Unrecognized in African history: African women and their fight for liberation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Women's contribution to Africa's decolonisation and independence struggle has not always received recognition equal to that of men in today's African political history studies. Their influence on African politics today is also usually silenced. This article thus goes on a historical journey to show that women in Sub-Saharan Africa have been at the forefront of subverting colonial patriarchal politics, which persist in many African states to this day. Through the conceptual thinking of Afro-feminism, the article gives examples of women across Africa and in African history who fought at the frontlines of liberation and decolonisation battles to create equal, equitable, culturally-conscious, and gender-aware political systems on the continent.

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Publication Details

Journal
Human Science Research Council SA
Published
2026-05-22
DOI
https://doi.org/10.14749/32363172
Primary Topic
African studies and sociopolitical issues
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00
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article

Unrecognized in African history: African women and their fight for liberation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Human Sciences Research Council
Human Science Research Council SA
African studies and sociopolitical issues
article

Unrecognized in African history: African women and their fight for liberation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Human Sciences Research Council
article en

Abstract

Women's contribution to Africa's decolonisation and independence struggle has not always received recognition equal to that of men in today's African political history studies. Their influence on African politics today is also usually silenced. This article thus goes on a historical journey to show that women in Sub-Saharan Africa have been at the forefront of subverting colonial patriarchal politics, which persist in many African states to this day. Through the conceptual thinking of Afro-feminism, the article gives examples of women across Africa and in African history who fought at the frontlines of liberation and decolonisation battles to create equal, equitable, culturally-conscious, and gender-aware political systems on the continent.

Human Science Research Council SA
Gender equality
Openalex Percentile: Top 3%
African studies and sociopolitical issues
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