Power gained-power lost: aspects of contemporary African women visualised

Bengu, Bongekile Zanele

Power gained-power lost: aspects of contemporary African women visualised

Thesis / Dissertation

1997

Abstract

The record of oppression of women is world wide, but black women have had to bear further oppression from colonisation and racism. As a black woman or woman of colour, I have experienced combined forms of oppression such as racism, classism and sexism. Black women have been dispossessed through the construction of their identity by others and through the breaking up of families by the practice of apartheid. Yet when I examine my history, the strength of women is evident in opposing these oppressions. Women have been at the forefront of political struggles, head households and fulfill various leadership roles. In this body of work, I hope to have portrayed an empowered state of African women that depicts women in wide variety of roles and shows that they are active and equal participants in society. I choose a Pan-Africanist view of African women, because of my interest in cultural diversity . The boundaries between nations within the African continent are artificial and were created by colonization; however similarities in the various language groups suggest threads of commonality within the whole African continent. Hence I have not limited my research project to only South African communities, but have drawn on material from across the African continent.

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Fine Art

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