Hear from young feminist leaders this International Women’s Day
Happy International Women’s Day!
Leading up to IWD, we’ve been in conversation with some of the young feminist leaders we’re most inspired by. They spoke to us about the things they are most proud of in the past year, some of the things they have learned, and where their work is going.
Please follow and amplify their work!
“One of my most cherished lessons as a feminist leader has been to center love, compassion, and kindness in organising - two of my favorite writers and thought leaders, bell hooks and adrienne maree brown speak on this. As a child and a teenager, I thought leadership was one that did not embrace other people's realities and ideas but as I got older, this thought changed. Being a feminist leader honours intergenerational dialogue and partnerships as well as centers the voices of those most marginalised and because of this often silenced. I reflect daily on Feminitt Caribbean, an NGO which I founded back in 2020. Since its inception, we have engaged using participatory and collaborative methods. At its core, feminist leadership is intersectional and inclusive which we embody. Seeing the level of care and love our team leads with is not only a significant achievement but is the lesson I have learned in action.”
Okong’o Kinyanjui:
“My co-founder and I are moved to see that our work has reached over 1 million people through our TED Talk as we hope to become the primary tool used for coalition building and resource flows among queer Africans globally. This response illuminates the urgent need for building a world where queer Africans are safe online and thriving offline, and our team is excited to continue co-designing our mobile app alongside our members with the goal of shifting power to the people most impacted by surveillance capitalism.
The queer virtual communities that my co-founder, Nerima Makhondo, and I have been a part of have saved my friends from life-threatening isolation, helped them find housing, and facilitated mobilization around issues that impede our existence. The Queer African Network was born out of wanting to extend this lifeline to others by rooting our platform in feminist tech principles. Our bold idea is to establish meaningful social and professional connections for LGBTQI+ persons of African heritage through a comprehensive digital information hub that globally crowdsources opportunities, transnational alliances, and affirming content.”
“Last year was a blessing which came bearing many gifts, most importantly it gave space for me to unpack the exhaustion, confusion and grief of the COVID times. Work-wise, I got to work in collaboration with many thoughtful organisations and people around the world and created work for many different and important themes like climate change, digital rights, decolonisation of aid and philanthropy, mental health tools for activists, ethical storytelling and representation etc. I also got to speak about my work at multiple events including Global Leadership Summit by Girl Up United Nations Foundations.
Apart from all the work I created, the one that I am most proud of is the 'Comprehensive Visual Communications Checklist for responsible representation'. It's an 8-pointer guide rooted in ethical storytelling, freely available on multiple social media platforms. It was widely shared and appreciated on all social media channels, some also printed it to be installed on their office walls.
I hope to create more such resources in the future.”
The ‘Comprehensive Visual Communications Checklist for responsible representation’ can be found and shared on the following social media platforms: Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter.
