To those of you who are in this academy, I will not lie to you that what you will learn here will make you likeable.
I hold a PhD in feminist theory. I am not a feminist because it is easy. I am a feminist because it is the right thing to be.
Dr. Jessie Kabwila
Facebook recently decided to remind me how ignorant I was in 2016 by, as usual, showing me a memory – a misogynistic post I made 4 years ago.
4 years ago, I already identified as a feminist. I remember being introduced to feminism via Twitter, when I was in my third year of undergrad.
When I read up on the basic principles of feminism, I never for a moment even thought I was anything other than a feminist. I did not even understand what the outrage re feminism was about. I still do not. The idea of women having human rights sounds very basic to me. At the same time, nearly everyone who argues against feminism is simply trying to sound more palatable to, dare I say, men.
My existence is not about how desirable you find me.
Warsan Shire
Over the years, I have grown and evolved a lot; unlearning a great deal, changing my views on a lot of seemingly trivial things – simple views and opinions, which are a reflection of internalised perceptions that some (most) times have major impact.
Briefly, I made a post about how some men will prefer to marry women like Michelle Obama, while others will opt to marry women like Kim Kardashian. Besides the fact that (though being a feminist) my world still revolved around the idea of getting married/being marryable (a concept which men never waste their breath or life on, by the way), I particularly cringe at how I viewed myself in relation to other women.
Even when I tried to be snarky when some friends asked me to clarify on my stance – I essentially meant to say that Michelle Obama is better as a woman than Kim Kardashian; and I may have even subconciously meant to liken myself to the Michelle Obama type; therefore seeing myself as better than other women: Internalised Misogyny. Heck some people may even argue that I am more on the Kim Kardashian end of things (haa – a delight!).
Recently, there have been plenty debates about the abortion bill under discussion in Malawi (follow link above).
Without sharing my opinions on the matter, what I find astounding is the number of men who choose to centre themselves on this issue. There have been several panel discussions and conferences, which mostly center men.
As much as abortion is indeed a human rights issue; it is also very much a women’s rights issue. It is definitely a discussion to be had – as a country that for some strange (or maybe not) reason identifies as a (western) God-fearing nation.
It should be a discussion which women lead, because whether we like it or not – pregnancy is a phenomenon that happens in women’s bodies, and majorly impacts women’s lives more than it does men’s. It is a discussion to which men can contribute to. Men putting themselves front and centre to decide on women’s bodies says a lot about where we are as a society. It does not help, that most people’s views on the topic are based on their personal religious views (something which is not Universal), and the self-importance which comes with their ‘morality’.
Morality should never be equated to human rights. Morality is subjective.
Emma Kaliya, MHRRC
THE AFRICAN FEMINIST MACROECONOMICS ACADEMY – MALAWI
I have listened to so many power women this week – Jessie Kabwila and Emma Kaliya just being some.
I remember being at the University of Malawi, Chancellor College, and hearing about the force that was lecturer Dr. Jessie Kabwila. I think of her audacity to disrupt, and what her existence alone did for a lot of us.
I mentioned, as we had lunch with her and a few other women, how just being exposed to her and her audacity to be (even without ever having a conversation with her), a lot of us have moved to become powerful women (if I do say so myself) with a voice to.
My former boss reminded me, though, that even when that has been so – Dr. Kabwila has also paid a huge price for that liberation, in her career. Perhaps, if she had chosen the easy route – she could have esily risen more smoothly, was she any less than a feminist; had she any less of the audacity to disrupt.
I kept thinking what kind of Malawi we would have (particularly for the sake of the less-privileged Malawian women) if we had more powerhouses like Dr. Kabwila leading the conversation on women’s rights and issues. How we would would lift each other up, and the impact the collective audacity to disrupt would have.
All my love,
Ntha
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