South Africa: Change the Script - Stories That Refuse Silence

Change the Script is a national storytelling-driven campaign challenging harmful norms that perpetuate sexual and gender-based violence in South Africa. Through Film, dialogue, and survivor-centred approaches, it sparks reflection, empathy, and collective responsibility to build safer, more just communities.

Tosunga Baninga launched the Change the Script campaign to confront the deep-rooted crisis of sexual and gender-based violence and femicide in South Africa. Operating from the Vaal region but working nationally, the organisation recognised that traditional awareness campaigns were no longer enough. People knew the problem existed, yet harmful norms, victim-blaming, and patriarchal attitudes continued to enable violence.

Change the Script uses Film, creative storytelling, and African feminist principles to challenge these harmful norms. The campaign centres survivor voices in ethical and respectful ways, ensuring that their experiences are not reduced to statistics but recognised as powerful testimonies that call for accountability and change.

Workshops, film screenings, exhibitions, and dialogues have created safe spaces for communities to reflect on harmful behaviours, understand structural inequalities, and explore collective responsibility. Partnerships with filmmakers, educators, civil society organisations, and government stakeholders have enabled wide-scale engagement across rural and urban communities.

Communities report increased empathy, improved understanding of consent, and a shift from silence to open dialogue. The campaign has also strengthened collaboration between NGOs, media, and advocacy groups, enhancing visibility and grounding public conversations in survivor-centred, decolonial perspectives.

The shift marks an important evolution in South Africa’s response to SGBVF—moving from awareness to transformation. By humanising survivors and equipping communities with tools for prevention and accountability, Change the Script lays the foundation for sustained cultural and systemic change.

Quotes: 

Gretta Mazibuko - For the first time I feel that people are here for me and not for their personal agenda,

Mitta Mpholo - We are often forgotten but today you came and much was learnt. We hope for more workshops like these so that we know how to report cases, where to go and the right questions to ask during court proceedings.

Ntombi Emily Mofokeng - At first, I really did not have hope when I met you, but I was shocked at the level of how you push for justice yet remain humble and always present for families.

Link to Video