South African lesbians find refuge in football

"He called me faggot, lesbian, dirty monkey. I was bleeding on the floor when my mother arrived and defended me. But I did not press charges because he said he would lay charges against my mother for assault," she said, pausing to wipe her tears with her jersey.

All the women on her team, the Chosen Few, are lesbians who have similarly suffered insults, violence, and all too often rape.

"Being a lesbian is like being a soldier. You don't sleep at night," said the 22-year-old.

She worries every time she leaves her home at night that she could become a victim of "corrective rape", which attackers justify as a "cure" for homosexuality.

It's a widespread problem in a country where women generally suffer high levels of violence. Nearly half of South African women will be raped at least once in their life.

Hatred of lesbians puts them at particular risk, even of murder. South Africa's post-apartheid constitution grants equal rights to gays, but only on paper, said activist Emily Craven.

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