What happens when feminism is treated as universal — despite emerging from very unequal histories and contexts? In this episode of Intersectional Psychology, I compare Anglo-American feminism and African feminisms, asking what gets lost when Western feminist frameworks are exported as the default lens for understanding gender, power, and justice. Drawing on African feminist scholarship and decolonial theory, this episode explores how feminism looks different when it is shaped by colonial histories, economic inequality, community-based survival, and collective responsibility — rather than liberal individualism. 🎁 Support the podcast and get exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/IntersectionalPsychology. 🌈 If this episode resonates, please share it, rate the show, and send us your thoughts. 📄 Download a transcript of this episode on IntersectionalPsychology.com. ⏳ Chapter Timestamps 00:00:00 Pre-credit teaser 00:01:22 Land acknowledgement 00:01:50 Title credits 00:02:17 Introduction to African vs Anglo-American feminism 00:04:18 Anglo-American feminism: Who is it really for? 00:07:42 The problem with universal womanhood 00:09:46 African feminism: Context is not optional 00:13:15 Why Anglo-American feminism still falls short 00:16:18 Intersectionality: Why this is personal 00:17:55 South Africa, apartheid, and compounded oppression 00:22:28 Why African feminism matters 00:26:32 End credits Stay connected 🔗 Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts 📮 Got feedback or questions? Reach out at @IntersectionalPsychology or IntersectionalPsychologyPod[@]gmail.com You can contribute to the Palestine Children's Relief Fund at https://www.pcrf.net/ References Ahmed, S. (2000). Whose Counting? Feminist Theory, 1(1), pp. 97-103 [online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/14647000022229083 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Bakare-Yusuf, B. (2003). Beyond Determinism: The Phenomenology of African Female Existence. Feminist Africa, 2 [online]. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/48724973 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Bakare-Yusuf, B. (2004) '"Yoruba's don't do gender": A critical review of Oyeronke Oyěwùmí's The Invention of Women: Making an African Sense of Western Gender Discourses', in Arnfred et al. (2004) African Gender Scholarship: Concepts, Methodologies and Paradigms. Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa. Camminga, B. (2020) 'Disregard and danger: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and the voices of trans (and cis) African feminists', The Sociological Review, 68(4), pp. 817-833. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026120934695 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Carrera-Fernández, M. V., & DePalma, R. (2020). Feminism will be trans-inclusive or it will not be: Why do two cis-hetero woman educators support transfeminism? The Sociological Review, 68(4), pp. 745-762 [online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/0038026120934686 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Connell, R.W. (1985) 'Theorising gender', Sociology, 19(2), pp. 260-272. Crenshaw, K. (1991) 'Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Colour', Stanford Law Review, 43(6), pp. 1241-1299 [online]. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/1229039 (Accessed 10 July 2024) DiAngelo, R. (2018) White fragility: why it's so hard to talk to white people about racism. Boston: Beacon Press. Dosekun, S. (2019) 'African feminisms', in Yacob-Haliso, O. & Falola, T. (eds.), The Palgrave Handbook of African Women’s Studies [online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77030-7_58-1 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Eddo-Lodge, R. (2017) Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People about Race. London: Bloomsbury Circus. Garutsa, T.C. & Nekhwevha, F. (2019) 'Decreasing Reliance of Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Rural Households: The Case of Khambashe, Eastern Cape, South Africa', Africa Insight, 49(1) [online]. Available at: https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ai/article/view/188718 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Gqola, P.D. (2001) 'Defining people: Analysing power, language and representation in metaphors of the New South Africa', Transformation 47, pp. 94-106 [online]. Available at: https://www.africabib.org/htp.php?RID=P00021717 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Gqola, P.D. (2005) 'Through Zanele Muholi's eyes: re/imagining ways of seeing Black lesbians', in Tamale, S. (ed.) African Sexualities: A Reader. Wantage: Pambazuka Press. pp. 622-629. Hill Collins, P. (1996) What's in a Name? Womanism, Black Feminism, and Beyond', The Black Scholar, 26(1), pp. 9-17 [online]. Paradigm Publishers. Available at: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41068619 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Kisiang'ani, E.N.W. (2004) 'Decolonising Gender Studies in Africa', in Arnfred et al. (2004) African Gender Scholarship: Concepts, Methodologies and Paradigms. Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa. Lewis, D. (2004) 'African Gender Research and Postcoloniality: Legacies and Challenges', in Arnfred et al. (2004) African Gender Scholarship: Concepts, Methodologies and Paradigms. Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa. Lewis, D. (2001) 'Introduction: African Feminisms', in Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity, 2001, No. 50, African Feminisms One, pp. 4-10 [online]. Taylor & Francis. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4066401 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Lewis, D. (2011) 'Representing African sexualities', in Tamale, S. (ed.) African Sexualities: A reader, pp. 199-216. Wantage: Pambazuka Press. Mazibuko, M. (2020) 'Being a Feminist in the Fallist Movement in Contemporary South Africa', Critical Times, 3(3), pp. 488–495 [online]. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1215/26410478-8662368 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Mbugua, A. (2011) 'Gender dynamics: a transsexual overview', in Tamale, S. (ed.) African Sexualities: A Reader, pp. 238-246. Wantage: Pambazuka Press. Msimang, S. (2002) 'Introduction: African Feminisms II: Reflections on Politics Made Personal', Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity, 54, pp. 3-15 [online]. Taylor & Francis. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4548069 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Nkealah, N. (2017) 'Cameline Agency: A New Agenda for Social Transformation in South African Women’s Writing 2012–2014', Current Writing: Text and Reception in Southern Africa, 29(2), pp. 121-130. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/1013929X.2017.1347426 (Accessed 10 July 2024) Oyěwùmí, O. (2004) 'Conceptualising Gender: Eurocentric Foundations of Feminist Concepts and the Challenge of African Epistemologies', in Arnfred et al. (2004) African Gender Scholarship: Concepts, Methodologies and Paradigms. Dakar: Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa. Oyěwùmí, O. (1997) The Invention of Women: Making an African sense of Western gender discourses. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Saad, L.F. (2020) Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor. Naperville: Sourcebooks. See Privacy Policy at https://intersectionalpsychology.com/privacy-policy/
