CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE
WOMAN OF THE DECADE
But if anything, it is that the #metoo movement for me, is a start and one hopes that it is something that continues and not just a fad. The first step of course, is that women are now telling their stories, and are finally being believed! If you measure progress by what we are now willing to talk about and be taken seriously, then that’s progress.
Chimamanda- Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie was recently honoured as the Woman of the Decade during the THISDAY @ 25 Awards. Chimamanda could not make the event but she was given her Award at the ARISE office a few days back and was presented her award renowned and globally respected author and poet, J.P Clark. Chimamanda said she was honoured to receive the award from someone she held in very high esteem as she has always looked up to him as a mentor and one of the greatest scholars Nigeria has ever had. She even said one of the characters she created in her book Americana, was inspired by him! She also mentioned the likes of Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka as those whom also she read about while growing up and drew inspiration from. Clark was flattered and complimented Chimmamanda for all the work she has done so far.
What would you say the past decade has meant to you personally in terms of feminism, literature and also public speaking? What basically encompassess you?
I think Literature first. In the past ten years in a more personal capacity, I have come into my own. I am much more comfortable in my skin now and there is a sense of just wanting to do what I want to do and not apologizing for it. I am going to be 42 this year but even at 30, I was always hardworking ambitious. I also questioned myself a lot more then and was more interested in people pleasing but not anymore.
We are going to talk about your literature, but before we get into that, i would like us to touch on the #metoo movement as well. Of course as we know it is a wave that is global, i don’t want to say was, and you were quoted by writers as saying the #metoo movement gave women a voice but it doesn’t provide solutions, solutions are still missing and we agree with that. But what solutions would you suggest towards that in terms of the #metoo movement?
I actually don’t remember saying that, but one says things, doesn’t one?
But if anything, it is that the #metoo movement for me, is a start and one hopes that it is something that continues and not just a fad. The first step of course, is that women are now telling their stories, and are finally being believed! If you measure progress by what we are now willing to talk about and be taken seriously, then that’s progress.
But there is also a backlash and it is important for us as a society to start thinking about women as full human beings. That might sound kind of obvious but I don’t think we do, because if we did, there are many things that would not be part of the conversation. This idea, for example, that there are herds of women out there who just want to make up stories of having been assaulted, is absurd.
The premise to that is that somehow, women are fundamentally stupid. I don’t know how many women would want to be known as having been assaulted, so it is important for us to find ways to let people know that we need to give every single woman the benefit of the doubt. If a woman waits 25 years to tell her story, it doesn’t make the story false. For me, it’s about restitution.
The facts are there to support it. For every 100 cases or reported cases, 98% were true. You look at the fact, and look at society and wonder why people still react in the way they do?
And only that one crime is the crime where people immediately think the women are lying! If l say my car was robbed yesterday, you know I could be lying, but you are not immediately saying to me “Are you sure your car was robbed?You are lying about your car being robbed.” But when women talk about assault, it is the immediate assumption of falsehood from both men and women, because we live in a world that just refuses to see women as full human beings and it is something that we need to keep talking about until it changes.
Absolutely, and that is why it is very important to change the narrative one film at a time and what you do through story telling. It is so important to put truth over balance when
your story-telling is drawn. Where i fell in love with you personally, was Half of a Yellow Sun, i remember the movie attempting to come out in nigeria and people wanted to censor it so the rest of the world got to see it before it was aired at home. What was that battle about?
It’s not even about Half Of A Yellow Sun. It’s a larger idea about how we just disregard history. We don’t know our history in this country and then we talk about not needing History in school, but of course we do. There are people who felt that the film will somehow re-ignite tension and if they are worried about that then that is a bigger problem, not the film itself.
I really believe in knowing what happened in the past, because knowing what happened in the past helps you understand the present.
There is so much I understood about Nigeria after having researched Half Of A Yellow Sun. So much made sense and fell into place, and yes, there were people who wanted to censor it, but there were also people who were very hungry to see it. But I should also say books are really the best way to know history not films.
And one of my favourite books of yours is dear ijeawele. I have read it a couple of times and have given out quite a few copies because i believe everyone should have a copy. Would you consider creating a similar book on how to possibly raise your sons?
I would like to, yes. I also wish I had a son so I could sort of practice, but you know I wrote that book before I had my daughter and I realized, in writing, it is very easy to give advise until you are actually dealing with the nitty-gritty of raising a child. Then you realize it is actually difficult. But I do think about it because if we are talking of changing the way gender works in the world today, we have to change the way boys are raised. For example in the question of #metoo, it is important to talk about women’s experiences and their stories, but we also have to talk about men. We cannot spend all our time just telling women to protect themselves from rape, we also have to talk to the men about raping. At what point does the shift happen when women stop being human and become objects with no agents and no desire? When does that happen and how can we change it? Such socialization can make people blind to the humanity of other people. If a boy has been raised being told that a girl exists for his benefit, to cook and clean, to provide his needs, it is very easy then to not think of that person as a full human.
Thisday @ 25 is celebrating you as woman of the decade. Looking back at the past decade, would you say much has changed with women?
l would say that I’m very excited about the young women more willing to push back and challenge old ideas. That makes me very excited. I think taking women’s issues more seriously is maybe more of a global thing. 10 years ago when I was 30, talking about women’s experiences was not that serious. There has been some progress. It’s very incremental.
There is also the argument that feminism is unafrican and it’s against or doesn’t necessarily line up with certain cultures.
I am an Ibo woman. Very proudly so and I am also a feminist. So I guess I am a contradiction then if that’s the case. But more seriously, using culture, as a reason in arguments isn’t a very good way to argue because it suggests that culture is static and culture isn’t.
A century ago, people in my hometown used to kill Twins when they were born. They would leave them in the forest because they were considered evil. This no longer happens. At the time, people would have argued that this is our culture. But it’s no longer so.
Generally, cultures exists to make sure a society thrives, and if there’s anything in the culture that means society is not thriving, change it. Cultures are dynamic but they don’t define people, people make and define culture.
I am not interested in arguing about whether or not feminism is not traditional. My greatgrandmother is a feminist, but even if we did take the argument that it’s not African, we should make it so because Africa needs to thrive and it needs inclusion of women to thrive. Yes it does.
What would you say is your greatest achievement in the past ten years?
I am always very wary about ‘greatest and best’ because it feels very constraining. But bringing a human being into the world is the thing that has made me happiest.
How have you managed to stay so consistent? What has made your brand global, the consistency, your truth and what stand for?
It’s probably because this was never the plan. l didn’t set out to become a speaker or a feminist icon or any of these things, I’ve just been a person who made a decision very early on in my life that I wanted to live a life of demand and I have always been interested in ideas and reading. I’ve always had opinions and I’ve always tried to back my opinions up with knowledge and so if what I stand for happens to appeal, that’s wonderful and if what I stand for doesn’t appeal that’s also fine too.
There was a lot of logic in your comments about chivalry but you got attacked for it?
Yes of course, I mean it’s about understanding things. We can debate whether or not we want it but we cannot debate where you came from because that’s what it is!
You have become an ambassador for nigerian fashion brands and ‘wear Nigeria’ has blown up and you are one of the leading faces and people behind that. Why was that very important to you and where do you see the Nigerian fashion industry going over the next few years?
What do I see going on here? I’m hoping it goes global. Which is why I would like to see more Nigerian brands out there.
Do you plan on putting collaborations out, working with any talents?
To be honest, I don’t know. For me, I had this platform to bring just more eyes to something that I already love wearing as there’s so much talent in this country. And it’s even better that they are made to measure, because designers abroad don’t realize that women actually have breasts but many Nigerian designers know this which is a comforting thing.
What would you say the next ten years holds for Chimamanda?
I am a very superstitious Ibo woman and projecting into the future is not my thing. I’m just grateful to have today really.
Generally, cultures exists to make sure a society thrives, and if there’s anything in the culture that means society is not thriving, change it. Cultures are dynamic but they don’t define people, people make and define culture.