Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie | The modern African woman hero

Many have referred to her as the African version of Maya Angelou or rather the author who made African literature cool “again”, but there is so much more to Chimamanda than her amazing writing skills. Dr Chimamanda has a degree in medicine and pharmaceutical studies from the University of Nigeria. Later on, she moved to the United States for her Masters of Arts degree in African Studies at Yale University.

Along side being an author, she is also a poet. Remember the song “Flawless” by Beyoncé? What about the lady who defines feminism in the song? Well, that is Chimamanda. That was the peak of her fame, people started showing an interest in this woman who was schooling the whole world on what feminism was. Prior to that song, many thought feminism was meant for angry women who hated men and just wanted to be equal to men in every aspect of society. Her verse in the song was from one of her Ted talks called: “ We Should All Be Feminists.” Through her, a lot more people know feminism simply as: “ The person who believes in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes.” Rather than the typical prejudice that comes hand in hand with the word “feminism.”

Chimamanda is not only known for being a feminist but her Ted talks are very popular. One of her first talks was titled: “ The Danger of A Single Story.” Through it, she shares her story of how she learned to embrace her culture and warned the listeners of the risk of only listening to a single story whether it’s about another person, a country or a continent. According to her, a single story often leads to critical misunderstanding, which is often seen in the way people view Africans for example. She shares how she realized her college roommate was not being mean when she asked if she lived in huts in Africa, but she was a victim of only knowing a single side to the story.

I personally believe that Chimamanda should be our modern African woman hero. Kids should learn about her in school, and more girls should aspire to be like her. Through her hard-work, dedication and passion, she managed to redefine how feminism is viewed in society, and wrote novels that portrayed what it was like to be and stay African in a very westernized world.

In a World where we rarely hear of African She-roes, may we applaud Chimamanda and her voice for being the outspoken and inspiring woman that she is.