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LOUD WHISPERS: March 8th Bandwagon

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Friday, March 17th, 2017
19 comments

When I was working with Akina Mama wa Afrika (AMwA), an international development organisation for African women based in London (AMwA has since relocated to Uganda), my job entailed developing programs to support African women living in the UK. Whilst the focus of our work was advocacy and influencing policy, we did a fair amount of frontline work with refugee women, African women in prison and women struggling to cope in the new environment they found themselves in. One day my husband and I went to dinner at the home of a friend of his, whose fiancée had just arrived from Nigeria. Let me call our friend Joe. Joe had been in London at least six years before we got there. He worked in Information Technology and was doing quite well. He had bought a house in a nice part of London, and so his wife to be arrived into considerable comfort. I got talking to the fiancée who I will call Mary. She asked me what I was doing in London, and I told her I was with an organisation supporting African women in the UK. She said, ‘Really? I didn’t know African women had problems here’. It took a lot of self-control for me not to stare at her in horror at the ignorance of her statement. When I told my husband about my conversation with Mary, he laughed and said, ‘Give her some time. She will learn’. Of course she did.

When I was interviewed for my job at AMwA, I was asked to name challenges African women faced in the UK. The person who called to offer me the job told me that of all the people who they interviewed. I was the only one who fully understood what an organisation like AMwA was trying to achieve. They found it surprising that a young Nigerian-British woman who did not have to worry about her immigration status  and who had already  received a decent education, was better equipped for the job than older, more experienced women who had been living in the UK for much longer. I told her that being Black-British was not without its challenges. Two days after our wedding, my husband and I were almost homeless because the flat we were paying rent on was re-possessed by the local council. Our landlord, the legal occupant of the flat who had moved to Nigeria, had sub-let to us and was collecting our rent but not paying back to the council. We had to hurriedly pack our things, our wedding gifts unopened, to stay with a friend till we could make other arrangements. In addition, at the Department of Health where I worked as an Administrative Officer, I got to know what personal and institutional racism was like.

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Full Reading in Loud Whispers cover final

 

Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi is a Gender Specialist, Social Entrepreneur and Writer. She is the Founder of Abovewhispers.com, an online community for women. She can be reached at BAF@abovewhispers.com

 

 

 

 

 

19 Responses

  1. I think the advancement in technology and globalization has really aid the women course all over the world and people are getting better informed about the deserved place of women and young girls around the world. I’m optimistic that very soon the work will sing this tune in unison

  2. This year was the first time I got to be aware of the international women’s day and it was well celebrated almost everywhere around me. I’m glad about such development and I hope this will as well materially affect the way women are treated all over the world

  3. Making the world a better place just capped it all for me. Let us support our women. Help a woman, help a girl child.

  4. As you have said earlier on, the mentallity of some people is questionable. Because you are privilege to be in the midst of rich ones thet think there is nothing called struggle.

  5. This day was highly received and celebrated and the converstaions surrounding the day was quite great and enlightening. I must say, that technology, social media has helped in eductaing people about the real sense of women development and the onus lies on everybod to make a difference every day.

  6. Ehn! The international women’s day has come and gone and i’m happy that you are writing about this, because it’s more than just a day, it’s a continuous struggle to make progress and make the lives of women better everytime.

  7. Women should be empowered. They should be taught the right thing to do at every point int time, they should be helped by women and men. They should be celebrated daily.

  8. Thank God, you were able to talk to share knowledge with these girls, it’s also important that we also carry these news. orientation to the rural areas and speak with the girls over there.

  9. I am glad that the mary’s of this world are getting knowledgeable. The main thing is getting active, speaking more and supporting women to achieveing greatness.

  10. I was at the event on friday, and I must say, the story of Temi and how you spoke to the hearts of every woman in that hall, inspired me and set fire in our hearts to do more.
    God bless you and every woman on the cause to liberating women.

  11. I think women in the rural areas should be of keen interest o. Educated women already have a bedrock, it’s these rural women that need the education, most of them don’t even know what social media is. They should be helped and spoken to.
    Most of them are only used as political salvage and are dunped later. Let the campaign go to the local people

  12. Happy women’s day once again and keep the fire burning ma. You have been a blessing to a lot of people across the female gender which means, even the men are glad to have you in this generation.

  13. This is a clarion call that we do something much more than march 8, so many events happened that day, paid and free respectively but it is more than just the events, it’s about effectively making a change and getting on it immediately.

  14. I am impressed that this article is up to help everyone see that it is more than just the event of that day. Some people even used it as a money making venture, they just made money from women there’s no further impact. We should first be a part of growing, grooming people. This is should be the motive of everyone and not just a global calender mark date, celebration

  15. I wish I was in Lagos I would have attended the program, and that could have helped me have different views and opinions about women who are vulnerable in the society. And what to do to snap out of their various predicament.

  16. It is so certain that I will be a feminist, because I’m always pained when I see my fellow women being insulted, molested and assaulted. God bless every feminists out there, am so proud of you. You all shall not be weary in this journey of ours.

  17. This is a good and an eye opening one to women who wants to be in save hands. This year’s international women day was more than just a day. It was very educating and insightful, Kudos to every feminists out there and God bless you!

  18. God bless you dearly for embarking on this road to changing the lives of the girl child. just like you, I’m a feminist with the Big F! 5

  19. Thumbs up to all the active women who are doing this for a good cause, not just to be seen on instagram.

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