Indigenous Feminism and Black Women Leadership

Vuyisile Msila

doi:10.13189/sa.2021.090402

Abstract

For decades, feminism has been a concept associated with women's freedom from patriarchy, and this movement started in 1848 in Europe. Several political and social movements have fought on the side of women for gender equality over decades. In the 1960s, radical feminism grew because of the women's liberation movement, which continued well into the 1970s and 1980s. Over the years, feminism has given a voice to women wanting to unshackle themselves from patriarchy. This conceptual article examines indigenous feminism, which is an alternative to Eurocentric feminism. Amongst others, the indigenous feminists perceive their mandate as one of decolonizing feminism, thus looking beyond patriarchy as the sole problem women face in society. Indigenous feminists also recognize race, class and colonial history as among the major obstacles to women's advancement. Using theory synthesis, the article found that indigenous feminism embraced by womanism reflects how African women could contest for social justice and equality while utilizing certain values and principles. The conclusions demonstrate that women from the Global South will be empowered by African philosophies as they become strong leaders in society. Furthermore, the conclusions point out that empowered African women would be able to confront social injustices that stunt their growth as leaders in society.

Highlights

Introduction and BackgroundRecently, writers have written about the invisibility of women in positions of power, citing barriers that women leaders face relative to their contexts [1], [2], [3]
“Men were essential in the transmission of knowledge to the youth because they had a different type of knowledge of the earth and environment, and of ceremonies and traditions that were performed exclusively by men” [58]. This conceptual article is useful in the development of indigenous feminism in African contexts
The article demonstrates the importance of concepts that people need to be aware of when it comes to women‟s leadership in the African context, because the awareness of these concepts is the first step towards decolonization and women‟s freedom

Summary

Introduction and Background

Writers have written about the invisibility of women in positions of power, citing barriers that women leaders face relative to their contexts [1], [2], [3]. This theory includes the intersecting of social identities such as race, gender, age and sexuality which are intertwined with other systems of oppression and domination In her insightful and thought-provoking paper on West African societies, Oyewumi [5] argues that the concept of „gender‟ is a result of Western imperialism, and she contends that this concept for her traditional Yoruba in Nigeria was imported from Europe it is alien to Africa. It is a theory that black women seek to demonstrate culture and alternative ways of understanding femininity [9], [16] This conceptual article explores three aspects; firstly, it focuses on the debates used by feminists and how they exclude and alienate African women. The article investigates ways in which society and African women can enhance their leadership capabilities

Definition of Terms

Methodology

Women and Liberatory Values

Africana Womanism

Womanist Thought - Empowering the Woman Leader

Conclusions