Tactical Activism

Abstract This article examines religious leaders’ engagements with gender transformative activism during prevention training workshops for sexual and gender-based violence. I draw on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in 2017 2018 a South African NGO that promotes equality human rights across Africa. My aim is twofold: to explore the tensions between private public dimensions of engagement activism; demonstrate how they navigate those by co-creating an ‘interstitial’ language social space allows them conform new emotional repertoires, meanings practices ought transform their gendered relations. argue doing so enables leaders become tactical when engaging adverse contexts. By acting form activism, establish interstices where secular stances can intersect whilst at same time coping difficulties inducing change given patriarchal structures.