AFST 30002 - Women, Culture, & Power in Africa

Course Credit: 1
WOMEN, CULTURE, AND POWER IN AFRICA: How did women access political power in precolonial Africa? What role did African women play in liberation struggles? How are African women today agitating for increased political spaces? This course invites students to explore African women’s experiences in light of cultural, economic, and political transformations on the continent. Students will engage with African feminist thought and explore African women’s writing and histories. We will examine how the experiences of African women were influenced by forces such as colonialism, independence struggles, women’s movements, political activism, human rights discourses, development aid, among others. Throughout the course, we will see how African women have shaped their communities and cultivated spaces for agency, autonomy, and renewal amidst hegemonic cultural and political forces.