For centuries the world has witnessed extraordinary orators inspire its people and mobilise them into action. However, many times women’s names have been forgotten or completely erased from history. The reality of erasure is especially a threat to the legacies of African women. For this reason, AMAKA presents to you 11 stories that need to be heard. Tackling topics from gender inequality to environmental advocacy, and reclaiming personal narratives and power, these change-making women have spoken for causes they believe in and have created a lasting impact on society with their words. 

1) Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | Author (Nigeria) 

The esteemed novelist, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, took the stage at TED in 2009 to highlight a systemic problem we are still navigating today. At the conference, she speaks on her personal journey in storytelling and reflects on the myopic point of view in literature ingrained into us from a young age. She then offers an analysis of how that affects our perception and imagination. Years after this speech, we now see more stories told by marginalised groups, we can see more multifaceted characters but we still find ourselves questioning who gets to tell those stories. Those who identify with a particular identity should be given an opportunity to write these stories. Only through their lived experiences will truly be able to see the world through their eyes. One of the reasons her delivery is so poignant is because it speaks to every individual whose identity has been erased or misappropriated. A singular story has the ability to change your entire perception of an individual or group and that is where the power of storytelling lies. 

2) Ellen Johnson Sirleaf | Politician (Liberia)

2011 Harvard Commencement Address:

“If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.” 

HE President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf gave the commencement address at the oldest institution of higher learning in the US and notably one of the best in the world. The alum used this opportunity to talk about her own accomplishments and how the university contributed to her journey and success. Sirleaf words act as a call to challenge ourselves. As a woman who refuses to be silenced her oratory skills are unquestionable. By mentioning women playing distinct roles in society, she moves away from using the rhetorical frame that defines women by their relationships to men. Reflecting on Liberia’s relationship with the institution, her speech highlights the privilege of access to education and the many doors it can open. In her speech she commends the growth experienced by the country, she draws an image of a prosperous future, specifically in terms of the continent’s economy, while still acknowledging the many existing hurdles. Recognising the African renaissance and looking at her own country's rebirth she talks about how the country has been transformed by democracy. We listen in as the Nobel Laureate talks about her own role in her country’s growth through resilience and perseverance. She ends her speech by empowering the graduates, to take on the future head-on as they enter the world of the unknown. 

3) Joyce Banda | Politician (Malawi)

Nelson Mandela’s Funeral:

"I learned that leadership is about falling in love with the people that you serve and the people falling in love with you.”

HE President Joyce Banda honours the life of one the most influential men in recent history. She recalls her own personal interactions with Madiba and speaks with great admiration about his humility. The key element of her speech is the power of forgiveness and reconciliation. Banda grabs hold of the audience's attention when she moves away from her prepared script quite early on and gives a more personal account. The use of inclusive words in her speech makes us feel as if she was speaking directly to all Africans. The vulnerability in her speech humanised her in a way that made her more relatable as a person and created a more intimate atmosphere. She reveals that Mandela’s empathetic qualities inspired her on the journey to becoming the first elected female president in her country. Through Banda’s words, we learn how to pay tribute to a remarkable person; by celebrating their life and legacy. 

4) Wangari Maathai | Environmental Activist (Kenya)

Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech:

“There can be no peace without equitable development; and there can be no development without sustainable management of the environment in a democratic and peaceful space.”

Wangari Maathai was the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. She was also the first environmentalist and the list does not end there. Given this unique opportunity, Maathai stresses the importance of caring for the environment and explains how the Green Belt Movement - which promotes the planting of trees and advocates environmental consciousness - has helped change the world. Maathai explains how the movement has empowered women, it changed their perception of the importance of protecting the environment. She then clarifies the problems still occurring. Recognised for her tireless efforts in the field of national peace and sustainable development in Kenya, through her rhetoric she established that environmental issues were intersectional. Eloquently maintaining the audience's attention, Maathai carries the speech with great humility by expressing her gratitude to the world. Entering a space as a woman and a citizen of a post-colonial state, she cements her place in history. 

5) Stella Yanzi | Human Rights Activist & Scholar (Uganda)

Judgement Day at Buganda Road Court:

As a response to false promises and an undesired outcome, an enraged Stella Yanzi took to Facebook to express her discontent through a poetry recitation that sparked an uproar. She is known for her use of explicit language to deliver her message and this sparked criticism. Charged formally with offensive communication and cyber harassment she was sent to prison where her human rights were violated. On her awaited judgement day she was given a platform to voice out her dissent. Chastised for her unorthodox methodology she continues to challenge the status quo. Speaking with great conviction, her tongue-in-cheek tone is not well received by some, but that does not scare her. The college professor aims to embolden the youth by teaching them how use their voice. In Yanzi’s speech, she exposes the inhumane conditions in prison facilities, particularly for women. She continues to for equality and the end of dictatorship in Uganda.

6) Lupita Nyong'o | Actress (Kenya/Mexico)

Black Women in Hollywood Luncheon:

"I hope that my presence on your screens and in the magazines may lead you, young girl, on a similar journey. That you will feel the validation of your external beauty but also get to the deeper business of being beautiful inside.”

On the eve of her historic Oscar win in 2014, Lupita Nyong'o delivers an empowering speech about Black beauty at an Essence ceremony. She begins by reading out a letter written by a dark-skinned girl who was about to buy skin-bleaching cream until she saw Nyong'o's rise to success in Hollywood. She relates to her struggles with the conventional beauty standards perpetuated by society as she was growing up. Nyong’o describes how she was bullied for her "night-shaded skin." This led to negative thinking and pleas for lighter skin, despite her mother’s continuous attempts to affirm her beauty. In her speech, she reflects on her personal journey to loving her skin. She attributes part of that journey by seeing someone in the media who looked like her— South-Sudanese British model, Alek Wek. It is through this growth and newfound self-love that she realises that true beauty does not come from one’s physical appeaance but the “compassion for yourself and for those around you.”  

7) Ama Ata Aidoo | Writer (Ghana):

Interview: 

“Since we met your people five hundred years ago, look at us. We have given everything; you are still taking. Where would the Western world be without Africa?”

After the reemergence of this famous interview on Burna Boy’s 2020 song “Monsters You Made”, a new generation can be empowered by the words Ama Ata Aidoo. This also serves as another example of African literary writers intersecting with global musical artists. In this interview, Aidoo describes the lasting effect of colonialism. Recorded back in 1987, she emphasises that colonial exploitation is not over, and unfortunately, years later we can say that the same remains to be true. In her speech she articulates how the Western world’s identity is a product of the stolen resources from Africa. She goes on to describe how colonists brought diseases that did not exist on the continent. Aidoo also emphasizes the danger of African nations’ dependency on foreign aid. As the West continues to ignore the horrors they have committed in its colonial past, this speech remains to be as relevant as ever.

8) Khadija Gbla | Human Rights Activist (Sierra Leone)

TEDxCanberra - Born a girl in the wrong place:

“FGM is child abuse. It’s violence against women. It’s saying that women don’t have a right to sexual pleasure. It says we don’t have a right to our bodies.”

As a young girl, Khadija Gbla was subjected to Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Gbla tackles a heartfelt issue in a way that can make both laugh and cry. It is in that way that she takes hold of her story and reclaims power. Now as a growan woman, she deals with the consequences of FGM every day. She begins by describing the horrors done to her at the age of nine and reflects on how she only developed a deeper understanding of the atrocity much later in life. She also expresses the dangers of her mother’s action, who herself was a victim of FGM and the lasting impact it had on her body and mind. She explores how the intention behind FGM in many cultures is is to control a woman’s sexuality, denying her the right to sexual pleasure. She is determined that this form of abuse against young girls will end, and she wants to end it in her lifetime.

9) Mona Eltahwy | Journalist and Social Commentator (Egypt/US) 

TEDWomen 2010 - I Am Here To Confuse You: 

“I’m a Muslim. I'm a feminist. And I'm here to confuse you”

As a Muslim woman, Mona Eltahwy explains that Islam and feminism are not mutually exclusive identies. She delivers her speech in a quirky and humorous way, but is also unapologetic about her ideologies. Exploring her intersectional identy further, as an Egyptian-American, she finds herself speaking up against the monolithic identiy of Muslim women depicted by the Western world, but also defying those who attempt to dictate what a Muslim woman should be within the community. She expands on this in her book, Headscarves and Hymens. Why the Middle East Needs a Sexual Revolution. Later in her speech, Eltahwy explores how she navigated embracing her feminism in a time where was learning more about her religion while living in Saudi Arabia, a very ordox and relgious country. Described at times as a radical feminist for her approach, attitude, and reluctance to conform to a patriarchal society, she functions as a vessel for many Muslim women who refuse to be silenced and on the sidelines.

10) Graça Machel | Activist and Politician (Mozambique)

TEDxChange:

“The continent cannot be seen as a continent of failure. A government that is able to be inclusive and bring all its social forces, particularly to bring women to the centre stage can be a successful country.” 

Under the theme ‘The Future We Make’ Graça Machel, calls on the world to put women and girls at the centre of the efforts to fulfil the Millennium Development Goals. She argues that the targets outlined by the MDGs are not enough - people from every nation in the world must commit and mobilise in order to make fulfilling the goals a reality. She talks about acknowledging the way issues are tackled are different within the continent. She explains how African countries can thrive in the midst of great adversity, no matter how small, but in order to do s,o they need good leadership. Bringing the example of the Rwandan Genocide, she states that the country has the lowest representation of women in public institutions. The country quickly recognised that if it were to overcome this tragedy, it needed to include women. In doing so Rwanda became the country with the highest representation of women in parliamentary and it was able to achieve this after two consecutive elections. By bringing these examples she emphasises that to achieve success women cannot be counted out. Finally, she ends by saying that every citizen must be included for the greatest benefit of society. 

11) Danai Gurira (Zimbabwe/US)

ESSENCE’s Black Women in Hollywood: 

“Sisters are the vibranium to the others’ Wakanda.”

In a state of disbelief, Danai Gurira details how she was inspired by the editor of Essence magazine who told her she looked beautiful. It was that impactful interaction that opened her eyes and allowed her to embrace her own beauty. Her speech focuses on the power and importance of sisterhood within the Black community. She emphasises the need for Black women to lift each other up and dismantle the idea by society that women cannot support one another. Her speech takes many women in the audience on an emotional journey as they relate Gurira’s experience to their own. She talks about the importance of celebrating Black beauty and the power this celebration has when it comes from fellow Black women. She tells people to continue telling young Black girls that they are beautiful.

There is power in words, and these women used theirs to create change. May these stories continue to inspire us