African Feminisms In The Global Arena

With the fracture of the notion of one unitary global sisterhood of every woman in any corner of the globe and irrespective of status, the recent trend in feminist scholarship has been for indigenous feminists to retreat to the comfort of their regions or communities to find a workable theory for issues and problems of women they actually know. As a result, some subjects that used to be popular - sisterhood is global, black feminism, Western feminism, etc. - have fallen into oblivion. On the contrary, indigenous feminisms have become popular as pockets of feminist theorists attempt to found a feminism that speaks to women of their particular locality in terms of gender and sex issues, class, development, politics, economics and the list goes on. Between these two poles is the struggle for social justice, including human rights, ethnic and racial justice, political and economic justice, power and authority, and the fight against oppression and subordination of women and females. Obviously, patriarchy and racism are two sides of the same coin; they work against feminist ideals. Hence, recent feminist consciousness is taking cognizance of issues of race and feminism together, both at the local and the global arena.This anthology argues that indigenous feminist theorists should expand their local vision into the global context. First, one good result is that feminist will get a better grip on the subjects of their protest, which are not always clear from one theorist or activist to the other. When experiences of local women are expanded onto the world level, one begins to see how the female condition is similar or different, barring local color. Second, one can see why feminism should go beyond women's issues only to fight for equal opportunities for all peoples all over the world. A fight for intersectionality in feminist scholarship, for example, demonstrates that a fight against ethnicity and racism is also a fight against kyriarchy. This is because issues of power, repression and subordination are not only for dignity, respect and regard for women, but for all citizens irrespective of gender.

This book makes a significant addition to the field of literary criticism on African Diaspora literatures. In one volume, it brings together the novels of eight transnational African Diaspora women writers, Yaa Gyasi, Chika Unigwe, Chimamanda Adichie, Imbole Mbue, NoViolet Bulawayo, Aminatta Forna, Taiye Selasi, and Leila Aboulela, and positions them as chroniclers of African immigrant experiences. The book inspires critical readings of these writers’ works by revealing emerging trends in women’s literature as they are being determined and redefined by immigration. As transnational subjects, the writers engage various meanings of mobility and exhibit innovative aesthetic styles; they create awareness on gender identities and transformations, constructions of home and belonging, as well as the politics of citizenship in the hostland. The book also highlights the importance of reverse migrations and performance returns to the homeland as an expression of human desire for home and belonging, and taken as a whole, it enhances our understanding of how migration and transnational existence are (re)shaping immigrant subjects. This book will be of interest to scholars, students, and researchers of African Diaspora literatures and gender studies, who will find this book beneficial for investigating critical trends, approaches to transnational literature, and for comprehending the diasporic burdens that transnational immigrants bear.

African feminism, this landmark volume demonstrates, differs radically from the Western forms of feminism with which we have become familiar since the 1960s. African feminists are not, by and large, concerned with issues such as female control over reproduction or variation and choice within human sexuality, nor with debates about essentialism, the female body, or the discourse of patriarchy. The feminism that is slowly emerging in Africa is distinctly heterosexual, pronatal, and concerned with "bread, butter, and power" issues. Contributors present case studies of ten African states, demonstrating that—as they fight for access to land, for the right to own property, for control of food distribution, for living wages and safe working conditions, for health care, and for election reform—African women are creating a powerful and specifically African feminism.

This book argues that African women's lived experiences are often spoken about authoritatively by people who are not included within this demographic, relegating these women to the role of spectators in their own stories. The dominant narratives of African womanhood, legitimized by intellectual discourse, are neither written by African women nor Africans in general. This book seeks to place feminism in Africa into its historical context by revisiting the experiences, practices, vision, and theories of feminism and gender in Africa. It is intended to serve as a comprehensive introduction to the field and provide a starting point for further and more advanced study of the nexus of feminism, gender, and development in Africa. Women Empowerment and the Feminist Agenda in Africa is designed to initiate post-graduate research and studies in the social sciences for directed and critical inquiry into the nature of feminist and gender politics and power relations in Africa. It is written for researchers, academics, and advanced tertiary studies, although professional gender and feminist organizations, especially those in Africa or focusing on Africa, will also find a wealth of information. The book is recommended for university libraries, post-graduate students and staff, the non-governmental community in Africa, women movement organizations in Africa, independent researchers and academics, and the African community at large.

In the global South there is potential for politics to marginalize the diverse perspectives of subaltern communities. Exploring ongoing and new feminist dialogues in the global South, this book examines the ways in which dominant epistemologies are challenged, unique identities formed, and the implications for the global feminist agenda.

This book explores justice ‘on the ground’ in Southern African communities, and in particular the roles that women play in these processes. Justice on the ground is often critiqued for being male-dominated and patriarchal. This volume seeks to unpack and problematize this assumption through the case studies of Namibia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and South Africa. Contributions focus on the lived experiences of women and the intersections of race, class, culture and the colonial experience that shape their lives. In the rural and peri-urban contexts discussed in this book, justice on the ground is found to be relational. The network of relationships between people and the well-being and health of a community as an integral whole continue to be of central importance as the survival of the community depends on the entire community functioning interdependently. An engagement with African feminisms is helpful in providing a number of lenses, or simply questions, through which to read the case studies. These case studies reveal the complex and organic ways in which women have power and influence in relation to justice on the ground which may not be immediately obvious.

Seminar paper from the year 2008 in the subject African Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 80 Prozent, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (School of Governmental and Social Science), course: Seminar: Women in Africa, language: English, abstract: Feminism isn’t the same everywhere. As the idea of equality between men and women spread around the globe, a fragmentation could be observed. Not everywhere were the concepts and images, created by American middle-class feminists, as well applicable and appropriate as in their original setting. The development of a Black feminism followed and was further challenged by the emergence of an African subdivision, which introduced new perspectives of colour, race, ethnicity and sexuality to the debate (Maerten 2004: 1). The question arises if African feminism can be seen as an exponent to feminist theory as for instance liberal or radical feminism. Is the focusing on a particular group of people by region or ethnicity in the same way a valid division of an approach as the dissection for the reason of differing goals? In this paper the author wants to discuss the position of African feminism within the entire concept. After defining the two major terms feminist theory and African Feminism, a general register of the differences as well as the similarities mean to draw an important comparison between the different perspectives. The final part will provide a review of the mentioned aspects of the debate to lead the reader to a position, where he can draw his own conclusions and opinions from.