OK.. Its interesting you highlight the word.. oppressors

Who are these oppressors..

MrAnony1:
Yes I can.

Both regular and radical feminism are characterized by a concern for issues that adversely affect women and trying to help them to overcome these issues: this includes aiding women in societies where women are oppressed to break forth from their oppressors and create a more equal playing feild.
Radical feminism such as is FEMEN for instance goes further to demonize men and argue for positions that go beyond equality and unto a society that oppresses men.


In the same way, a regular MRA would be concerned about men's issues and try to combat problems that adversely affect men: Helping men gain a more equal footing with the females in the society. A radical MRA such as a MGTOW or PUA takes more extreme positions that demonize women (not the feminist ideology) and treat them with malice

pickabeau1: OK.. Its interesting you highlight the word.. oppressors

Who are these oppressors..

For example, in Saudi Arabia women don't have the right to drive cars but men do. Whoever makes or enforces such a law is an oppressor.

Now before we move any further, I must ask: did my answer differentiating between radical and regular feminists satisfy you? If not, what don't you agree with about the difference between regular and radical feminism?

The writer never personalised or opinionated her write up. He only spilled the beans out in the most realistic manner of writting. African women need to define who they really are and what they stand for rather than immitate the western culture that we know little about. I am a fan of Adichie but detest her idea of feminism. The western culture that birthed the idea feminism has her own share of the challenge. I am a culture oriented and die hard African man and will never allow education brought by the western becloud my sense of judgement. Feminism has done us more harm than good. Its not even working among the european and US counterparts, who were the orginator of it. Adichie allowed her exposure and emotion, overide her sense of truthfulness and reality. She is not wiser than her fathers, Achebe, Ben Okri, soyinka and the likes...
I rate Adichie one over ten for this show of shame!

ihedinobi2:
Fair treatment is not equal treatment. I think that feminists know that. They aren't asking for women to be treated fairly, as far as I know. They're asking for them to be treated equally, the same as men. I think that their arguments for that position tend to be self-contradictory.

As a realist i know people all over the world cannot be treated equally. That can only happen in kingdom of God where everything is perfect.

Are there any women here who have been treated with inequality in Nigeria? It would be appreciated if you could share experiences and situations where you have been "cheated" as it were, just because of your female gender. Thanks.

freshdude2: Are there any women here who have been treated with inequality in Nigeria? It would be appreciated if you could share experiences and situations where you have "cheated" as it were, just because of your female gender. Thanks.

yes, there are many of them.
JAMB deliberately failed them because they are females.

Hehehe... The tide is turning on feminists. Loooong op, but I did enjoy reading it.

Amhappy: What a long post. There must be war going on between Adiche and this writer sincerely to warant this. To say Adiche mock Achebe's works is a serious accusations. I dont agree with this writer that all communities in Igboland treat ladies fairly. If Adichie is from where i think she came from, then there is no reason for the writer to wonder why she do all the things she was accused of. Feminism is something i dont understand blc i see it as extreme. I believe humans all over the world should be given fair treatment,be it a man,woman or child.

i dont think i can sight any hatred from dat guys write up....hes only saying truth,and we shldnt hide dat fact...moreover talking about fairness amongst woman an children,where in nigeria or what part of the world are women and children not treatrd fairly apart from arabians countries,andsome parts in the north,and mind u those who maltreat women in d north are mostly uneducated and ignorant people who claim to do that on the basis of religion


cos the nigeria i live,women are allowed to vote,when on a queue even guys be like ladies first,a guy will always help a girl in need,hitting a woman is never done,a man will tell his wife to take care of the home and his kids,so dat they will have a good childhood while he wll go runninh and working to provide for the family.....et all

cos like seriously i dont know where u guys get this dumb opinion from,tho am a fan of ngozi but i cant go down d drain with,d funny thing is she isnt even married to a nigerian,...and most of the nigerian feminist claiming shiitt av never left the shores of this country not to talk of marryin a foreigner....they will defo marry a nigerian and i bet you dey wont play the feminist ishh once in their marriage time,hypocrites kip wanting to deceive other nigerian females,.,,smh

coogar:

yes, there are many of them.
JAMB deliberately failed them because they are females.

Lol. I, personally, haven't seen it. But I think that nobody's unsavoury experiences should be swept under the carpet. After all, we claim to be modern, moral men.

but seriously i cant imagine being a feminist,....a woman will defo marry someone,and a good communication btw couples begets a good relationship,cos i cant imagine,sharing things into two with husby,he pays half the fee i pay half,i wake up to sweep and i wake him up to walk plate,i wash pepper and he grinds it,who will cuddle who ,boring marriage God forbid,...dont quote me wrong couples will defo assist eachother but it shld be with love and not like u are being cheated by the opposite sex,caiusing rivalry oshi! ...u are woman take gud care of your husband and home,and he will do the same exceptt u are marrying a buffoon.....feminist my foot!

Dantedasz: 99% of women claiming to be feminists in Nigeria are hypocrites,liars,fakes and big frauds. They are arguing a philosophy they do not understand nor believe in.
100%of the feminists on Nairaland are fakes,liars and frauds who do not practice what they preach.

i totally agree...

they want to capitalize on bottom power and then act like its brain power...nonentities

the author of this thread deserves a million dozen roses, i hear its a woman that wrote that fine write up

i've always admired Chimamanda's writing but that her stupid talk on Beyonce's album pissed me off BIG TIME


See the words:

We teach girls to shrink themselves, to make themselves smaller
We say to girls: "You can have ambition, but not too much
You should aim to be successful, but not too successful
Otherwise, you will threaten the man"
Because I am female, I am expected to aspire to marriage
I am expected to make my life choices
Always keeping in mind that marriage is the most important
Now, marriage can be a source of joy and love and mutual support
But why do we teach girls to aspire to marriage
And we don't teach boys the same?
We raise girls to see each other as competitors
Not for jobs or for accomplishments, which I think can be a good thing
But for the attention of men
We teach girls that they cannot be sexual beings in the way that boys are
Feminist: a person who believes in the social
Political, and economic equality of the sexes

UTTER RUBBISH....in Nigeria parents hassle men as much as they do women about marriage, women are not raised to see each other as competitors...women have been competing amongst themselves since day 1...Sarah and her maidservant she gave Abraham...

women can talk all this feminism rabbish as much as they want but goodluck changing your genes

njokusboy:

WTF, good lord... U know u don't have to comment if u got nothing to say right??

Yes, African femininists know too little while the chauvinists are classy, tact, with sophisticated minds (a mild joke) and deeply knowledgeable. The chauvinist in question (the OP) believes Teju Cole is a better writer than Adichie such an insult!! How knowledgeable is that?!

To also believe that full integration with Caucasian races is what stimulates class is post colonial myopia. A Mr Johnson Syndrome. Friction between races is a cultural phenomenon way beyond the individual.

I'm usually at a loss when this feminism talks rears head. A lot of women advocate feminism without actually understanding its full implication - an implication that is a total contradiction of what the woman actually is and what she really wants.

Its one thing to advocate for a stop to the gender segregation many women suffer. Its quite another to advocate for equality. Its against the rules of nature, our very existence itself.

chukwuma101: Adichie's brand of feminism is exactly what feminism shouldn't be about. Feminism calls for a level playing ground for both genders and not the unwarranted 'upliftment' of females above the male folk. Females are entitled to everything a man is entitled to in nigeria. The apparent disparity in the distribution of genders socially, politically, academically etc that seems to favour males is a function of the innate complexes of the female gender. A female that intends to succeed must beat down these complexes not the male folk as Adichie supposes. Adichie is very eurocentric, she writes not for Africa, but for Europe. She thinks she is a tour guide laden with the responsibility to explain African "(un)civilisation" to Westerners. She appeals to the West to garner international recognition. She tells them everything is wrong with the way we raise our girls because she knows it will please Western civilisation to hear that. But her views are jaundiced and misleading to those who see Africa through her eyesight. She endorses African women not to take on their husband's surname while in the same breath tells them to eschew artificial hairdo. This highlights her confusion. She is a selective feminist. Adopting the side of the coin that advances her pseudo-intellectual ideology and avoiding the other. But there are always two sides to a coin. She wants to westernise Africans, but she is undecided. She is caught in-between...

And therein with the emboldened points lies the misguided, unfortunate, and inherently selfish agenda of this sham called feminism.

I keep calling them jokers (especially African feminists), never to be taken seriously.

Mattin: The writer never personalised or opinionated her write up. He only spilled the beans out in the most realistic manner of writting. African women need to define who they really are and what they stand for rather than immitate the western culture that we know little about. I am a fan of Adichie but detest her idea of feminism. The western culture that birthed the idea feminism has her own share of the challenge. I am a culture oriented and die hard African man and will never allow education brought by the western becloud my sense of judgement. Feminism has done us more harm than good. Its not even working among the european and US counterparts, who were the orginator of it. Adichie allowed her exposure and emotion, overide her sense of truthfulness and reality. She is not wiser than her fathers, Achebe, Ben Okri, soyinka and the likes...
I rate Adichie one over ten for this show of shame!

Preach. Does the African woman even know who the feck she is?

One minute they're Beyonce, next minute Shakira, then Rihanna...or whatever hairstyle is in vogue...instead of carving out an identity for themselves...its actually okay that they blame men sha. Because the reason they change their hairstyles so much is us. They are looking for a man to complete them, which is the natural order.

However they only borrow fancy hairstyle, not good character. They should remember the character of their mothers or their friends mothers, the successful women.

Okonjo Iweala is not cool enough for them. Neither is Omotola etc etc.

They want to twerk like Amber Rose or dip it low like Kim Kardashian, bleaching, fixing weave and looking for who to price their bom bom, then they will now be like, "Life isnt fair"...

MrAnony1:
But then in the same vein, how can Adichie give a balanced view of feminism in Nigeria while she is in far away USA?

I tire o. Many people on NL are more emotional than logical

Does that mean we should be giving birth too and bleed every month. Oh nature is not fair to the women too!lol

PhumiTJ: story story.....
am a feminist and nothing can change DAT not even your epistle

let a man be a man and ta a manly responsibility,the same for woman. Can we bet you may have a big challenge in your relationship with men? There's no such thing as feminism.

She lost my respect the day she said that telling the girl child to close her legs and sit properly is bad for the girls,she said this during an interview in BBC

One thing I have noticed about her is that she is trying too hard to be accepted by the West while she is constantly exploiting the Igbo culture just for the green back.

Igbos sha! They can do whatever it takes to survive ,no shame ,no patriotism it's all about the money.

Aayya, I don come late:-x tooh bad

Oahray: I tire o. Many people on NL are more emotional than logical

No, this is all about pointing out her fallacies and not being emotional.

I have listened to her on several occasions and my opinion is that she is a Western apologist.......Simple

Can't say much about this....hmmm

Decryptor: [size=18pt]Below are WOMEN WHO ARE SENSIBLE AND SANE[/size]

Smart women... and they're all white. Goes to show that it's not just (African)men who oppose it, this is always their argument.

Some even say we are scared of feminists and insecure because we don't agree to their misguided ideologies..
Funny people, the lot of them.

Truckpusher: No, this is all about pointing her fallacies and not being emotional.

I have listened to her on several occasions and my opinion is that she is a Western apologist.......Simple

you didn't follow the conversation involving the post I quoted. I was referring to the person that said the writer quoted in the op cannot talk about feminism in Nigeria cos he (or is it she?) has been away for too long, forgetting that Chimamanda has been away for long too but presumes to be an authority in Nigerian women matters.

Lol you're soo funny!

Bootybuttchic: but seriously i cant imagine being a feminist,....a woman will defo marry someone,and a good communication btw couples begets a good relationship,cos i cant imagine,sharing things into two with husby,he pays half the fee i pay half,i wake up to sweep and i wake him up to walk plate,i wash pepper and he grinds it,who will cuddle who ,boring marriage God forbid,...dont quote me wrong couples will defo assist eachother but it shld be with love and not like u are being cheated by the opposite sex,caiusing rivalry oshi! ...u are woman take gud care of your husband and home,and he will do the same exceptt u are marrying a buffoon.....feminist my foot!

you have my million likes for this comment...too much thinking while we need to be loving. The so called feminists forget that nature has clearly given the men outright advantage from their point of view.If we claim equality,we should both be pregnant with half of our baby so we can join them together when we deliver. Bottom line is if we play our roles as males and females,the society will be better than for a woman to try to engage in a tug of war with a man!

Swiftboy: Lol you're soo funny! you have my million likes for this comment...too much thinking while we need to be loving. The so called feminists forget that nature has clearly given the men outright advantage from their point of view.If we claim equality,we should both be pregnant with half of our baby so we can join them together when we deliver. Bottom line is if we play our roles as males and females,the society will be better than for a woman to try to engage in a tug of war with woman!

dey arre not smart enough to understand just this fact. .

damiso: I really would prefer not to get involved in all this feminism/submission debates, but i read the article and I feel the personal attacks on Adichie were not necessary.

While she made some points that could be valid why did she have to tie most of them to vacuums in Adichie's life? The way she kept on and on about Adichie not having 'class' just kinda spoiled it for me (her points could have still been made without the snide remarks) as we are entitled to our opinion.Made it seem like there was some kind of beef she has against the person of Adichie.

That said I also do not believe feminism is the solution to the issues we have in Africa.

Personal attacks in argument are poor practice indeed. But not all comments made regarding the person one is opposing are out of place. I think Gonzaga was attempting to profile a typical Nigerian feminist to further his argument about what is wrong with African feminism.

If we got the personal angle out of the way I think that there may be very important lessons to learn from what he said. I also think that it would be easier then to try to refute his argument. But all discussions that appear to touch feminism tend to be emotionally charged so a lot of value is lost in such exchanges, more the pity.

I like Adichie. I like the fact that an African woman is in the spotlights for literature. But I think that her comments require that we examine their source. The extent of a public figure's influence will always require some examination of their person when they start to push at paradigms. It is a common thing. The only difference here is that feminism is a more touchy subject than most.

Bootybuttchic: dey arre not smart enough to understand just this fact. .

lol

Women should be treated fairly and equally in our society not baring the fact that men are created differently from women, I think feminism gospel according to St. Adichie doesn't understand this uniqueness or else we should be having female and male teams competing in football tournaments, female and male wrestlers should be allowed to fight for same belt, women and men should face each other in karate and kung fu tournaments, we should have the different sexes represented in the same athletic competitions so as to truly have equality between men and women.

Men and Women have different roles in the society, within the family, the man is the head and the woman the coordinator, to try to place women in the position of men, is preparing a recipe for calamity in the family, the kind which is now consider normal in the west and am afraid Africa is fast migrating towards.

Did anyone actually listen to the speech before commenting? I also think that Adichie is barking up the wrong tree on feminism, but people should at least give her the benefit of the doubt before commenting on comments about what she purportedly said based on anothers interpretation.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hg3umXU_qWc

Was it the speech above? I listened to it - again, as I had actually heard it before - but it's over a year old Happy to comment on that, but is there a later speech?


TV

Feminism or no Feminism
Equal Rights == Equal Opportunities + Equal Responsibilities

So don't come crying asking for maternity leave or benefit. Don't come complaining that I didn't give up my seat for you, don't come complaining that chivalry is dead. Cause its the era of feminism, where you treat every lady like a guy. No sentiments attached, no special privileges.

I love this thread.
It made some people speechless.