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This paper examines the recently formed Movement for Change and Social Justice (MCSJ) in the township of Gugulethu, in Cape Town, South Africa. MCSJ is a health and social justice movement that has an unusual trajectory-guided by the political principles and strategies of South Africa AIDS activism, inspired but also frustrated by the contemporary progressive public health activism, and catalysed by a university research partnership at the University of Cape Town (UCT) that focused on innovative ways of using health information to spur community and health system action to respond to issues of men, masculinity and HIV. This paper synthesises findings from participant observation, qualitative process evaluations of MCSJ's work, and reflections from the UCT-based research team to develop a number of lessons about the challenges and opportunities in efforts to foster a healthy public for men and HIV. MCSJ's approach builds on current modes and models of public health thinking while also pushing for more responsive, more inclusive, more sustained, and more locally rooted forms of practice. The paper identifies a range of enabling conditions for MCSJ's work, describes the often delicate balancing act MCSJ has to manage in its work, and outlines some of the key strategies of this community-university partnerships that guided efforts to develop a healthy public for men and HIV. Lessons learned from this case study will be helpful for other efforts to promote and sustain engaged and impactful university-community collaborations to support the emergence of healthy publics.

In this paper, we explore the gender socialization of adolescent boys in soccer clubs, and ask whether there are opportunities for integrating gender transformative elements into that socialization. This qualitative study involved 11 in-depth interviews and informal conversations with male soccer coaches from Gugulethu township and Mthatha town in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa, respectively. Data were analyzed using a thematic analysis approach. We found that the coaches felt that the adolescent boys in their soccer clubs faced serious social and emotional challenges, with the boys’ poor socio-economic backgrounds and fragmented family structures being major contributors to these challenges. Most coaches also gave themselves the responsibility to try to address some of the challenges faced by their club members. To do this, they employed specific strategies, including creating an alliance with parents and professionals. In the process, the coaches engaged the boys on topics around respect, sexual and reproductive health, and avoiding alcohol, drugs, and involvement in criminal gangs. Some coaches also played a social fathering role to club members as a way of helping them to think differently about their lives, redirect risky practices, and reduce the chance for poor health outcomes. These findings highlight the role of soccer clubs and coaches as potential avenues for health- and equity-promoting gender socialization of adolescent boys.