Hear Word!
The cast of Hear Word! at the end of their show at the UN
A Nigerian widow must shave her head, wear rags, and stay in mourning for many weeks after her husband’s death in Hear Word! Naija Woman Talk True! I saw the production on Sunday evening in the UN General Assembly Hall.
And there’s more. Her husband’s relatives come to take what is “his.” She bought the property and even the house with her own money, but is helpless against them.
This was just one of the vignettes in Hear Word! that highlight the struggles faced by Nigerian women, usually at the hands of men. Sometimes other women are also complicit in the oppression.
With Ifeoma Obianwu Fafunwa after Sunday’s show
With a little singing and dance to accompany the strong acting, the message came through loud and clear. Women have to stand up for themselves. And women can do this together!
Hear Word! was part of Unity in Diversity An Evening of Art & Hope with Nigerian Women. My friend Carol’s daughter Ifeoma Fafunwa co-wrote and directed the production.
Hear Word! has played to full houses in Boston in the last couple of years. Here is one review.
The program also featured a discussion between Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of UN Women, and the three artists whose work was part of the program. They answered questions about the use of the arts to empower women. Ifeoma was by far the best, I thought!
“Fireside chat” with Executive Director of UN Women, on left.
Commission on the Status of Women 62
CSW62, the 62nd convening of this conference, began officially Monday morning and continues for two weeks.
I plan to come on Thursday for a full day, beginning with the Equal Pay Global Forum. Then comes the afternoon event presented by the US National Committee for UN Women, a panel discussion, The Depiction of Women and Women Leaders in Film, History and Society.
Finally I’ll attend a reception hosted by the US National Committee for UN Women Metro New York Chapter. There was a similar event last year when I found the 5th Avenue apartment of the hostess quite remarkable!
Last year at CSW I ran into several women of the Umuada Ndigbo, Igbo Women, in the Diaspora. I so enjoyed shocking them with my use of Igbo language. I thought I might see them at Sunday’s event but I didn’t.
Tillerson’s Visit to Africa – a Waste?
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s trip to Africa was not expected to yield many new approaches. Indeed, Ambassador John Campbell, blogging for the Council on Foreign Relations, said not to expect much except talk about security!
Then the trip was cut short. Next thing we knew, Tillerson was gone!
It almost felt like Trump was taking one more swipe at Africa. To dismiss his Secretary of State on his return from the continent seems to undercut any discussions Tillerson had with government officials.
A lengthy article in Vox says that he was the worst Secretary of State ever. The reporter outlined his problems. They included his inability to work with people in the department, his lack of experience in government, and his budget-cutting.
The article closes with this: “All of which invites the question: Why did this multimillionaire leave his cushy job at the head of one of the world’s largest corporations and then take a job at a government bureaucracy he didn’t understand and seemingly didn’t respect?” We may never know the answer.
View from Mary and Kenechi’s apartment window, with snow!
Trials for Corruption
Also from Ambassador Campbell came this article about Nigeria’s corruption. He is referring to more efforts at recouping the losses to bribery in the country. I referenced trials in Milan and other cities in the piece on corruption that I wrote about last time.
Campbell says, “Aluko [who bought a $50 million apartment in New York] and others are under investigation in Nigeria, the United Kingdom, and the United States for, among other things, bribing the Nigerian oil minister at the time, Diezani Alison-Madueke, for lucrative government contracts.”
It’s almost beyond imagination. Well, no it isn’t. I think of the people who made fortunes in the U.S. in the early days of the petroleum discoveries and refining. Some of our leading philanthropic foundations are built on that wealth. I actually can imagine that there were plenty of corrupt deals made to guarantee their ability to acquire the wealth.
These are the pets for whom I’m pet-sitting in New York!
But that doesn’t make it right, in Nigeria or anywhere. As Campbell says, “more than half of Nigeria’s population lives in poverty.”
People do want change. Campbell continues, “Popular resentment at corruption of the magnitude alleged with respect to Aluko was an important factor in the presidential victory of Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, and drives his anti-corruption campaign.”
Utrice Leid, Journalist, Activist
