A Woman to Know: Margaret Ekpo
That's why Margaret Ekpo has been in the news for nearly 60 years. — Kammonke Abam
(image via Wikimedia Commons)
In the midst of Nigeria's fight for independence, Margaret Ekpo began to mobilize her own movement: for women's rights. She believed that women had a more important role to play in the newly-created First Republic, to exist as more than just confidantes or helpers to the male freedom fighters. As a prominent voice in Nigeria's grassroots activism, she inspired a generation of African women to engage with politics, run for office and petition government.
She counted her hometown elections in the 1950s as her greatest triumph: by 1955, female voters outnumbered male voters in Aba, Nigeria.
Add to your library list:
The Feminization of Development Processes in Africa (James S. Etim, Valentine U. James)
Read more:
History and results of the power of women in protest (The Guardian)
Unsung Heroines of Nigeria's Independence (Nigerian News)
African Feminists that History Needs to Remember (Ventures Africa)
Margaret Ekpo: Fierce Defender of Women's Rights (All Africa)
Child, Bride, Mother: Nigeria (The New York Times)
A Brief History of Margaret Ekpo (Woman)
The elite assault on Nigeria (The Guardian)
Empowering Nigerian women toward development (Nigerian Observer)
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