The Future of the Movement Starts Here
Pride Africa is a movement grounded in African leadership and representation. It serves as a bridge between grassroots mobilizers, professionals, programmers, and technocrats, ensuring that we lift each other as we rise. Our mission is to create a moment where Africa has so much to share and give, moving beyond the narrative of crisis to one of light and unity.
131
Delegates
Convened
31
African Countries Represented
15+
Years of Movement Building
Hassna Murenzi's story
The Vision Behind Pride Africa “Everything has its beginning, and everything has an end. The family of LGBTQI people, in all our diversity, has been told again and again that Africa is only a continent of problems. But when you look at us, you see light. My dream was that Pride Africa would be that microphone, for all of us.”
To shift the narrative of the African continent from one of crisis to one of light and unity, where all LGBTQIA+ people live freely with dignity and equality.
To build a bridge of solidarity that connects grassroots mobilizers, professionals, and stakeholders to drive the collective upliftment and shared resources of African LGBTQIA+ communities.
The Enduring Legacy of the Intore
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A Living Symbol of Rwanda
The Intore dance of Rwanda is more than a performance; it is a living chronicle of strength, dignity, and resilience. Once the mark of Rwanda’s elite warriors, the Intore has survived colonial disruption, genocide, and cultural transformation. Today, it stands as a symbol of national unity, global recognition, and shared heritage. Our logo reclaims this silhouette, not as a relic of the past, but as a beacon of a new African future.
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From Warriors to Storytellers
The word Intore means “the chosen ones.” Historically, these were the king’s most trusted warriors, trained in the Itorero, a rigorous institution that blended military skill with public speaking, poetry, and ethics. Their public dances were not mere entertainment but demonstrations of loyalty, courage, and discipline. Even when colonial rule stripped the Intore of its military role, the dance endured. Performed at weddings, national ceremonies, and festivals, it carried forward the memory of resilience. After the 1994 genocide, it was revived once more, this time as a tool for reconciliation, healing, and unity.
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The Power of the Headdress
At the heart of the Intore costume is the Umugara headdress, a crown of flowing fibers that symbolises bravery, royal connection, and the warrior spirit. Alongside the shield (ingabo) and spear (icumu), the headdress remains one of the most potent cultural icons in Rwanda. Our logo transforms this headdress into a rainbow crown, replacing the original white feathers with the colours of pride. In doing so, we bridge past and present: the very values of courage and honor once reserved for a warrior elite are now claimed by a new vanguard fighting for dignity, love, and equality.
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The Intore Reimagined
The dancer’s silhouette in our logo is dynamic, not static, capturing the movement, energy, and storytelling that define the Intore tradition. Set against the African continent, it asserts that this is not only a Rwandan symbol but a Pan-African one. Where the Intore once represented loyalty to the king, today it represents loyalty to our collective struggle: to belong, to thrive, and to live freely as who we are.
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A Vanguard for the Future
By reclaiming the Intore, we align Pride Africa with a legacy of resilience and excellence. Our members are the new “chosen ones”, not warriors with spears, but activists, lovers, families, and leaders who carry forward the same values of courage and integrity. The Intore is no longer just a dance of the past. In our hands, it is a movement of the future, an African story retold for liberation.