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FinalCall.com News
World News
Speaking for the African woman -Part I
By Susan Anyangu
Updated Aug 31, 2007 - 10:58:00 AM
[Editor’s note: The following East African Standard (Nairobi, Kenya) article by Susan Anyangu was published on AllAfrica.com on Aug. 13. This is the first of two installments.]
(www.AllAfrica.com) - As women in Kenya fight for more representation, miles away in Switzerland, another woman is fighting a similar battle, albeit on another scale.
Mutheu Meierhofer-Mangeli, 53, a Kenyan woman living abroad, has taken the battle of equal representation to Europe where she has lived for the last 26 years.
“It is very difficult for Blacks, especially women, living in a predominately White community.
“When I first arrived in Europe, the society was very closed and Blacks were considered outsiders.
“I kept thinking it was unfair to feel unwanted. After all, we say the world is a global village and I think this means we should learn to live with each other. I wanted to make a difference for the Black woman.”
To the surprise of many, but out of conviction because she says she is a politician at heart, Mutheu, plunged into politics.
She became the first Black woman to ever contest for a parliamentary seat in Switzerland, a country of predominantly Whites.
Though she has been unsuccessful in her two attempts, Mutheu has made a point. She has obviously touched some hearts with her work because she has considerable support from the locals.
And she does not rule out running for office again and may just become the first Black woman Member of Parliament (MP) in Switzerland.
“I do not see non-White faces in parliament, but because I have lived in that country for a long time, I have to make a difference. It is time they understood Black people differently especially women,” she says.
Organization seeks legal redress for Black women
She says laws in some countries in Europe support a system that essentially abuses foreigners. For instance, Black women living in Switzerland cannot get a visa unless they are married to a Swiss or are “dancers.”
“Dancers abroad are equivalent to prostitutes and thus African women find themselves lured to a life of sexual slavery. The law is racist and such women end up abused and their children are discriminated against,” she says.
Mutheu also says Africans living in Europe are subjected to violence from right wing extremists. Through involvement in politics and her organization, Meeting Place and Resource Center for Black Women, which she formed about 15 years ago, she advocates for the rights of Black women irrespective of their countries of origin.
Her organization seeks legal redress for Black women who are usually constrained financially. She is the director of the center which offers support services to Black women in Switzerland, Germany, Belgium and France. The center trains women on how to influence European policies that affect them and Africa as a continent.
“We monitor attitude and raise awareness around policies which affect Black women and Africa as a continent,” she says.
Center raises funds for legal services
It also provides counseling.
“The Western world has done a perfect job of marketing their countries to lure Africans. Africans are lured to Europe and America under the guise that life abroad is a bed of roses. But when people get here they find things are not as rosy. That is where we come in and provide relevant information and tell people what to expect,” she says.
The center raises funds to seek legal services for such women and they also visit those in prisons. The center also provides space for women to share their experiences and get support.
“The Meeting Place and Resource Center for Black Women is a national organization that offers a platform for carrying issues concerning Black women, their families, their integration process, and their interaction with society,” she says.
The center offers a safe space for the women. It mobilizes resources and empowers Black women. It challenges sexist and racist stereotypes by emphasizing positive images of Black women.
“We offer counseling, translation, act as ‘buffers’ and intercultural mediation for Black women and their families in crisis situations,” she says.
The center also fundraises and collaborates with the courts, social services and psychiatric institutions to assist these women.
Young girls need all the support they can get
Mutheu’s organization also acts as an information post for individuals, schools and other educational institutions in Europe. The center is also linked with other Black women’s groups in the Diaspora, working and linking with them for internship, training and information exchange.
Mutheu is a firm believer in the view that educating a woman is educating a whole community.
“The potential of an African woman is exciting when I see what happens to an educated Black woman. The potential is absolutely immense. I’m not sure why Black women are not leading the world because we are brave,” she says.
“When a woman is educated, she explores her potential to the maximum and achieves success to very high levels.”
Mutheu says Africa is not short of exceptional Black women who have fought hard for the rights of women and she argues young girls in Africa do not lack role models.
“When I see what African women are capable of I get impressed. We are brave and have perfected the art of survival. I don’t know why we don’t rule the world. Perhaps it is because we are nice; we have been trained to be submissive and to want harmony. For us to rule the world we may actually need to stop being nice” Mutheu says with such conviction.
She says that for young girls to realize their potential as adults, they only need all the support they can get.
“Think about it, if you knew what you know now when you were about 15 years old, your life would be different. That information would have meant a lot to you then and would have made a huge difference to the person you turned out to be as an adult,” she says.
To be continued.
