LOUD WHISPERS: Misogyny and Gynophobia

‘A hatred of women’ ‘Strong dislike of, contempt for, or ingrained prejudice against women’ ‘A form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men’ These are some of the definitions of the word Misogyny that can be found in dictionaries. The origins of the word are from Greek ‘Misein’ […]
LOUD WHISPERS: The Online In-Laws

I don’t know if you read it I did The story about how a woman could not get pregnant She sought out her Pastor for counselling He dropped his trousers for divine anointing of her womb He instructed her to go straight home to her husband and get him to do the needful God would […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Sixty Random Thoughts

When I turned 60 recently, I figured that attaining this age needed to come with some perks. I thought about all the things I would normally not want to talk about, have the courage to say out loud, or admit to, things about myself that people might not know, or questions that I have been […]
LOUD WHISPERS: A Voice For Many Generations Ama Ata Aidoo (1942-2023)

One Saturday morning in the early 1990s in London, my husband was reading West Africa magazine and he called out to me, ‘Come and see this, you are being quoted here’. West Africa magazine was a weekly publication produced in London, which was taken seriously by its target audience of African scholars, activists, students, politicians and thought […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Blooming Into a New Season

I was asked to get to the studio at 10am. I was there at 9.50am. The plan was to do hair and make-up, then selection of outfits and accessories. This was my third photo shoot with the extraordinarily talented TY Bello – celebrity photographer, singer, producer, proud mother of twins. I did my first shoot […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Blooming Into A New Season

I was asked to get to the studio at 10am. I was there at 9.50am. The plan was to do hair and make-up, then selection of outfits and accessories. This was my third photo shoot with the extraordinarily talented TY Bello – celebrity photographer, singer, producer, proud mother of twins. I did my first shoot […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Simply the Best

Tina Turner (1939-2023) The scene happened half-way through the film. The female protagonist decided to fight back. Her face was bruised and bloodied and her eyes were barely open, but she got up after she was kicked to the other side of the limousine and jumped on her attacker. There was a deafening cheer […]
LOUD WHISPERS: Please Help Me Understand

Perhaps there is just too much nonsense going on Perhaps folks young and old are simply behaving badly There are many things that do not add up They might not all seem connected Trust me, they are Please help me understand How an entire country was rendered ‘cashless’ because of new notes How all old […]
LOUD WHISPERS: A Woman In Harmony With Her Spirit

Professor Abena Busia@70 ‘A woman in harmony with her spirit is like a river flowing. She goes where she will without pretense and arrives at her destination to be herself and only herself’ Maya Angelou She strode towards me with the regal twists and turns of her body I have always known her for, […]