Saadawi on FGM
‘I had to study medicine to get rid of it. I have to know politics in order to challenge politics’. There’s something quite ironic in Nawal El Saadawi openly challenging the same structures of professionalism she was educated by. And…
Category: Blog
…something wrong in being a girl…
When you hear the name Nawal El Saadawi, what springs to mind: Activist, writer, feminist, trouble-maker? Saadawi is a renowned Egyptian feminist writer who has written a large selection of books that focus on women in Islam. As a qualified…
Africa Writes 2016: Call for Volunteers
The Royal African Society is looking for volunteers with a passion for all things African to help run Africa Writes, which returns for its fifth year running! Africa Writes is an annual festival organised by the Royal African Society, which…
The Young Soninke: A Brief History on African Immigration.
Migration has played a significant role in African’s history. At first the departures were not aimed at Europe but occurred internally, from state to state. The main destinations for West Africans were Ivory Coast and the Democratic Republic of Congo,…
Africa Writes 2016: Call for Papers
Africa Writes invites abstract submissions from PhD students, early career scholars and independent researchers that open up ideas of, and approaches to, ‘African literatures’. Academic discourse on African literatures is characterised by a continuous process of debate, reassessment of theories…
Sex, Prince, and Rock & Roll
The sudden death of the gender-queer music icon Prince Rogers Nelson at his home in Paisley Park Studios has shocked the world. As much controversy hovers over his family and the causes of his death, Prince’s music currently populates a…
City of Thorns: Nine Lives in the World’s Largest Refugee Camp
This year, we are looking forward to holding our first pre-festival event – looking at stories of displacement and survival. Join us at SOAS on 27 April to discuss the book City of Thorns: Nine Lives in the World’s Largest…
The Question You Couldn’t Ask at #AfricaWrites: Where are the Women in the Room?
Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire While working on the programming for the #Writivism2015 festival, my colleague and the fulcrum of the administration of the 2015 Writivism project at the Centre for African Cultural Excellence in Kampala, Rebecca Rwakabukoza always insisted on the…
Afropolitanism is BS and Books That Inspire Africa39 Writers
Bwesigye bwa Mwesigire The Africa39 project needs no introduction. Does it? I think African Books To Inspire however needs. In fact, requires. Most times, when writers are invited to speak on panels, to participate in conversations, it is about their…
OLUFEMI TERRY, WINNER 2010 CAINE PRIZE FOR AFRICAN WRITING: “DURING THE RECENT EBOLA OUTBREAK, MY THOUGHTS RETURNED AGAIN AND AGAIN TO A PENETRATIVE PASSAGE OF TEXT”
A contribution from our #100DaysofAfricanReads collaboration What are your ‘African Books to Inspire’? Learning to Pray in the Age of Technique by Goncalo Tavares. I exploit a technicality in choosing Goncalo Tavares’ novel: he’s Angolan-born. Learning to Pray possesses in spades an alienative…