Graeme Reid (activist)

Graeme Reid is a South African scholar and activist who is the current United Nations Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity (UN IE SOGI). Prior to being appointed UN IE SOGI, he was the director of the LGBT rights program at Human Rights Watch. He has also written two books: Real Gay: Gay Identities in small-town South Africa and Above the Skyline. Some of his written works have been published in scholarly journals and as chapters of a book.

Early life and education

Reid was born in Johannesburg and attended University of Witwatersrand where he received his bachelor's and master's degree. He was the coordinator of the Gay and Lesbian Archives in South Africa and then worked as a researcher with the Institute for Social and Economic Research at his alma mater.

Career

Reid co-directed the documentary film, Dark and Lovely, Soft and Free for the Gay and Lesbian Archives in 2000.