Ani Clinton Ifeanyi

THE MODERN AFRICAN MAN AND FEMINISM ”Life is not a competition between men and woman. It is a collaboration” – David Alejandro Fearnhead. Are you a feminist? Of all the societal issues put up for debate in contemporary times, none has been more polarizing like that of the equality and rights of women in Africa. No other topic has ever engenderd the need for every African to assert themselves and hold an opinion. On one side of the divide, are those who are intent on bringing the roof down on the status quo. Setting fire to the patriarchal norms and beliefs of Africa and Africans. While on the other side, are those who would stop at nothing to keep the extant traditions the same. Peopled by conscious and unaware warriors and armed with the twin weapons of tradition and ignorance, they pose a lethal threat to true African growth. Feminism, though not a completely foreign concept in Africa, is still shrouded by the ugly light of deep-seated patriarchal values of the average African man. Enhanced by readily available recruits, patriarchy is a song that is all too old and consistent. Feminism in simple terms is the advocacy of women’s rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes. This ideology in itself poses a threat to the very foundation on which all other fundamental African repressive beliefs stem from. In all the corners of Africa, there is a visible feeling of discontent among women. A discontent in the traditions they’re enforced to live with and accept its stifling kisses. While some women in Africa bear to milder extents the bitter pill that patriarchy is, a lot more have it worse. Influenced by the intersectional extremes of the african society, some women have the odds skewed to never be in their favour. While this disparity in realities might be a schism in the level of advocacy and commitment, African women have somehow managed to keep the torches of feminism lit in their various quarters. For some of the apologists of patriarchy in Africa, maintaining the old and trusted African way is the premise on which they have built their gospel. Even going as far as claiming the old ways help to create a semblance of sanity. But for plenty others, a disdain for change and the fear of where those changes might leave them is their driving force. In recent times, the latter group has been the most vocal and effective in quelling the rising fires of African feminism. Teeming with young men and shockingly, women too, this group which consists of educated and mobile Africans, view feminism as a David to the gigantic privileges which they currently enjoy. But in the upward and onward march of the feminist movement in Africa, their match is met. Thus, setting up a battle of the immovable object and the unstoppable force. But Does The Modern African Man Have Any Need To Fear Feminism? Ironically, no other movement or socio-cultural reorientation might ever provide more benefits for men in Africa. Since before the arrival of the colonialists in Africa up until now, thousands of women have been in the forefront of liberation struggles and protests against injustices meted out on their fellow women by men. With the advent of colonialism, the power struggle shifted from between African men and women to “the colonialists versus the natives”. In fact, it can be argued that some of the most profound African gains against colonialism were kickstarted and made possible by women movements. Take for instance the women’s riots in Aba and Abeokuta in 1929 and in the late 1940s respectively. These riots didn’t only point out the unfair taxation system being practised by the colonialists in Nigeria but also played a role in the nationalist movements that led to independence. This latter group of women formed the body of the first nationalist feminist group in Nigeria. With the current spate of widespread corruption and injustice seen all around Africa, the need for more voices is now more than ever important. The need for more voices standing up against the brazenness of the political and social elite is of utmost importance. And who better to champion this cause than the African woman? Who better to fight this good fight than these women who have always been at war with society just to have a sliver of control over their lives? Everyday, hundreds of young men all across Africa are subjected to varying levels of oppression and hardships meted out by government officials, government policies and also the tools which they use in enforcing these policies. One of these tools is the popular SARS. An arm of the police in Nigeria tasked with the undesirable duty of being a sword against the peace and safety of progressive young men in urban Nigerian cities. These men of ill-repute are widespread across the country and terrorize thousands of young men each day. Sadly, very few voices have actually championed a movement against these deadly division of the police. Compared to the “Market March Movement” by women protesting the sexual harassment of women by male traders across the country which had profound results, previous protests against these SARS officials have yielded nothing more than a slap on the back. But that all changed recently when women; feminists and non-feminists joined their voices with men to protest against police brutality in Nigeria. At no other time in the Nigerian history had there ever been a more concerted and effective protest in the country. The voices of some of these women ringing loud and true. A voice all too used to oppression and brutality. The voices of these women just might be the final push that levels out oppression, inequality and bridge the chasm created by inept leadership. This is further buttressed by Barbara Strickland who opined that “what I am proud of, what seems simply clear, is that feminism is a way to fight for justice, always in short supply”. The modern African man ironically, is the biggest winner if this happens. Furthermore, with the current economic problems plaguing the world and more evident in Africa, most homes no longer can afford to have women who are assigned only the role of caregiving. This places a huge burden on the modern African man to make ends meet and sadly, they most likely come up short. It is therefore pertinent that the modern African man should as a matter of urgency support the independence and empowerment of the women around them even if only for selfish reasons. The modern African man would do well to align himself with the feminist movement and totally embrace it. He would do well to lay himself down on the pyre of reorientation being lit all across Africa by feminism. Rising from it a champion fighter for the feminist cause and by extension, the total development of Africa and Africans. So the next time he is asked if he’s a feminist, his answer would be “who isn’t?”