Why African Women are Beyond Marching

By MAZZI ODU

This January saw millions of women march around the world in a series of Women’s Marches. What had originated as a protest against the sexist rhetoric of a certain President of the United States (yes, I refuse to sully my HH People piece with his name!), gathered apace as a number of issues based, but gender focused groups took to the streets demanding their voice be heard.

In spite of being the most populous city in Africa there was no such march shutting down of 3^rd Mainland Bridge in Lagos by women demanding equal rights. Many of my friends overseas commented on this and expressed disappointment at the lack of participation from the African Sisterhood. At first I was a tad embarrassed too.

However, on deeper reflection, it came to mind that African women weren’t declining to march out of misplaced sentiment, but because we had more pressing matters at hand. The 30% Club, an initiative seeking to get a third of women in boardrooms in FTSE100 and Fortune 500 companies isn’t going to be priority when the WHO is reporting 830 die every day in maternal and infant mortality related health issues and stemming this rate remains a pivotal SDG. The donning of Pussy Hats is going to feel of limited purpose when Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is still an active and condoned practice in many parts of Africa. Let’s not forget the everyday realities of limited opportunities due to parents favouring sending their male children over their female ones to school continues to be a norm. Quite frankly, the African feminist has an entirely different locus of concerns, but this is not to say that it is all doom and gloom for those born with a double x chromosome.

Whilst there is much to lament in terms of the position for women in Africa, one must also take into account the many things to celebrate. In some countries, most famously the Ashanti in Ghana, society runs on matrilineal lines; provenance and prestige are bestowed by virtue of who your mother is rather than the surname you inherited from your father. Across the continent, women often outnumber the menfolk in markets, trading in a plethora of products and services, thus creating wealth in their homes and communities, and most pertinent of all women provide an invaluable role as societal standard-bearers. I was struck hearing of an ancient Igbo custom where the other wives would call incalcitrant women to order who did not sweep their compounds or cook the family meal before dusk. On reading this it might be viewed as a step backwards for the sisterhood, but seen from a different perspective such measures are essential if one is to have a cohesive society.

Obviously, the very real issue of gender discrimination needs to be addressed across the continent, particularly in the area of education. The UN’s Girls Education Initiative and Michelle Obama’s Let Girls Learn Initiative are playing an important role in ensuring the education of the girl-child remains on the international agenda. Closer to home, TEF continues to play its part in showcasing the brilliance, ingenuity and resilience of women entrepreneurs and encouraging more would-be female moguls to apply through targeted campaigns. Whilst Social Media might be aflutter with images of millions of women taking to the streets, it is actual tangible and measurable gains for women globally that should remain both the focus and the ultimate goal.

Finally, let us not look too wistfully at our sisters in the West; a part of the world where a women’s role and place through a combination of the ‘have it all’ myth and the quest for ‘eternal youth and desirability’ have rendered many to a state of perpetual anxiety. Whilst there are many gender related issues to be solved in Africa, we still live in a continent where by and large, women of all sizes are considered beautiful, where motherhood is a badge of honour and where with age, one is seen as wiser and valued rather than of no further purpose and relevance.

The reason African women didn’t participate in marches? Probably because they were too busy with the demanding task of being the bedrock of society.