AfricanFeminism (AF) is a pan-African feminists digital platform and collaborative writing project between African  authors/writers  with the long-term ambition of bringing on board at least one feminist voice from each country on the continent. As an online feminist platform, we encourage open discussion and dialogue on feminist issues throughout the continent.  We are about  inquiry, questioning,  dialoguing  and transforming mind-sets through such processes.  We are not afraid to claim the word ‘Feminism’ and invite open conversations  to better understand this  paradigm  through our own and others’ lived experiences.

Follow us on Facebook  and @Afrifeminists on Twitter

 

AF’S HISTORY 

On January 1, 2011  our founder Billene Seyoum  started the blog site ethiopianfeminist three months after  moving back to Addis Ababa. She initially aimed to document her observations on issues of gender equality and inequality through a feminist lens as she went about her daily life in Addis. A few months later,  Aberash  Hailay’s  case, the Ethiopian Airlines flight attendant whose ex-husband stabbed both her eyes with a knife, shook the city and this platform became a source of information about the campaign.  “Ahun  be  Ayne  Meta,” created by concerned citizens in collaboration with the Network of Ethiopian Women’s Association. As a member of the core campaign team, Billene closely  followed the case as it unfolded and through providing first hand account of the case, the site grew in creating dialogue on issues of gender based violence and violence against women in Ethiopia. Back then, this site was also the only feminist voice coming out of Ethiopia and it had the intention of inspiring others female voices to emerge in the blogosphere.

In 2012, Billene transformed the site to www.africanfeminism.com. This decision emanated from her need to understand similar issues on the continent and engage with other African feminists. It was also a response to the lack of Ethiopian voices on continental issues.

“There was so much to understand and talk about by way of shared experiences, challenges, and opportunities throughout the continent. Despite these grand intentions, it was difficult to source diverse and lived experiences from other parts of Africa given the fact that  I  was stationed in Ethiopia.”

For a long time the platform carried articles that were heavily focused on experiences within Ethiopia but with a site called  AfricanFeminism, sharing only an Ethiopian  paradigm would not suffice. Hence, the growth to a collaborative site comprising feminists from throughout the continent. AfricanFeminism now has over 20 writers who collaborate consistently and some guest feminist writers.

 

To our  visitors, we invite you to freely engage in the discussions and offer insights to foster knowledge, understanding, and creativity.

“Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression.” ~ bell hooks

“Feminism is the radical notion that women are people” ~ Rebecca West

 

Contact us: [email protected]