Women in Philosophy (African Feminist Philosophy)

Since the emergence of modern written African philosophy, African female and feminist philosophers have struggled for recognition. Writing from the margins in a field shaped by allegedly sexually neutral or universal philosophical concepts, they have argued that the lack of knowledge about women’s issues limits the development of African philosophy. Some female and feminist philosophers argue that the deprecation women philosophers experience in the field is connected to a much wider marginalization of women in African colonial and postcolonial societies. Conceptualizing a truly inclusive African feminist philosophy, these scholars call for further decolonization of African philosophy from Western philosophical canons. At the same time, they seek to reconnect philosophical questioning to various social, political, and economic issues, thereby reflecting on a wide spectrum of themes and often resorting to interdisciplinarity to give significance to their reasoning. African female and feminist philosophers explore women’s voices, ideas, and bodies not only to speak for and with women, but also to challenge the definition, purposes, and mission of African philosophy.