An activist fighting against gender-based violence, a UCT graduate, a fashion icon, an influential figure. Michael van Niekerk (he/him/they/them) is the founder of the popular social media account ‘Keep The Energy’ which has over 98 000 followers on Instagram alone.
Michael van Niekerk is the face behind the popular social media page, Keep The Energy, which highlights gender-based violence (GBV) cases all around South Africa. The page was started to bring attention to GBV cases and help victims find justice, says Michael. PHOTO: Supplied/Michael van Niekerk
It’s 2019. Michael van Niekerk is in their second year of a BA degree, majoring in film studies and English, at the University of Cape Town (UCT). There is a first-year student in their faculty that grabs their attention. This student is Uyinene Mrwetyana, who was raped and murdered by a post office attendant. This incident sparks outrage throughout the country. Michael, too, is outraged.
Michael recounts starting an Instagram account a few days after news about Uyinene’s death broke. They called it ‘Keep The Energy’ with the aim to inform people about, and bring justice to, gender based violence (GBV) cases. They estimate that within three days of starting the account it had accumulated over 2 000 followers. Today, this account has 98 800 followers on Instagram and 54 000 followers on Facebook.
The goal of starting this account was to bring attention to cases like Uyinene’s and keep the rage that South Africans felt when news broke about what had happened to her, says Michael.
Keep The Energy is a non-profit organisation that raises money for and helps victims of gender-based violence, according to their Instagram. They have helped many victims find safe spaces away from danger, seek counselling and have raised money for medical bills of victims, says Keep The Energy founder, Michael van Niekerk. SCREENSHOT: Alison Hermanus
The eldest son is not afraid
Michael was born and raised in Bellville, Cape Town, and now works full-time as a copywriter, they say. “I’ve been here since I was born and I’m [turning] 26 this year […]. Everyone [in my family] is still in the house.”
The extended Van Niekerk family is quite large, says Michael. They are the oldest of three, with a sister who is 22 and a brother who is 19, says Michael. Both of their parents are also at home with them. “I also have five other aunts and uncles with, I think, like 18 cousins.”
Although the family is so large, Michael says they have always felt loved and seen in their home. “We are a very strong family unit. Everyone’s very loving, invested in each other [and] very supportive,” they say.
Michael attributes their growth as an individual to the loving nature of their family.
“We focus on open communication and […] as parents [we] lead [them] by example,” says Sharon van Niekerk, Michael’s mother. “[We nurture] and support […] everyone’s dreams and visions.”
Michael and Sharon have a love-hate relationship and don’t always agree on everything. However, Michael laughs about it, saying it’s part of the fun of being the eldest. “I wouldn’t [call it a] rivalry, but she will tease me. It’s nice.”
In this way, Michael’s passion for activism was not shocking to their family as they have been known to speak up and root for ‘the underdog’ from a young age, says Sharon.
As Michael got older, they became more comfortable voicing their opinions, says Sharon, who is proud of this trait in all of her children.
Michael’s home is full of love and they are a product of their environment, they say.
“He shared about the horrific incident at the post office with the UCT student,” says Sharon, referring to the murder of Uyinene in 2019. Their family fully supported their idea to start Keep The Energy, she says.
The activist is fighting
As Keep The Energy has grown in followers, so has the impact that it has on GBV cases in South Africa.
“I unintentionally [got] Love Island [South Africa] cancelled,” says Michael, recounting a rape joke that was made by a contestant on the show that aired on DStv.
Michael demanded an immediate apology from DStv, but claims they were ignored.
Angry, and determined, Michael says that they reached out to journalists and news publications all over the country. “I spread the word about it. It became a big thing. I think the week after [I did] that, the show was cancelled.” In addition to this, a formal apology was issued, says Michael.
“They said sorry, [but] I wasn’t very happy with it. They said sorry in the past, without any training or counselling. […] [The apology was] just really baseless and watered down,” says Michael.
Cancelling the show and issuing a “baseless” apology did not fix the issue, claims Michael, who would have liked the person who made the offensive joke to apologise on the show instead of M-Net apologising on her behalf. “I often feel like I’m fighting a losing battle.”
Michael searches for GBV stories on different news publication websites, they say. Families of victims often reach out to the Keep The Energy social media pages as well. They make sure to verify each case and only consult trusted news sources, they say. The most common cases that they say they come across are women being killed by their male partner.
Michael has been running the page for 5 years as of September 2024. “The same stories [come up] over and over [again], the same, every day,” they say.
However, Michael emphasises the importance of giving attention to queer victims, whose stories do not always get the same attention as those of children and young women. The same energy should be kept for all GBV cases, they say.
Michael van Niekerk was born and raised in Bellville, Cape Town. They thank their family for being open and loving as it helped shape them into the person they are today, they say. “Everyone’s very loving, invested in each other [and] very supportive,” they say. PHOTO: Supplied/Michael van Niekerk
The NPO is making a difference
Keep The Energy is a registered non-profit organisation, according to their social media.
Michael never wanted the account to become a business that does partnerships or makes a profit so they avoid using their platform in this way, they say. “My goal, since day one, [has been] to honour the victims and [get] the message out there.”
“[Michael] started the […] organisation when Uyinene unfortunately passed away and there was an [uprising] happening from […] students at UCT,” said Tamzin Williams, who has been friends with Michael since 2014. Michael told friends that they wanted to do something concrete instead of just standing on the sidelines, she says.
Keep The Energy has become concrete, says Michael. They have raised thousands of rands for GBV victims, gotten the police to take many cases more seriously, and have personally helped victims find safe spaces away from danger, they say. They hope to one day open a women’s shelter on behalf of Keep The Energy.
Michael van Niekerk is the founder of Keep The Energy, which is a non-profit organisation aimed at helping victims of gender-based violence and fighting for justice for victims who have been murdered. Michael tells SMF News that they do not like being in the limelight as the focus should be on the victims, but they are willing to do interviews to bring more attention to the organisation. SCREENSHOT: Alison Hermanus
Michael is a person
“We’ve come a long, long way and it’s a beautiful friendship,” says Tamzin. “Michael was obviously not [always] as glamorous as he is now.”
Michael appreciates their friends, family, and those who support Keep The Energy, as they have helped them become more confident over the years, they say. They have also recently found their style.
“In the past year I guess I’ve opened up to […] more make-up and feminine clothing.”
Michael spends their time away from copywriting and running Keep The Energy by being with friends and family, attending drag shows, and dressing up, they say.
“Once I was told […] ‘you’re an activist. How can you party every weekend?’ I think that’s funny,” they say, emphasising that activists are also people who like to unwind and have fun during their time off. “I feel like I’m not Keep The Energy myself. So, I separate my culture from Keep The Energy.”
Michael will continue to do their work as an activist, but hopes that one day in the future there will be no need for a page like Keep The Energy anymore.