are engaging with other organisations to find out how we can get involved with the work they are doing.

As South Africans, we are fortunate enough to live in a country where our post-apartheid Constitution was the first in the world to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation. South Africa was also the fifth country in the world, and the first in Africa, to legalise same-sex marriage.

What does this mean? It means the more than 2 million South African citizens who identify as LGBTQIA+ have legal protection and equal rights – whether single, in a relationship or married – in both their personal and professional capacities. Same-sex couples can also adopt children jointly and arrange in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and surrogacy treatments.

In 1998, Parliament also passed the Employment Equity Act. This Act protects South Africans from labour discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, among other categories. In 2000, similar protections were extended to public accommodations and services, with the commencement of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act.

Despite these changes made to the law, the community still experiences challenges, especially in the form of discrimination, homophobia, corrective rape and other hate crimes. This is why Vodacom has an LGBTQIA+ and Friends Network. The friends and family of those in the LGBTQIA+ community play a critical role in changing perspectives and supporting the journey towards truly equal treatment and rights. This International Pride Month, we encourage everyone – both our Vodacom family and our customers – to join us in celebrating differences and in acknowledging the positive contribution every Vodacom employee makes to this company and this country as a whole! Read more about Vodafone’s involvement in the LGBTQIA+ community here.

Read more here:

• LGBTIQA+ initiatives Vodacom are been involved in
• Vodacom's participation in the Cape Town Pride event
• Vodacom’s LGBT Network
• The importance of being an ally