Abstract
There are vibrant gay leathermen subcultures worldwide. Leathermen appropriate the
iconography (but not the behaviour) associated with motorcycle, military and police
protocols, and are an easily recognisable community. They have been studied as examples
of resistance to both heteronormativity and hegemonic forms of gay male culture. This
exploratory study on gay leathermen in South Africa is the first of its kind. Leathermen only
became publicly visible in 2009, with the establishment of the SA Leathermen Facebook
page (SALM). This article presents selected findings about the leathermen subculture in
South Africa, drawing from signifying texts and images posted on the SALM Facebook page
(2009-2015). It argues that in being aligned with the broader gay and lesbian community,
there is an unstable ‘fit’ between the ‘ethos’ of the leathermen subculture and the ‘public
face’ of homosexuality in South Africa.