Evolving From the Narrative Of “To Be Seen And Not Heard”
Written by Nwaokolo Nneamaka
I love how we as women are taking a new dimension across the Nigerian nation and the African Continent. I love how we are evolving from the stereotypical nature attributed to “women” as the weaker sex, as the unknowledgeable gender.
I see a bold and dauntless generation of women who are not afraid to challenge the system, the harsh reality of patriarchy, despite the knowledge and acceptance that it has come to stay. We challenge the erroneous mockeries meted out on us. I love it for us women.
To be reserved has been a constant nature of women. We have been expected to keep mute when we ought to have spoken up. To turn a blind eye and deaf ears to matters that should not be ignored. To be a woman in society, is to be a mannequin; bendable to whatever we are told, bendable to whatever situation we find ourselves in. This is what we have been molded to believe.
We often see instances where women have been tagged as rebellious and uncouth for daring to question “questionable” matters. We have been tagged as “unladylike” for voicing out our displeasure at the under-representation of females at various gatherings of key significance.
The reality is that we are not uncouth, rebellious, or untrained. We are simply embracing the daring spirit and learning the art of not cowering at the slightest opportunity to. What’s not to love about that?
The most lovable aspect of changing the ‘to be seen and not to be heard’ narrative is of course our active involvement in almost every facet of life, if not every. Politics, finance, tech (this tech is the juiciest part of women involvement), you name it. You’ll see 30% of African/Nigerian women. What better way to be heard even without speaking than being a part of a movement? A part of movements.
It must have been quite boring for older generation women to conform to whatever lemon was thrown their way, imagine nodding to ‘I don’t expect you to understand, you’re a woman’ and smiling sweetly.
We no longer have to keep shut either because we are naïve of what is being discussed around us or because we are simply meant to keep shut. We now talk, we now let the world hear our voices, we now speak so you feel the shrill in our voices at combating an arguable statement.
Was it our voices you wanted the narrative to shut out?
This voice?
Was it the narrative you wanted to box us up in a cubicle?
You wanted to have us scared of exploration, didn’t you?
It only gets better from here; it only gets more phenomenal. The evolution of the woman has already begun. We now have female political office holders, we have tech sistas, we have female financial top officials, we have females; everywhere and the fun part is when they talk, we stop to listen. We have crossed that bridge.
To be a lady, a woman is never easy. To be out there into it all is never easy but somehow as women, we make things happen. The narrative is changed already, we are acknowledged in all aspects now and we will drill that opportunity.
We have the way paved out for us to step into the light and be a force against the obsolete narrative.
Nwaokolo Nneamaka is a mass communication student, majoring in broadcast at the University of Lagos. She is enthusiastic about writing, music, and art in general. Nneamaka is also an advocate for the ‘You Matter’ tag amongst the female gender.
Edited by Blessing Temitope Oguntuase
Blessing Temitope Oguntuase is a law graduate who obtained her Bachelor of Laws (LLB) and Master of Laws in International Air, Space, and Telecommunications Law from the University of Pretoria. Temitope enjoys writing and engaging in research. She is passionate about exploring the intersection between disruptive technologies and the Law. Connect with Temitope on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Published by Akinsipe Temitope
Temitope is a young storyteller who thinks all stories are worth telling. She loves to inspire people to do what they love and follow their passions, tell their stories, and live in the present moment. Connect with Temitope on Instagram, and Twitter.
