A*DESK’ archives according to… Martha Kirszenbaum

“Can feminism cease to be anti-capitalist and still be feminism? Can feminism be universalistic without being popular?”

Taking as a backdrop her experience in ranking a research program at a Swedish University, Catalonian artist and curator Alexandra Laudo draws upon the infamous writings of Nigerian feminist author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, whose catchphrases have been appropriated by Beyonce and Dior, to raise the question of the implementation of gender equality through education, and question whether feminist values and activism can exist outside of capitalism and beyond global consumerism. In the aftermath of a politically charged year and marked in the media by the #metoo and #notsurprised campaigns, the article seems to ask accurate questions, with sensitivity and discernment, pointing out the paradoxes of public policies and ingrained patriarchal mindsets in the Western world. Having been an active part of the Not Surprised WhatsApp group and conversations, the article caught my attention and reminded me of these verses written in 1978 by African-American poet Maya Angelou:

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may trod me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I’ll rise.