Neo Majake
From an African woman’s perspective, growing up in a black community from a young age girls are taught and trained how to be perfect suitors and helpers to the male rather than being taught self sufficiency and indepence.
Patriarchy alienated equality in the most evident form. Young girls had more domesticated responsibilities while the boys in the family would go about their days driving car toys and taking up the role of head of the house while playing house and as we advance to teenagehood, we were then as young ladies expected to be well skilled and experienced in running a house hold, having earlier cafews than our male peers and being pressured to abstain from sexual activities for the major reason that your family could negotiate a higher lobola price to be a women who’s expected to be submissive and obidient, expected to never have a voice let alone an opinion, expected to never have a career but to be a child barer instead.
Even though African tradition is being rapidly diluted with urbanization, the history of what we have been subject to according to tradition still plays a major role in who we are as women today.
There is still a long way ahead till “woman” could be unconsciously and immediately thought of as the words; power, strength and leadership are mentioned.
Its unfortunate how the expression 50/50 has been misinterpreted as far as gender equality is concerned. The competition isn’t the opposite sex, truth is there is no competition however what is of vital importance is that women understand that they are “able” in their own capacity and it is important that women retract from seeking validation from anything of anyone outside of themselves.
There is more to women than the cat fights, revealing clothes and how we wear our hair, it is women like Dr Nokwethemba Mtshali – Hadebe (32) who las year became the first youngest hospital CEO in South Africa at age 31, with a degree in medicine as well as an MBA. The 32 year old currently runs the Bertha Gxowa Hospital in Germiston, leading a number of 750 staff members.
Noko Matlou is another power house. The first South African to be crowned the confederation CAF women’s footballer of the year. The 31 year old player has played over 89 games, with 61 goals to her name. Noko joined the national team Banyans Banyana in 2006.
Too emotional to lead they say, too sensitive to be in power they say however no matter how often we are pitted against one another and called out for pulling each other down, we remain the back bone of the society and sisterhood still exists and most importantly we are coming to the realization of who we truly are and can possibly be.
