African Canadian Women and the Question of Identity

Canada is a nation that embraces diversity and multiculturalism as its corner stone for building the sense of belonging for all her citizens. Many Black Canadian women, however, feel excluded and not part of the Canadian mosaic. This paper shows the complexities associated with understandings and interpretations of identity and discusses Black women's question of identity as situated in Black Canadian feminist theory. Résumé Le Canada est une nation qui encourage la diversité et le multiculturalisme comme sa pierre de coin pour bâtir un sentiment d’appartenance pour tous ses citoyens. Un bon nombre de femmes noires canadiennes, par contre, se sentent exclues et de ne pas faire partie de la mosaïque canadienne. Cet article montre les complexités associées avec la compréhension et les interprétations de l’identité et discute de la question de l’identité des femmes noires telle que située dans la théorie féministe de la femme noire canadienne

The Yokes of Gender and Class: The Policy Reforms and Implications for Equitable Access to Education in Kenya

Kenya, a former British colony, attained its political independence in 1963. Despite its political independence, Kenya inherited a colonial education system that was based on segregation and exclusion because of race, culture, class, and gender. This is a qualitative analysis examining the education system in Kenya. In the analysis, we explore gender and class barriers that may inhibit education for women in Kenya. We review existing secondary literature on policy documents; reflect on our experiences and observations; and also reflect on interviews with Njeri and Nyokavi, who live in the 21st century ‘post-colonial’ Kenya. As Kenyan women from subsistence-farming backgrounds, we, the authors, seemed destined to remain at the very bottom of the hierarchical education structure established during the colonial period. We explore the impact of contemporary, globally and locally mandated education policy reforms and emerging social service provision partnerships. These are often packaged as policy reforms and viable strategies of a just, equitable, and fair distribution of opportunities for all, meant to correct the colonial disparities. Our arguments are informed by the system's discursive framework (Wane 2000b) and the anti-colonial discursive framework (Amadiume 1989, 1997; Dei 1999, 2000; Oyewumi 1997; Wane 2002). The analysis authenticates that, since independence, Kenya has realized tremendous educational growth at all levels. However, such educational reforms have resulted in the exclusion of many children who are from low socio-economic groups, in essence replacing the racial segregation of the colonial system with cultural and class-based inequities of the post-colonial society.

[Re]claiming Indigenous Knowledge: Challenges, Resistance, and Opportunities

In May 1994, I arrived in Kenya to carry out my research on Africa and, more specifically, rural Kenyan women’s Indigenous ways of knowing.  My interest in this research was sparked by the lack of textual knowledge of African Indigenous knowledges during my tenure in three North American universities. As a young scholar,  I “ran” away from Kenya because, all through my education, there was a great emphasis on western education, lifestyle, and culture.  I longed for it, hungered for it, and worked hard to acquire it.  I was convinced that, once I enrolled in a University outside my country, the curriculum would in some way touch on African ways. In this regard, I was mistaken. The paper has four parts: 1) the introduction and a brief background to my interest in Indigenous knowledges; 2)  the method employed; 3) a discussion of two knowledge claims. The two knowledge claims represent part of my research findings;  4) a pseudo-conclusion, given that this work involves my search for self, a process which has been ongoing since the nineties

Dangerous Spaces: Kenya’s Public Universities as a Locus for Sexual and Gender-Based Violence – A Case Study of Egerton University, Njoro Campus

Les institutions de haut savoir tout spécialement les universités publiques au Kenya sont devenues de plus en plus dangereuses et offrent aucune sécurité aux élèves et la présence du groupe Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) y voit. Les étudiantes sur le campus, particulièrement celles qui sont handicapées et qui fréquentent l’université Egerton (UE), le campus Njoro continuent à subir des agressions multiples dont la violence physique, sexuelle et psychologique et des sévices ou gestes envers les hommes et les femmes de la part des collègues, des professeurs, des membres de la communauté tout autant que des aidants. Cette étude documente les causes, les formes et les impacts et identifie une action pour remédier à cette situation et élabore des stratégies pour arrêter cette violence. Cette étude sera menée par « Ground Theory » selon sa méthodologie préférée