The liberation of the Black woman and the proclamation of this side-lined group as essential and complex parts of womanhood is the ultimate theme of Emecheta’s writing. Read more.
In 'Kehinde‘, Emecheta used brutal ‘documentary-style’ realism to showcase the plights of women in patriarchal societies, and often, the question that lay beneath was, what would our world be if women were freed from toxic gender roles? Read more.
‘The Joys of Motherhood’ could be considered as one of the forebears of feminist issues on reproductive justice and culture within the rich Nigerian literary tradition. Read more.
Having been brought up in a culture of storytelling, Buchi Emecheta would have been aware, from a young age, of ways in which her local tradition marginalized women and reinforced male supremacy. Read more.
In 2020, the Federal Government of Nigeria imposed a lockdown and implored residents to stay at home to protect themselves and others from the COVID-19 pandemic. But for many women and children, the home became a dangerous place. Read more.
With its gay Nigerian protagonist, Walking with Shadows, Funmi Iyanda’s movie adaptation of Jude Dibia’s 2005 novel, promises ambition but is, ultimately, a modest step in the long journey of contending with the extent of Nigerian (in)humanity. Read more.
That women’s participation in anti-colonial and nationalist struggles may not be as obvious in existing literature does not mean such participation was peripheral. Read more.
In the freedom-fighting legacy of Malawi’s Vera Chirwa, you see the power of emotion and feelings, often devalued in women, as the driver of her activism. Read more.