I know, I know. This must come as a surprise for you considering how I praised Chimamanda and expressed our new love. Well, everything I said about Chimamanda remains true. She’s still my BFF, and we are still getting married. However, there are some things I observed at the event that surprised me.
E don happen!
Let me preface this by saying that I may not be completely objective since (1) I am a book lover, and by default, I love book-related activities, and (2) I obviously love Chimamanda too.
All that being said, my disappointment was that in this event space that held about 300 people, less than 50 were Black. And even less were African and Nigerian. The event took place in Ellicott City, an area I am unfamiliar with, but if I had to guess, I’d say it’s predominantly white. Still, we are Nigerians. We are travelers. And we are movers. That’s why we are everywhere. Therefore, if Chimamanda was having an event in Third Hell and we wanted to be there, we would gladly burn beside her, so I don’t think our lack of presence had anything to do with the location.
Before the event, I was sure I’d go there and run into my people. I thought the place would be buzzing with my people – not because I thought Chimamanda did not have non-Nigerian/African fans, but because I thought that my people – Chimamanda’s people – would be first in line to celebrate with their person. But when I saw that the crowd consisted of mostly older white people, I began to wonder about us.
Here we were at a free event with one of the best writers- if not the best writer – to come from our country and continent in recent times and we were nowhere to be found. I don’t expect everyone to be a Chimamanda fan just because we share a country/continent/skin color, but I suppose I’m having a hard time understanding why we are not there to listen to a woman of substance. I don’t ever hear a buzz about Chimamanda’s books unless she says something that pisses the Nigerian community off. But when Toke Makinwa wrote a booklet about her shameless desperation for a man, people took screenshots and shared them, and some people called her their hero. I suppose I don’t understand why we celebrate mediocrity and shy away from intellectual people and conversation? And to be clear, this does not apply to all Nigerians/Africans.
On one hand, I was glad to see how much Chimamanda transcends race and culture, but on the other hand, I want to tag her and keep her for us only, make her exclusive to African blood. It makes me remember how the likes of Oprah Winfrey, Steve Harvey, and Kevin Hart have been accused of selling out and becoming too mainstream, but will black people support them enough for them to be where they are today? In other words, if they pandered to black people and if they only had black supporters, would they be where they are today?
And if our sister, Chimamanda only had Nigerian or African readers/supporters, would she be where she is today?
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I’m not surprised. Like you said mediocrity is celebrated. Even our TV programs are mostly crap. Educational things like spelling bees, debates etc are barely acknowledged but shows like big brother is seen as the best entertainment ever. I’m really sorry for kids of today because role models are becoming more talentless and known for having lots of followers on instagram or youtube than anything worthwhile.
Mrs. Fab, I could write forever about the mediocrity and emptiness that we celebrate. We celebrate people for having shoes and fine clothes and pretending to live the fabulous life. Meanwhile, even our small everyday heroes don’t get acknowledged.
She definitely will not advance if relying on us…
I guess her materials is not everyone’s cup of tea in our society, arts and creative thinking has not really been attributed to us..
Her feminist statements and practices is also seen as un-African, that also will not cut the mustard with our society…
I remember similar discussion came up when she had her last child..She went off radar, kept it all under wraps until the natural transition ended..
Guys felt she cannot continue to promote feminist movement yet living a structured life with a supportive partner, that can be seen as double standard.
Personally I like her books, but am a traditionalist which makes me allergic to anything feminist views..lolz
Basically except one is exposed and has an interest in her work, our society is the last place for such briliant minds like you too..
Thanks..
Fad, let me respond to a few things you said.
1) I agree that she won’t advance as much if she was relying on us, and that’s really unfortunate.
2) The sad thing about her feminist statements being seen as un-African is that it makes me wonder then what is African? Oppression of women? Celebration of mediocrity?
3) Your statement about her having a child and still promoting the feminist agenda is proof once again of how feminism is misunderstood. Being a feminist just means that you want equality. It means that as a woman, you don’t want to be denied of certain opportunities (like a position at work, or an increased salary, or a political appointment) just for being a woman. It does not mean at all that you don’t believe in marriage and/or motherhood. By the way, see this post I wrote about her pregnancy.
4) It really stinks that brilliant minds are not welcome in our society.
Do you know Vera, thought deeply about this view of African practices on marriages..
You termed it ” Oppression of women” ” Celebration of mediocrity”
Struggling to agree with both elements based on our generation..
I am not against equality considering I have two daughters and I want them treated like anyone else’s sons..
However the adoption and adaption of equality or feminist practices in our respective homes has done more damage than good..
We live in marriages now with expiry dates based on this toxic definition and varied interpretation of feminism..
Despite the claimed oppression of women in the older generation, they were a lot happier and truly merged their vows to their marriage, that cannot be a modern day assertion considering we are far from the madding crowd.
Celebrating mediocrity will also be an unfair assessment..
What we Nigerians call mediocrity is what foreigners term rich culture, simply because we are people centred type of living and not system based like the West..
As for her having a baby in secrecy, that angle was showing her supportive partner in that statement, considering her push was like making a man’s role and position redundant…
It will be unhealthy if we use the same sort of exercise to condemn ourselves..
I strongly believe we are different and we have our values and tradition..
Chimamanda will always be respected, however she often cherry picks what worked for her when telling her African stories, what makes us Africans with our own unique identity is often missing in her stories, sometimes am thinking may be she’s suffering identity crisis.
Wishing her the very best as always, as for me that word or definition of feminism makes me puke in a home setting…
Nice one..
I totally agree with you Fad. I love her books but some of her ideals are way too alienated for me but I am open minded….. and to each his own.
Thanks for the post Vera, you always give me something to ponder about.
Honestly, I don’t expect everyone to like or love her. It’d be a problem is everyone agrees with her. The problem is that we are so quick to celebrate nothingness, and generally, we don’t even want to open our minds to learn new things.
Oh definitely, celebrating mediocrity is very common these days in Nigeria. I mean, look at the Wedding Party movie: Yes it was good, but to the extent as being tagged one of the best movies in Nigeria? Makes me want to puke. We are too comfortbale with “the hype” in Nigeria. A lot of noise about doing and no actual “doing”, if you get what I mean. That being said, I think for this specific event, it might have a lot to do with the organizers and the promoters or something cos I just never really heard about it and I follow her page on Facebook. So maybe that’s why. Otherwise, I’m a huge fan of Adichie myself and I stan HARD lol.
Vera, you make some very salient points which i will try to address. I live in the area (Columbia) and my husband works for the Library in the building right next to the Miller branch. Yet, i had no idea until the day before that “our BFF” was scheduled to speak. In fact, I belong to a listserv for African moms in the area and that was how I found out the day before when someone posted it and was dismayed to hear that the tickets were sold out. Me, I immediately called up my spouse, yelled at him for not knowing she was coming since he works for the library lol and prevailed upon him for tix by hook or by crook. He was able to wrangle four for me and some friends- although a couple were unable to make it last minute. I know her visit was publicized in the library paper (The Source) and maybe on the website but how many people would have known of that? So, i think the issue is a little bit of both- that our people didn’t know about the event/or find out in time and to be honest, alot of the older retiree oyibo people are usually front and center at these events. (There is also a senior center across the parking lot so you know they knew of the event and got tix before anyone else, hence why it sold out).
So, in this case, I don’t blame “us” as much for not turning out but I whole heartedly agree that if “our BFF” had to rely solely on nigerians, she would not have gotten as far as she has.. if anywhere at all, which is so, so sad to me.
As for the folks who say they are “allergic” to feminism or think the purpose of feminism is to make men redundant, I challenge you to go read her new book Dear Ijeawele, a feminist feminist manifesto in fifteen suggestions.” And if you still don’t get what feminism is or why it is important, I advice you to read it again and again until you do. My spouse already has some pretty good ideals when it comes to equality between the sexes, but for the sake our son and especially our twin girls, you best believe I will be having him read it as well.
Thanks Ebele, will respectfully pass on the challenge this time..
Got nothing against the author but am old skool who believes more in Biblical instructions. i.e Husband love your wives just as Christ loved the church and also wives submit to your husbands as you do to the Lord, so nothing for me to learn from her on feminism..
You guys have taken it upon yourselves to redefine what used to be the norm..
Thankfully the British system where I belong is a very conservative system, guess is you Americans who continue to prompt all the mischief with your interpretations….
I read an article earlier, even though based on nursing sector, it can be applied generically.. Subject was Men killing wives in US, makes you wonder why such repeated pattern in the States??? The answer lies in feminism and the various toxic interpretations..
Should you feel like reading it, this is the link
https://thepublicviewblog.wordpress.com/2017/06/30/horror-nigerian-men-on-rampage-in-us-kill-wives-over-divorce-alimony/
God help us as we continue to navigate this complex maze of life..
Fad, you took the words out of my mouth. I have made mental notes in the past to go to one of her readings. But her radical feminism I just don’t get, or support. Plus her appearances are never really publicized on media platforms Nigerians and Africans in the States patronize. All said ditto about feminism being a turnoff. To each his own.
I understand your grievance Ma…
It’s no new story that a great number of African, Nigerians most precisely are misplaced in thinking. It’s no disputable fact that there’s a great need for mental restructuring. It’s absolutely a murder curse to venture into the art of appreciation of the particular Nigerian young blood…we all know for a surety that a whole lot isn’t in place.
I’m a young Nigerian student in her penultimate year, a growing writer, reader alongside, and a big fan of Chimamanda. I’d have been thrilled to be in attendance at this event, but I was not. Anchoring interviews is another thing that appeals to my sence of natural arts, and having a one-on-one with the Queen of African literature herself would be no small joy, i would willingly sacrifice a lot to that…yet i wasn’t at this event. Does my absense make me any less that i am? No. Has my strong admiration and love for this prolific writer been watered down? No. Has she become any less before me? No. Do i regard her less important? Definitely not. So what? What would be my perfect excuse as the case may be?
With all my parts waring to follow-up, i’m cut short, seriously hindered by reality.
I heard this great woman speak on her Nation’s independence on a social media platform some years back. I didn’t listen for long, but I heard strongly. Strong enough to address my stereotypes and then form a bedrock for another artwork of mine…
‘When we reject the single story, when we realize that there is not a single story to anything, then we reject a kind of paradise’.
So maybe she wouldn’t have gotten as far just with the African/Nigerian folk…could be just our complacency, could also be individual limitations in various forms.
But then, she was made for the world.
I understand your grievance Ma…
It’s no new story that a great number of African, Nigerians most precisely are misplaced in thinking. It’s no disputable fact that there’s a great need for mental restructuring. It’s absolutely a murder curse to venture into the art of appreciation of the particular Nigerian young blood…we all know for a surety that a whole lot isn’t in place.
I’m a young Nigerian student in her penultimate year, a growing writer, reader alongside, and a big fan of Chimamanda. I’d have been thrilled to be in attendance at this event, but I was not. Anchoring interviews is another thing that appeals to my sence of natural arts, and having a one-on-one with the Queen of African literature herself would be no small joy, i would willingly sacrifice a lot to that…yet i wasn’t at this event. Does my absense make me any less that i am? No. Has my strong admiration and love for this prolific writer been watered down? No. Has she become any less before me? No. Do i regard her less important? Definitely not. So what? What would be my perfect excuse as the case may be?
With all my parts waring to follow-up, i’m cut short, seriously hindered by reality.
I heard this great woman speak on her Nation’s independence on a social media platform. I didn’t listen for long, but I heard strongly. Strong enough to address my stereotype and then form a bedrock for another artwork of mine…
‘When we reject the single story, when we realize that there is not a single story to anything, then we reject a kind of paradise’.
So maybe she wouldn’t have gotten as far just with the African/Nigerian folk…could be just our complacency, could also be individual limitations in various forms.
But then, she was made for the world.
While I love Chimamanda books and ideology, I think it is unfair to compare her to Toke (I have never read anything she’s written and not a fan of hers). I don’t think you have to put one down to elevate another.
I read all these comments and I must say for a First timer on here! I really do love all your views… For one I actually do not know where I stand on this feminism issue… and that’s the honest Truth! I love you @ Joy for your views @ Ebele and Vera I Love some of your views as well… especially Ebele telling us how she got her tickets…
Now to my own view @ Vera Toke isn’t my own cup of tea as well but I refuse to see her as trash! Or her story as something unrelatable we can’t all be intelligentsias. now I thought I was the only one who shared the view that Most of Chimamanda’s books launch or even new books are never publicised and it’s the hard truth… I know of her Cos her 1st book was launched in my secondary school in Nigeria years back and cos I have a hard love for paper backs n books in general I needed to follow up! I found her Nigerian publishers out of my avid n desperate search for how to get paper back books and that is how KACHIFO became home for me! Most times they think I’m a seller, cos I even buy in bulk just to give people in Diaspora! Now how would anyone who isn’t a stresser go all out just for a book?
Fad I love some of your comments Sir, and honestly I actually thought I was the only one who sometimes saw the unrelatable plots/ twists in these books…
I have read Ijeawele Ebele and I would be honest Ma’m even some of those views are not practical in the white / diasporan commmunity! Me n some friends actually reviewed this book point by point and as a girl living in Nigeria and might have seen a little of the world I would say…. her views aren’t worth the long run at least Some! Yes I’m a conservative being… but it’s not for lack of supporting our own! I need to see her gimme a story without an astute/ near glaze of the real African Story that is well publicised just for her people! She needs to do more than wear African designs and be a natural sister… I still Love her work so much!
Check Yellow yellow by kaine Agary! We need to learn to stop this rubbing off peter to praise Paul… we need to all first grab what our concepts of feminism is as a person and individual! Cos if it’s from Chimamanda’s Ijeawele that informs some people’s beliefs then I really don’t agree with alll her views… Mediocrity isn’t to be celebrated but have you given it a thought that some of these things like Toke’s book and the movie wedding party isn’t mediocre it just received better Noise, better packaging and Great Hype! I also shared your sentiments on them… that on the long run, I realised they where not all that!
Check out Oloibiri the Movie by RMD another great work of art I felt didn’t get enough Publicity! Thank you alll…
Ayotola, you actually took the time to read everything. Thank you so much. No, really, thank you. You’re swelling my head right now.