Khadija Mistry, Grade 12
UWC Costa Rica
“I hear the roar of women`s silence. I sense the rumble of their storm and feel the fury of their revolt.” -Thomas Sankara. I start with the quote of a man even though I talk of equal rights for women because it helps us realize that it took a lot of a fight and support from a privileged gender to kick-off this movement. It cannot be argued that men have had a hand in supporting equal rights for women in the need of hour.
Thomas Sankara appointed many women within the government and revolutionary army. He then created the Union of Burkina Women, established International Women`s Day, and also set up educational programs. Sankara was one of the several others who stood as African feminists such as Amina Doherty or Wangari Mathai.
Namely African feminism like all feminisms is about challenging male dominance, but that it also resists oppression based on ethnicity, class, tradition, globalization and other specifics to Africa. Additionally, African feminism was not wholly a reaction to being excluded from white feminists' vision of feminism, but also from their own ingenuity and desire to create a feminism that embraced their backgrounds and experiences. It voices the realities of women in varying African countries.
In contrast to Sunkara’s political approach of the issue, Mukoma`s was a more literary one. Mukoma Wa Ngugi is a writer and professor who forces us to rethink the boundaries of our world. He reminds us that “to mention feminism to African cultural purists you become an agent of westernization” touching on the fact that modern western feminism is often blind to the plights of African women. this proves that we are not bound to a certain rule book or particular path to our goal if we are to take our stands at feminists. Therefore, here really is nothing stopping us from simply trying.
Furthermore, African countries have almost equal numbers of men and women either actively involved in business start-ups or in the phase of starting a new firm. And in countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and Zambia, women are reportedly more likely to be entrepreneurs than men. Moreover, Rwandan women today hold 62% of the country’s legislative seats, the highest in the world. In Senegal, South Africa, Namibia, and Mozambique, more than 40% of parliamentary seats are held by women. A few people find this fact hard to believe because most countries in Africa are named as mere developing countries, and the fact that this label does not discourage the population is one to be recognized. This being said, I believe it is only rational for us all to agree that half of these countries are standing because these hardworking women are the ones holding them together, and yet when women in Africa are mentioned what comes to most minds is an image of weak people living in poverty.
I, myself, do not live in a gendered household in any way. My dad loves cooking on the weekends, my mum works very hard as a teacher, and my sister and I have always been encouraged to do whatever we feel is right. My point is; just because you don’t see it around you, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Most men would sit back and relax while reading this article because they mightn’t have witnessed anything dramatic enough to make a change, or even worse; they`d like to keep their masculinity. My solution to this is; ask yourself, “Do you really wanna be that guy?” this usually seems to work because no one wants to be that guy.
Obviously, I haven’t written this article to tell a sob story that readers can pity. it’s the complete opposite, actually. This is to let it be known that not every woman in Africa sits back and lets herself go and not every man is completely oblivious to African feminism. This is to show the efforts of those who fought for what is right; efforts that are overlooked in several other works on feminism which would rather focus on the negative sides. This is to encourage much more than just pushing men down. Feminists aren’t those who fight to become the dominant gender; feminists are those who believe that both genders deserve equal rights and fight for their beliefs.
A moving force is a term used to describe someone who can make things happen. A single woman can’t change the way every human being thinks, but a group of strong-willed people- a moving force, can change the world.
Thomas Sankara appointed many women within the government and revolutionary army. He then created the Union of Burkina Women, established International Women`s Day, and also set up educational programs. Sankara was one of the several others who stood as African feminists such as Amina Doherty or Wangari Mathai.
Namely African feminism like all feminisms is about challenging male dominance, but that it also resists oppression based on ethnicity, class, tradition, globalization and other specifics to Africa. Additionally, African feminism was not wholly a reaction to being excluded from white feminists' vision of feminism, but also from their own ingenuity and desire to create a feminism that embraced their backgrounds and experiences. It voices the realities of women in varying African countries.
In contrast to Sunkara’s political approach of the issue, Mukoma`s was a more literary one. Mukoma Wa Ngugi is a writer and professor who forces us to rethink the boundaries of our world. He reminds us that “to mention feminism to African cultural purists you become an agent of westernization” touching on the fact that modern western feminism is often blind to the plights of African women. this proves that we are not bound to a certain rule book or particular path to our goal if we are to take our stands at feminists. Therefore, here really is nothing stopping us from simply trying.
Furthermore, African countries have almost equal numbers of men and women either actively involved in business start-ups or in the phase of starting a new firm. And in countries such as Ghana, Nigeria and Zambia, women are reportedly more likely to be entrepreneurs than men. Moreover, Rwandan women today hold 62% of the country’s legislative seats, the highest in the world. In Senegal, South Africa, Namibia, and Mozambique, more than 40% of parliamentary seats are held by women. A few people find this fact hard to believe because most countries in Africa are named as mere developing countries, and the fact that this label does not discourage the population is one to be recognized. This being said, I believe it is only rational for us all to agree that half of these countries are standing because these hardworking women are the ones holding them together, and yet when women in Africa are mentioned what comes to most minds is an image of weak people living in poverty.
I, myself, do not live in a gendered household in any way. My dad loves cooking on the weekends, my mum works very hard as a teacher, and my sister and I have always been encouraged to do whatever we feel is right. My point is; just because you don’t see it around you, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Most men would sit back and relax while reading this article because they mightn’t have witnessed anything dramatic enough to make a change, or even worse; they`d like to keep their masculinity. My solution to this is; ask yourself, “Do you really wanna be that guy?” this usually seems to work because no one wants to be that guy.
Obviously, I haven’t written this article to tell a sob story that readers can pity. it’s the complete opposite, actually. This is to let it be known that not every woman in Africa sits back and lets herself go and not every man is completely oblivious to African feminism. This is to show the efforts of those who fought for what is right; efforts that are overlooked in several other works on feminism which would rather focus on the negative sides. This is to encourage much more than just pushing men down. Feminists aren’t those who fight to become the dominant gender; feminists are those who believe that both genders deserve equal rights and fight for their beliefs.
A moving force is a term used to describe someone who can make things happen. A single woman can’t change the way every human being thinks, but a group of strong-willed people- a moving force, can change the world.
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