Winay "From Mandela to Winnie" Andries

Winay Baoz Andries hails from The Steps in Cloetesville, Stellenbosch, where taxis are scarcer than Ubers. Winay comes from an artistically inclined family, from dance to fine arts, and she is an actress and performing arts director herself. Winay had her start at The Breughel Theatre in Cloetesville in the late nineties, and never left the arts. Die Breughel was a sizable multipurpose theatre where young actors practised and performed most of their shows. Later, this also developed into a community centre, but eventually closed (Netwerk 24, 2017). 

In November 2024, Winay returned to Cloetesville from Spain, where she did 178 solo opera shows in 180 days. She had left to find “the inner singer”. Winay describes herself as a “Community servant”, and although she is trying to find herself, she knows that her greatest opportunities, soul’ purpose, and calling lie in the hood. Winay works with children and elderly people through performing arts. She states that as she navigates her “Own battles as a trans woman, she is also there to help her community with their internal challenges” through artistic practices. The performing arts have always been Winay’s escape, she states, “The Breughel was freedom, a place where creativity is a world on its own. It is hell and harmony, endless possibilities where reality does not have the upper hand, it is where you taste the rainbow of no limitations.”

Die Breughel is where she not only had her start, but also her formal training. Although Winay’s years at Die Breugel were fuelled by passion and a personal form of escapism, it is also her full-time career. Winay aimed to expand her career by auditioning for more than just local roles. Winay set foot in Spain for the first time in 2018; she was mostly stationed in the Canary Islands: Fuerteventura and Lanzarote. What started out as a six-month-long contract was extended to another six months and concluded in a year. However, Winay went to copious amounts of auditions for the same role, and the answer was always no. In 2018 was when her yes eventually came, but unfortunately it was also the same year that her mum passed, at the time her mum was bedridden for seventeen years due to Parkinson’s disease, Winay proclaims, “The female part of me was an important aspect for me looking after my mom because she was not very fond of men touching her, even if it was her own boys. Sy was net nooit gemaklik met mans wat aan haar geraak het nie, so the female part within was a blessing. I have looked after her since the age of sixteen, for me it was almost like I first needed to complete the mission with my mom before life opens another door for me”. Winay started her journey in Spain by doing Cabaret shows. She cites her theatre background as the driving force behind her ability to enhance her live performances. 

Furthermore, Winay prefaces by saying, “They did not at first think it would work, but it did. So, they sent me to a different Island where they usually send their strongest performers, and then Covid hit, and in 2022, I went back to Majorca, but there was a negativity within the touring group. Die eiland soek sulke musiek en dit gaan nie werk nie, hulle is gewoont aan ander soort musiek, and to their surprise the show came out on top. Die negatiewe monde was toe gedruk. Hulle was nie baie fond daaroor dat ek my vroumens klere saam gebring het nie. Ek het vir haar gesê ek doen drag, toe se sy ons moet maar daai dametjie in die Kaap los, die seuntjie Hilton, moet kom. Ek het gesê okay fine. Die hele tyd toe ek gewerk het toe kon ek nie regtig myself express het nie”. This loss of self-expression led Winay to the decision that her comfortability with who she is was being suppressed, and eventually she quit. A few days later, Winay went to a bustling side of the island where she was stationed. She always walked past this specific corner where there were live performances, but she never had the time to stop, watch and interact. Winay got herself a beer and went to a show, that specific night it was a Michael Jackson impersonator. At the end of his performance, he came over to her and asked, “Jy, nou wie is jy?” Winay thought to herself, “Oh fok, Michael Jackson praat Afrikaans”. Moreover, as their conversation progressed, he revealed to her that he is also a talent agent and that he was looking for new talent. Winay says, “Ek dink toe wat gaan ek nou maak? maar ek het hom niks vertel nie, hy het nie geweet nie, en agterna toe maak hy vir my 'n offer. Ek vra toe vir die Here vir guidance, van ek was nie gelukkig daar waar ek nou is nie, nou is die bruh op my pad gesit”. Here, I believe Winay is referencing the fact that she did not reveal to him that she was thinking of transitioning or that she does drag. She did eventually disclose this information to him, and what sealed the deal for her was his words, “Jy kan wees net wie jy is” those words led to Winay’s journey with Michael the performer slash agent and in 2023 to 2024 Winay was doing shows in full drag, and singing everything from phantom of the opera to rock n roll to Michael Bublé, but still incorporating a bietjie cabaret, according to Winay, “Dit was so different vir hulle omdat opera groups was daar maar nie solo opera singers nie, so they tried, en goeie terugvoer gekry. It was sold out”. Winay considers this her “breakthrough moment”, not because she was a local South African theatre kid now performing in Spain for an international crowd, but that she could fully express herself and perform in her chosen art form, drag. Mostly, drag is performed by cis gay men, often dubbing themselves as female impersonators. In this instance, drag was more than a performance; it was a way for her to foreground the existence of Winay. 

In Cloetesville, Winay is known as Mandela. She says, “Mandela was my noemnaam”. Her landlord at the time saw her in a brown suit with a briefcase and said, “En nou Mandela”, and it stuck throughout her life. Winay still goes by her dead/given name Hilton, and still answers to her nickname Mandela, especially in her community. Winay admits that she is not too set on pronouns either and answers to all, to her, it is about your tone of voice when you address her as he/him. Winay explains, “Amper soos, as die kind se ma vra wie het vir jou die R1 gegee, en hulle sê nie mammie is hy! Here Winay puts emphasis on the 'hy' sy druk dit uit en trek haar mond so bietjie skief. Maar as hulle sê die uncle het dit vir my gegee, dan dink ek oh, okay.”

Winay brings to light one of the many issues that come with transitioning, that she is experiencing “gender dysphoria”, she recalls all the things Mandela could not tolerate like spicy food, yet Winay can. Winay is not an “opera singer, but Mandela is”, and her former employers in Spain have not met Winay. They only know Hilton, or rather, Hilton as a drag performer, and that she might return to Spain as Hilton. Mandela is very much still a part of her life; he carried her through so much and endured so heavily that he is always welcome to make an appearance whenever he sees fit. 

Me: Ek het somewhere gelees, that people are so quick to say hormonal therapy makes you act irrationally, like women on their periods, daai nonsense. Overly emotional and filled with anger or whatever. But what if hormonal therapy actually makes you act more like yourself? Like everything before hormones isn’t real.”

Winay smiles and nods: “Ek like daai, baie interesting way of looking at it. Nog nooit so daaraan gedink nie.”

I have known Winay for as long as I can remember. I, however, have never met or interacted with her before our interview in January of this year. My mum has seen Winay, or rather Mandela, perform live multiple times. At the time, I was too young to accompany my mother to a night out to the theatre, and she had preferred going with her girlfriends. My mum would return home and enthusiastically tell me about Winay’s performance, what the show was about, what she sang, and her personal standout moments. 

Winay’s interview was conducted in the Visual Studies seminar room in the Visual Arts department of Stellenbosch University on the 17th of January 2025. She said as soon as we entered the room, “vat 'n oulike fototjie van my op jou nice foon”. When I handed her the consent form, she hesitated when signing, looked up at me and asked, “I should probably sign my government name?” and I said “no, girl, sign whatever you like. I am not the magistrate’s court” she chuckled and signed and looked back up at me with the brightest smile and said, “that was the first time I signed as Winay Andries.” 

I chose this visual of Winay partially for the elements of camp that Winay is showcasing visually. The grey tights, glittered slip-ons and sequenced handbag, the choker necklace, dangly earrings, a black flowy statement top, perfectly laid wig, and her choice of an everyday no make-up-make-up look. Winay is looking directly into the camera with a huge smile, during the process of this interview as well as after, her smile is something that replays over and over in my head and is often accompanied by a deep chuckle that signifies what she finds charming and highlights her wit. Throughout our interview, Winay continuously highlights the consent form I sent her, asking for her participation in this study. She was especially excited about me having a gander at her social media and hopefully choosing an image for myself. As a creative, an actor and playwright, I cannot help but think that nothing is done without meticulous attention to detail. I would like to believe that her campy attire on the day of our interview was consciously and deliberately done to exhibit and execute her narrative through visually portraying how she wants to be archived in this study, how she wants to be remembered and perceived with or without a visual. This interview was not meant to be televised or photographed; there was no expectation placed on aesthetics, but Winay jokes, “Being a woman, I have to figure out what to wear every day”, and laughs. There is an expression and performance of femininity that Winay is not only reclaiming but navigating as her journey is unfolding, which she wants to bring to the forefront. This is confirmed through Winay; the day of the interview was exceptionally hot in the Winelands. After our interview, we grabbed pizza from the Neelsie and took a walk into town for chicken breasts. On our way to town, Winay and I speak about laser hair removal, something that we had both gotten done on our faces, how it expands the sweat glands because the protection of what was once facial hair is no longer present. It is important to note that excessive hair growth for me is the result of PCOS, and for Winay, it was a part of her transitioning, but in both instances, it is the result of high levels of testosterone, something we were both trying to combat at the time. Furthermore, as we approach the parking lot of Adam Small, we venture into a conversation about the hair that occupies our scalps.

Winay: “Dra jy wigs?’

Me: “Nope, no wigs and no make-up.” 

Winay: “Excuse me, haar vel is net so mooi.”

I laugh and respond: “Retinol and hyaluronic acid, babe.” 

Winay: “Stuur vir my daai name, meskien moet ek ook vir my kry.” 

As we approached the parking lot of Eikestad Mall, she said to me, “I can’t wait to get home and take off this wig, I just want to breathe!” She exclaims and fans herself. Here Winay is experiencing what most feminine presenting women are faced with particularly outside of the home – she is anticipating taking off her make-up, putting her hair up, and changing into something more comfortable, yet does not make any prior adjustments in public spaces, it is after all her chosen aesthetic, how she wants to be seen, how she feels when she is more put together, and how she expresses herself. 

Furthermore, as Winay awaits her name change, which is a long and arduous process, and costs up to R70 per letter. She was 39 years old when she transitioned, which was merely two years ago. Her visual represents, “Die binnekant is nou buite”. She describes herself as a “former prisoner”, and that the only crime she committed was “reaching for freedom”, she was “sentenced for being her true self.” But as soon as she got a hold of the prison’s key, “a beautiful woman emerged, tired of being kept a secret and was not afraid to fly”. And although she experiences what many trans women go through, men sexualizing and fetishising her, however, when she looks in the mirror, she says, “I got me”. To Winay, it is important to “Silence the outside voices and to listen to her inner voice. Take up space, do not force anyone to accept you, live an authentic life, stop chasing and attract, and be the love you wish to see in the world, and never stop empowering yourself.”

As Winnay and I venture into support systems and community, she hits me with a confused look and asks me to clarify what I meant by the term community. Here, I believe Winay thought I had meant community in the non-literal sense, community as outside support, and not community as friends and family. Once I clarified, Winay says under her breath, “Oh, I do have community, shame”. She describes her friends as her soul tribe. Although I did not pose the following question in our sit-down interview, but while I was transcribing her contribution. I wanted to know the physical aspects of how she stays in community and what that looks like for her.

Via WhatsApp, I ask: “In terms of community, where do you and your friends go, and what do you speak about?” 

Winay replied in a lengthy voice note of almost twelve minutes, and here is what she said:

“In die gemeenskap het ek net soos in drie, vier, vyf vriende en almal is of sixty percent van hulle is ouer as ekke, 20% selfde ouderdom en die ander 20% so bietjie jonger as ek, my inner circle, maar ook my spiritual circle, jy weet? En ek het so bietjie geerf ook, in daai inner circle is daar van my ma se vrinne ook, en die majority is vroumense. Dan is dit my outer circle; skool vrinne, klas maatjies, ons is so ses en ons ontmoet so eenkeer 'n maand, dan doen ons iets, meskien Route 44, ons gaan na die Phatt Society events toe of die Pink event of whatever. Die inner circle is meer spiritual ons doen kerk goedtjies saam, ons sing saam, ons het 'n gospel group. Dan het ek 'n groupie vriende wat familie ook tussen-in is, naweke chill ons, ons drink by mekaar se huise of ons gaan sit op die jaart, bietjie in dorp toe, Aandklas toe, ons was eintlik Boulevard mense gewees maar hulle het mos toe gemaak. Daar is nie regtig uit hang plekke vir Stellenbossers nie, dit is meestal studente plekke waar jy studente kaart moet wys as jy daar kom. Ek het so 'n bietjie van alles, meditation and mindfulness, uitgaan groupie, en community uitgaan groepie, you know? Ek is all over the place.”

Winay via WhatsApp and towards the end of her last words, “Oh, jy het gevra waaroor praat ons”. Winay prologues, “Ons is nie perfek nie, ons praat soms van ander mense” She discloses that this occasional skinner sessie is not done with malicious intent, but more so for self-awareness of situations that can occur and impact people they know, that it is important to talk about these things, not because you are nosy or you need to be in the know, but what can I take from this so that it does not happen to me? But highlights, “Ja ons skinner, maar most of the times praat ons oor ons eie lewens. Ons praat stront, en ons lag oor ons tragedies, ons uitdagings, knoue wat ons kry. Die gevare in die gemeenskap in, die gun violence en domestic violence, ons praat oor kinders wat se ouers hulle kinders se kinders moet groot maak. So ek sal se dit is 'n range van ons self tot domestic stuff en alles daai, dan is dit my vriende wat kinders het, en hoe hulle uitsien na hulle kinders se toekoms, en die fears in die straat en waar daar nie baie outside support is binne toe nie. A very broad conversation, but ons praat nie baie oor wêreld nuus nie, en Trump nie, mostly local. Stuff op hulle level soos SASSA, ek kan nie altyd saam praat nie, maar as ek saam praat dan praat ek oor die dinge wat ek gelees het oor daardie topic, meer general information.”

As I have gotten to know Winay, I regret thinking of her as a mythical being, whose days are filled with everything from theatre to community work, someone who rarely indulges and someone who is always on the go, that I forgot she also has an everyday life. I pose the question, "What does your daily life look like? Who is Winay when she is not busy? Who is Winay at home? 

Winay describes her daily life as “eenvoudig” that there are days where she doesn’t wake up between 06:30 to 7 am like most days, that she enjoys sleeping in and that often means starting her days quite late she says, “Ek laat die kat uit, dan sal ek bietie koffie maak, skin care, jy weet jy gaan mos eintlik toilet toe na die koffie om op jou gemak te sit. Soms gaan staan ek buite met my koppie, dan kom staan hulle ook nader met hulle gowns aan (here Winay is referring to her neighbours) dan ohh jirre begin die gossip. Ek maak bietjie die yard skoon, eet gewoontlik na 12, intermediate fasting, but ek gaan bietjie stadig met dit, van hulle het so bietjie suiker in my bloed gekry. Dan lê ek bietjie op die bank en kyk series ek hou van medieval series and fantasy dramas, lees my boek, het so 'n paar boeke, dan vat ek weer 'n slapie, dan freshen ek gou op, van dan moet ek die pootjies op sit. Ek verkoop dit vir n R1 aan die kinders. As daar nie koor oefening is nie dan is ek rustig, maar 'n inhuistige mensie. Iets moet my uitroep, ek gaan nie net uit om uit te gaan nie, uit is nie net uit nie, soms is ek vir twee drie dae in die huis sonder enige son, soms doen ek oefeninge.” 

Winay imparts that there was a time period during the year where she was jaded by her daily life and daily routine, and wanted to spruce up the mundane, she says, “Ek het toe moeg geraak om net bydie huis te sit toe kry ek vir my 'n werkie by 'n coffee shop, maar die jealousy daar teenoor my, dat my energie nie vir hulle aanstaan nie. Maar jy weet mense van ander cultures and tradisies so ek is nie quick om te judge nie. Die een vrou het gesê ek is van die duiwel af” lag Winay but explains, “Because why mense is ook attached aan history en almal word mos nie in die selfde huis in groot gemaak nie. Hulle het gevra ek moet uit help vir so twee drie maande maar ek kon net bly vir 'n maand en 'n  half van dit was vir my draining, en dit gaan nie oor support nie van ek het my circle en die wat lief is vir my, en ook nie oor acceptance nie van ek aanvaar myself. It was more of why do I have to overexplain myself, jy kan mos gaan lees ook, vestaan jy? Ek moet nou heeltyd vir my explain, en ek dink wat vir my draining was, is wanneer ek klaar explain was dan lyk dit vir my daar is dan nou meer confusion nie maar goedtjies om vir hulle bymekaar die skrap om te kan attack, so you know, daar is genoeg spasie vir ons almal. Ek wil net lewe in daai space, en ek is nie hier om oor te vat nie or overstepping boundaries nie or whatever, but don’t narrow my space. Ek wil nie 'n title daarop sit nie om te sê dit was weird of lelik nie, of nee wat ons 'n title daarop sit, dit was 'n tussen June and July experience, dit was net nie vir my nie.” 

According to Winay, community equally happens through social media, and she is appreciative of her online following, where she has not experienced hate on social media. As I scroll through Winay’s TikTok, it is evident through the comments under her posts that she is indeed not experiencing passive-aggressive commentary. Here I am specifically speaking about one of her posts in particular, where she is confirming to her TikTok audience that she has transitioned from “male to female” as she states in the video, and that this is not a form of drag that they may be used to from her. During the course of the video, Winay says “hello” in two different octaves and laughs, showing how her voice has changed since hormonal therapy through gender affirming care, but states in her video that, “I am still me, just a little different, still a diamond but in a different form”. In this post Winay notifies the audience that it may not just be her appearance that will change, but her personality, emphasizing that Winay is not just simply Mandela/Hilton in feminine clothing and longer hair, but that Winay is an “extension” of her true self, in this post Winay also addresses the people she may know personally and says, “Ek willie hê jy moet my in die dorp kry en dan loop jy verby my nie want jy het nie geweet dit is ek nie – oh my gosh, is he now actually a drag queen or is he now actually a female impersonator? or whatever they wanna call me, you can call whatever you want to call me”. Personally, this post highlights an authentic trans experience, and the larger content of this post feels like ‘I am still figuring everything out’. 

Moreover, this post feels like an invitation but not in any way a form of seeking validation, in the post Winay says, “You can come and hug me, but don’t come and hug me if there is hatred or fakeness…because why, I don’t do fake no more…it took me a long time to get to where I am today to just be me as me. I am not doing this to be accepted because I accept me, I love me, I make me sleep at night. I don’t need to use medication at night to sleep because I am truly, truly happy”. In this post Winay apologizes for being a little absent from social media leading up to her “coming out” post and informs her audience that she was busy working on herself, she states, “That is what I have been up to, me”. However, at the time of this post Winay has not changed her name yet and says, “I am still Hilton Mandela Andries” if you download the post from the link, it shows that @hiltonmandelaandr is Winay’s handle, but Winay Andries is the username that appears on the screen. Showcasing that Winay is not ready to dispose of Hilton/Mandela, and that she does not mind being referred to as such, but rather that Hilton/Mandela as an identity infuses the essence of who Winay is and blurs the lines between Mandela and Winay. 

The commentary under this specific post ranges anywhere from heart emojis to a “you are beautiful” and a “you go girl” highlighting a safe online community of people and support networks through her online presence as a now trans woman. From her “coming out of the closet” as she refers to her journey in the video, I start tracing Winay’s TikTok post-transitioning, and the essence of her chosen execution of femininity is spotlighted through her different wigs, her clothes, and what she has chosen to speak on and the quotes she uses to enhance her stance. I, for one, see her blossoming in each of her posts, how her confidence has shifted from “coming out of the closet.”

Her TikTok exclusively places emphasis on her identity post-transitioning, and through specific quotes, which highlight that she is confident in her decision to transition, and she is open to the unlearning that may come with it. Her use of written text shows that she found the words specifically integral to what her journey entails and evidently relatable. Moreover, the support and well wishes Winay is experiencing through her public social media page and through her friendships as well as her family, was, however, not her first taste of gemeenskap, this she makes known, her first form of community happened through her mum when she was a little girl. Winay tells a story from her childhood, how her mum used to dress her up in pink clothing, she proclaims, “Ek dink sy wil nog altyd 'n dogtertjie gehad het”. Her mum would scramble to expose of the evidence before her stepfather returned home. Winay believes in safe spaces; she does not venture into territories where her “energy is not reciprocated”, She will “respectfully remove” herself, and it is important, “to search for your tribe. There is a tendency to “gravitate towards the wrong spaces, you belong, you are just in the wrong space.”

Winay brings up the feminist aspect of my research study. When I approached Winay to partake in this study, she was eager but prefaced by saying, “Solank dit nie teen my morals gaan nie, sal ek graag wil”. Although I did not ask Winay via WhatsApp to elaborate on this sentiment, the day of the interview, I fetched Winay at the entrance of Visual Arts, and asked if she would like a coffee. While we waited for our order, I brought up the comment of her morals possibly being compromised, and asked what she meant by that.

She smiled and joked: “You know, jy moet net nie vir my vra om kaal te wees nie”. I was not entirely sure if this was a visual arts joke, where visual arts students are often tasked with sketching nude models, but I took it as such.

Winay: “In the consent form you speak about feminism, hoe gebeur dit?”

Me: “So, we do not need to speak about feminism, it wasn’t one of my questions, I mostly want your life story, and then I will relate it to feminism if that makes sense. Weet jy wat? Relate is meskien die verkeerde word.”

Winay: “Ja, but watter feminism?”

Me: “Nie die feminism van nou nie.”

Winay smiles and nods

I continue: “You know I grew up thinking that there was no feminism in the hood, but realised that feminism was not doing much for the hood…and feminism needs to address the hood, if they want our solidarity.”

She interrupts and asks: “So, not this feminism, but feminism vir die ghetto?”

“Exactly!”

“Ek like daai…ek sien jou!” She chuckles 

By Winay bringing up the feminist aspect of my research made we wonder if the little joke she made was not simply a form of quick wittedness on her part, that in fact, the comment about her morals was her establishing that my research was not bordering on TERF (trans-exclusionary radical feminist) territory. That her little smile beforehand was showing her comfortability going into the interview, as the question of her moral stances was not intended to be light-hearted, and it was my way of corroborating her boundaries. Furthermore, instead of going into an in-depth conversation, she counters with a quip, almost letting me know that she feels at ease. 

Winay makes it clear that she will never “leave the hood”, it is not a place where she needs to “escape from” that she feels “safer in the ghetto” and that “being financially free can also be limiting, the higher you live, the less you can give back”. Winay admits that the only thing she needs to escape from is a “ghetto mindset” and moving towards “betterhood” and “om my, nie aan my nie”. She states that leaving the ghetto is taking away light from the ghetto, that people in her community need to see her daily, how she navigates life, how she wants a better life, witnessing her is witnessing freedom, and leaving would mean taking away hopes and dreams, and killing potential, she states, “I am the voice and the resources”. According to her, the kids in the ghetto need to see that there are educated people, artists, dressmakers who occupy the houses that they walk past every day. 

Her eyes revert to me, and she says: “You, for instance, someone is living here that has a Master's degree, they need to see it can be done for us.” 

I laugh and reply: “I technically don’t, but I get you!”

Winay: “But jy is mos amper daar, neh?”  

I smile and nod. 

The hood to Winay is not a place that needs saving, and states, “We need better policies, we need resources, let the ghetto change the ghetto, we will heal ourselves”. Winay says that, “The ghetto is not for sissies, it is for sissies met hare op jou tande. But at least the hood always moves in a pack, ons kyk uit vi mekaar. I speak a lot of me and a ton of we.” 

Winay shows great acknowledgement of the women in her community. Winay makes it clear that she cannot speak for women, as she is trans, and women are biological; she elaborates, “Being transgender means transitioning, and that male chromosomes and the overall male structure are different”. However, where she does feel the connection between being a trans woman and being a biological woman, is her innate ability to care, to show emotion, to carry the weight of the world, be strong, and carry the pain, but still get out of bed every morning – this to Winay is the feminine, and those are the things she connects to. I do not wholly agree that it is a womxns' innate ability to care that makes them feminine. However, I do recognise that womxn are often tasked with having to ingest emotional labour and demonstrate strength that often requires them to dispose of their own struggles as a means to show up and problem solve. There are of course women who take pride in being the first point of reference to those in their family, platonic relationships, and community, that feels that it is their ‘duty’ as the uitkyk auntie, parentified daughter, the mother figure or the older sister to lend a hand and be a shoulder to cry on in times of difficulty, and that in itself can be fulfilling and a conscious choice. Nevertheless, it is not solely a womxns' job to supply care, empathy, and endure hardship merely because they are womxn. Instead, womxn who give so freely equally need just as much help, protection, and time to themselves as those seeking their guidance. 

According to Winay, femininity “comes with a gift of spirituality." She often feels as if her spiritual gifts are not “truly accepted” because she is trans, but remembers that the universe does not discriminate, nature is always trying to teach her something, and that “religion limits God”. Winay proclaims that, “I love women, I admire you”, but recognises that women in her community do not have the privilege of living within their femininity and which actively excludes them from having a space to execute feminism. Winay states that half of the women in her community do not partake in self-care rituals because if their house is spotless, it does not matter how they look or feel. Winay takes a moment to reflect on her mother, who passed in March of 2024. She describes her mum as a “hen oor haar kuikens” but a woman who went through so much abuse at the hands of her stepfather that she still found the strength to stand firm, and she “did the best she could with what she was dealt”. In 1993, Winay witnessed the stabbing of her stepfather and still carries around residual feelings of PTSD.  Winay highlight that this is, “How it goes when you come from where we come from, everything falls on women’s shoulders, especially in the ghetto, she states, the struggle is real.”

Winay emphasises that although feminism is a broad spectrum of events, feminists must fight the battles within themselves, and that if feminism is activism, “do not exclude your weaknesses and vulnerability, sexism oppresses all women and especially in feminist spaces”. And states “If you are a feminist, you should empathise with all women under the feminist umbrella, us as a we, close the gaps, sometimes we just need to listen.” She believes that not all women have to have the same struggle, we do not need “much in common”, from women in the “ghetto” to women in “Afghanistan” to women’s bodies being “treated like a mattress”, that we can all still be connected, and states, “We all have a headache”.  As a trans woman, Winay still faces discrimination. She states that there is a lot of misinformation out there about trans women that enables hatred, but ultimately, “The world is big enough to accommodate all of us.”

Unfortunately, women in the ghetto, according to Winay, are culturally disconnected from feminism. She states that women in the ghetto are raised to provide, that there are things being “okay’d”, never mind if you are hurt or degraded, it is acceptable because “môre maak jy 'n way”.  Winay elaborates by making an example of food insecurity and how it can create abusive tendencies, men expect women to cater to the household, food is a woman’s duty, “As hy vanaand huistoe kom soek hy 'n bord kos” and often she can provide a plate of food, but not to “his satisfaction, and then she pays the price”. In our neighbourhoods (predominantly Coloured neighbourhoods) “is da iets virrie pot” is a common phrase to use when asking for a contribution to the household especially in terms of ingredients for a meal, and Winay often thinks to herself she does have an “extra pakkie of vleis” but getting to and from the shops is a struggle within itself, but then she remembers that, “this pakkie of vleis could keep this woman unarmed tonight.”

Winay highlights that feminism should be freedom, but it has also become too broad of a concept, often to her it feels as if there is an “inner club” which not everyone can partake in, there is too much “dictatorship”, it is the action of wanting total control, or being too submissive, “It is after all still a man’s club, still rooted in white supremacy”, and being a person of colour makes feminism hard, she professes, “Gaan doen jou hare, don’t talk politics. In the ghetto we must fight the things within us, our mindset and our culture are rooted within our circumstances, and we do not want to hurt anyone, we just want to co-exist”. But proudly proclaims that Winnie is where her activism started, that within her she "was always Winnie”, and highlights, “The Apartheid government was afraid of Winnie, she was not perfect she condemned goodness, and that is how Winay experienced feminism from a broad spectrum, how men of colour could also benefit from the teachings of Winnie Mandela.” 

Me: “Feminism is a man’s club, hoe so?”

Winay: “All feminism was, was a battle of the sexes. There are men who believe in equality; feminists should not take on the masculinity but create mutual respect.”

I asked Winay what she requires and what she needs, and what she is facing when she looks at my chosen visual. Like most womxn, she wants a stable life, equal opportunities, and to be treated with respect. She wants her community to be more involved in the things where “They lack knowledge, fathers to be more present, and women to know that they are seen, loved, and valued”. As a creative, she would like to get back into writing, she says, “I need to start writing again, the heart will find its way back to the pen, altyd nice as my hart bloei deur die pen”. Romantic love is not high up on Winay’s to-do list, she admits; however, she would at some point like to have a life partner, and specifically says about her type, she wants a “ghetto man”. She is also not shying away from dating, and admits, “Daar is so iemand of twee, but dit is nie nog ernstig nie, my werk is my bestie, my man, my alles, so ek kannie te ernstig raak nie”. According to Winay, before any of this takes centre stage, she acknowledges that she needs to stop looking outward, that the world will not wholly accept her, she states, “I need to move closer to feminist spaces and continue the fight”. She reflects on her mum, she is tired of seeing women struggle, and that is why she shares everything she has, her shining is not enough, she wants to wipe "our" tears instead of her own, and claims, “That does not make you very likeable” often people think that her kindness is her “looking for shine” and people do not always say nice things about her, but doing good and receiving backlash will never stop her.

Winay: “What mamma put in you, what mamma taught you, take those values to feminism.”