i am somewhat familiar with the issue of domestic violence in Igbo households, both from personal experience (that is observing other families who engage in this practice) and from what I see in the media (ehem, Nollywood). However, I have recently encountered a disturbing article, (actually there are several more out there) on domestic violence incidence in a random sample of Imo state women, which, I may venture to say, could be generalized to Igbo women at large, and perhaps, Nigerian society (pleeeease correct me, if I am wrong).

The article is entitled, Prevalence, Patterns and Correlates of Domestic Violence in Selected Igbo Communities of Imo State, Nigeria (Okembo C et.al. 2002). I guess you can google scholar it if interested, but if you don't have access to it, email me and I can send you the pdf file. (I'm not sure if I will get in trouble for distributing it, but I think I am willing to take the risk, for the sake of the cause).

For the sake of space, I will spare you the intricate details about study design, sample size etc (though, they are important, I just gloss over these things...bad habit) and highlight some of their results. In a sample of about 300 women (I know, this is a pretty small sample), they found that almost 80% had experienced some form of domestic violence. I thought the number was unbelievable. Women in urban areas were more likely to experience physical beatings from their husbands than rural women. (In regards to polygamy, it was found that women in polygamous marriages were less likely to undergo abuse - just thought that was interesting - please note that I am not advocating the practice). There were other interesting results documenting kinds of abuse, prevalence and preferences and predictors of abuse that you can pick out on your own time.

I would really like to know, if some of you, from your own personal experiences find that domestic violence is as prevalent as this article suggests and your thoughts on this idea that domestic abuse is more common in the cities than rural areas and why? (of course, this was just a preliminary study and I did not check out other papers to find out if they support this stat.

I think what really caught my attention were some of the responses from the participants to why abuse occurs. For example, here is one:

"...Usually [men] see women as physically, economically and socially inferior to [men]. They also feel that they bought women with their money..."

The authors stated that cultural institutions amongst the Igbo are to blame for the continued practice of domestic violence. Particularly, the idea that male children are worth more than female children therefore creating the notion that women can be treated that way. Besides traditional institutions that support the prevalence of domestic abuse, some women cited Christianity as to institution to blame for this continued practice stating that the Bible calls for the "subjection" of women by man.

Let me first state that I would not go so far as to condemn Igbo cultural institutions, which I appreciate and adhere to, nor condemn Christianity, which I practice. However, are these two institutions to blame for the continued practice of domestic violence? What particular aspects are to blame for domestic violence and can one use these institutions to prevent and abolish this practice? What should be done about it and why isn't more being done about it (like addressing it as a vital component of a family planning or reproductive health agenda)?

Sorry if this post is a bit long, but I seriously cut out a lot of stuff in order to get the main point across. I always look forward to all of your responses because they seriously challenge me and get me thinking in ways unimagined.

Oh in regards to the poster above....yes, another google image search. But I thought the poster was interesting in that it is appealing to adherence to tradition which calls for utmost respect for mothers and older-womanhood. An example of how existing societal institutions which promote violence could be used to eradicate it....yes, I said ERADICATE it.

by the way, this blog endorses Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate - just thought I would get it out there.

Beyond policy, commitment to change, his anti-Iraq War stance, and the fact that Clinton will "fire up" the Republican base, I have decided to back Obama because he represents many first-generation Americans who are doing big things. I mean, what can be bigger than running for the presidency against the Clinton machine (note, I used to support the Clinton/Clinton ticket....how I changed, na long story....will explain another day).

And for many African Americans, the choice is sometimes based on the fact that they would like to see one of their own in the White House as well. I sort of assumed that this would be true for most who consider themselves Black (though let me add, that I have nothing against those who think otherwise...and I )

Anyway, this assumption was questioned when I caught some of the commentary of Ohioans during their primary last week. A black female (can't remember her name) said she was voting for Hilary because according to her, "she is a woman first and an African American second..."

My initial reactions to these comments were that this woman has imbibed the unpopular stance of "betraying the race." However, as i thought more over this woman's comments, I began to realize that she is not alone, that there are several black women - African and African American - who have often chosen gender over race. For example, one person that easily comes to mind is Alice Walker and her classic novel, The Color Purple. Many in the black community felt that she weakened the fight against racism in order to pursue a feminist agenda. I guess an African example would be women who fight against female circumcision at the risk of portraying their people in a bad light. Or, to bring it home, my post on misogyny in African music. Sometimes in the course of pursuing Africanism (if there is such a word), feminist issues can be sidelined.

I have not yet sat down to think of who I am first - a woman or a member of the African diaspora. I would think that I am first an African and then a woman therefore countering this woman's statement. And in regards to females that I admire that I mentioned in my first post on african feminism, I have a feeling that they would also take the same stance as well. I, admit, I have not read much on african feminist theory, but I wonder if that is the point of african feminism - to put the african back into feminism as opposed to putting infusing feminism into africa. Or rather, as I hope to do, find a balance between the two. Once again, thoughts on which you consider first - africanism or feminism - would be appreciated. If you have some recommended reading that would also be appreciated (Misan, I read A Thousand Splendid Suns - it was great...a post on Afghani feminism...akuko nke mbu...is forthcoming).

Oh, and Happy International Woman's Week!

for the Nigerian sporting world that is...

After Nigeria's disappointing show at the African Nations Cup (I had to return my green-white-green victory gear back to the recesses of my closet), I began to give up on seeking national pride in sports. Well, I (and several other Naija bloggers) are proud to report differently.

This weekend Akwa Ibom native, Samuel Okon Peter clinched the World Boxing Council's (WBC) Heavyweight title in a sixth round knockout. Personally, the only time I have enjoyed boxing is when he is featured as one of the contenders so I am not sure of all of the boxing terms. All I know is that the opponent went down in the sixth round.

He was featured in The Guardian today, and I found his story to be very inspiring. Dig one of the statements he made to the reporters.

"I have been doing this for about seven years now professionally; I have never been down in my career. I have been knocked down but I stand up to win."

I will definitely keep this one in memory, and I think as a nation, we should realize that our past has been rough - colonialism, civil war, losing the African Nations Cup (I mean that light-heartedly) - and we have been knocked down on several occasions. However, we should take a page out of Peter's playbook that though we have been knocked down, we should continue to stand up to win. I am very much for taking a critical stance on Nigerian national affairs, but let's not just leave at that, criticism. Rather, there should be a hope that through journalism, blogging, activism, going to work every morning etc. we can all inch our ways towards a knockout future. (I apologize in advance if this seems overly-idealistic, but hey, I'm young and it's my prerogative).

so, I got tired of seeing the image below of the Ghana Black Stars fan whenever I visited my blog and thought that it is high time I put up another post. since this is the month of love and US black history month - i would like to speak to a topic that has affected american black females for centuries and as i am starting to witness, african females as well.

last night, after simultaneously studying and keeping my eye out for the wisconsin and hawaii primaries (more of the latter than the former), I caught the last half or so of BET's "25 Events that (mis)shaped Black America." Under normal circumstances, I would not be caught dead watching late night BET, but my brother was watching it, the show seemed to have some usefulness, and I am a big Michael Eric Dyson fan.

One of the (mis)shaping events that caught my attention was the the hyper-sexualization of the black female or the misogyny of the black female as portrayed by hip-hop. First, I found it interesting that BET should admit that the negative effects of the portrayal of african american females as b****es and hos since they are one of the major exporters of these images. But I started to think that the hypersexualization of the black female is not limited to hip-hop music as well.

Earlier in the week (or maybe last week), I was put off a bit by cover story on the BBC news website, "Ivory Coast's 'big-bottom' Craze." Initially, my annoyance stemmed from the fact there are other more pressing concerns in Ivory Coast other than bum and breast enhancement creams and some song's tribute to big bottoms. But after this BET special, I began to wonder whether the African continent also exports this idea of a hypersexualized black female thru its music in similar ways to Nelly and Ludacris. Granted the history of the black female in the US, especially in light of forced sexual relations with white slavers and the simultaneous systemic emasculization of American black men during slavery stands in stark contrast to the situation on the continent (or I may be wrong here)...but how different is Meiway's call to shake our lolo's from Baby Huey's insistence that the bum should be popped, locked, then dropped? The videos are strikingly similar. I also wonder, is this an anomaly amongst blacks - I mean, are there other people groups that dissect and exploit intimate parts of the black female physique in order to sell records or initiate dance crazes? Africans have also had their own share of exploiting female sexuality by colonial masters (remember Hottentot Venus).

Of course, before I close, I must admit, that although I hate the images of half-naked black women on BET and Awilo's soft porn music videos, I can't help but play some of these catchy tunes on my iPod during a workout. I'm a huge fan of soukous music - HUGE. Additionally, I never leave the house without making sure that my jeans properly "fit" and accentuate what needs to be accentuated. I have struggled alot with the issues I just raised - especially the added dimension of African music turning towards lurid depictions of black women. A part of me says, its just music - not only that, but it's music with an irresistible beat that I cannot find in other genres. And perhaps, in some cases, there is a genuine appreciation for the black female physique. But then another part of me, the one that started this post, wonders if I am contributing to the degradation of black women by espousing any such music. I am slowly leaning towards the latter....

I would really really really like to get your opinions on this topic (also, let me know if I should clarify a bit). Let me know if you think it is "just music" or whether we have allowed the hypersexualization of black women to go too far or whether I have approached this topic incorrectly in comparing the African American situation with that of the continent.

after this stunningly sad match between Nigeria and Ghana, it is time to give Vogt, the current coach of the Super Eagles, a long overdue boot. What type of nonsense soccer/football was Nigeria playing this evening? The Nigerian soccer team needs a revolution (sorry to borrow your term solomonsydelle). maybe instead of recruiting soccer players from posh leagues in the West they should recruit some boys from the streets of Aba, Ibadan, Kaduna who would actually care about doing well in such games since their livelihoods depended on it. I mean c'mon Super Eagles, the Black Stars were down by one man.....how sad, how sad....

I promise, this will be my last sports commentary of any kind until 2010....seriously. now back to our regularly scheduled program....

and I will get back to all of your comments and emails soon, I just really had to get this one off my chest...

seems like january is a good month for blogging. did anyone bother to catch the state of the union address by President Bush, last night? well I happened to and the pre and post play commentary. well, realising that most of what he was going to say on Iraq and the economy would be nothing new, I tuned in to his besides-Iraq-Afghanistan-Iran foreign policy commentary - which was not much.
Considering his proposed trip to the African continent, I am surprised he did not mention anything about USAFRICOM, which would provide and American military presence in the African continent in order to provide stability and peace. However, when he did talk about Africa - there was NO mention of this program whatsoever. Besides his weak declaration that there is indeed a genocide occurring in Darfur, the rest focused on the usual Africa is a bastion of poverty, disease, and pestilence that needs our help. But it seemed that AFRICOM, which has been rejected by nearly every African country besides Liberia (please correct me if I am wrong), should feature prominently. I wonder why. It seems like USAFRICOM is more of a front to protect the US's "vital interests" (cough...oil...cough) rather than promote stability.

this is part three (akuko nke ato) of a series of posts on african feminism. (for those of you who take Igbo language and grammar seriously, i apologize in advance for the absence of dots under certain vowels, if some can show me how to do this on blogspot - that would be very helpful).

I was reading BBC this morning in which, of course the Kenyan crisis featured prominently on the Africa page. It truly baffles me how, Kenya, once an exemplar of a peaceful and stable African nation, could collectively go mad in the span of a few days. it's deeply disheartening. it only serves to fuel the idea that the African continent is prone to such violent outbursts and is need of protection (according to the USAFRICOM website more on them in a later post and Bush's planned visit to Africa - minus Nigeria).

Amidst stories of gun-slinging and bows and arrows came up another weapon of war - rape. It should disturb our most common sensibilities that the female body (and sometimes male) is considered fair playing ground in war, conflict, and other clashes. It is literally universal that this happens. According to the article, formal reports of rape have more than doubled in some places rendering hundreds of women the living casualties of war. While trying to find an end this conflict, special attention should be paid to the most vulnerable - women. Additionally, more needs to be done in order to shed light on why this phenomenon happens and how can we prevent it. If anyone has any interesting reading suggestions, you are more than welcome to share. If I find anything, I will post in an addendum. I simply wanted to bring light to the issue.

So, what does a Nollywood film and wartime rape have in common. Well, for those of you who are so inclined to watch Naija films, I would encourage you to check out this film, Silver Stone (yes, part 1 and 2), starring Dakore Egbuson, Bimbo Akintola, Fred Amata, and Mike Ezuruonye. Besides having an awesome cast (woohoo! Mike and Dakore) it sheds light on some of the long-term consequences of wartime rape, using the Biafran war as the example and its effects on families decades later. The film is written by a budding producer in the Nollywood scene, Uche Ice - and I look forward to more of his works in the future. I would especially encourage you to take a peek at the interviews with actors/actresses, producer, and director. What is especially comforting is that the movie project was initiated by a Nigerian male sensitive to the extensive damage of wartime rape on both the female and the rapist. I think that Uche Ice is an African feminist, or at least one in the making...and much kudos on this particular film.