Author: Amal Abdellatif
Date: 25 July 2025
Happy International Day for Women and Girls of African Descent!
It’s a privilege to celebrate the International Day for Women and Girls of African Descent and write this reflection as an Egyptian, brown, woman and immigrant academic in the UK.
As African women, we face a world of tensions and contradictions, where difference is concomitant with otherness, marginalisation and exclusion at the axes of our gender, race, ethnicity, and other intersectional identities. Our experiences are uniquely filtered through these categories of difference, shaping our lives and worldviews.
Through the journey, our African identity is increasingly contested by patriarchal narratives, dominant ideologies and hegemonic, white, Western ways of being, knowing and thinking that delegitimise and undermine the existence and voices of the Other to uphold the status quo of intersectional inequalities.
We find ourselves in spaces that were not created by or for women who look like us, where our difference is tokenized under the guise of symbolic ‘diversity’ to signal ‘inclusion’ that masks experiences of dehumanization.
Such experiences of intersectional gendered and racial violence not only challenge our belonging to this world, but instil anxiety, imposter and fear of embracing our authentic self.
Yet, when our stories are written and told, they become a force of liberation and reclamation of voices and spaces; an act of resistance to dismantle epistemic ignorance, and subvert conformity with and submission to structural dominance and power.
Our battle for equity is an ongoing struggle that we collectively carry its burden. While the road is not free from obstacles, today is a reminder for us to own who we are unapologetically.
Let’s rock our curls with pride, share our stories loud, and stand our ground in solidarity with each other and those who feel like home. Let’s build together a just future and pave the way for generations of African girls to come.
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