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WORLD ANTHROPOLOGICAL UNION

CONGRESS 2024​

Paper

Unveiling Black Feminist Narratives: Pan-Africanism, Decolonialism, and Digital Advocacy in Social Media Discourses

presenters

    Ines Amaral

    Nationality: Portugal

    Residence: Portugal

    University of Coimbra / Centre for Social Studies

    Presence:Face to Face/ On Site

    Disakala Ventura Francisco Domingos

    Nationality: Angola

    Residence: Angola

    Presence:Face to Face/ On Site

Keywords:

Black feminism, Social media discourse, Decolonial narratives

Abstract:

This paper examines the intersections of Pan-Africanism, decolonialism, and feminism by analyzing contemporary discourses in social media. Focusing on a case study of the Instagram account Ondjango Feminista - Angolan Feminist Women's Collective, it explores how current Black feminisms are present and discussed on social media platforms. Grada Kilomba (2022) asserts that Black women occupy a "third space" between race and gender, while Djamila Ribeiro (2023) emphasizes that Black women are the "Other of the Other." Early African feminists, such as Adelaide Casely-Hayford, Charlotte Maxeke, and Huda Sharaawi, laid the groundwork for feminist and Pan-African causes, emphasizing the long-standing intersectionality in these struggles. Portuguese colonialism and the slave system coined a brutal and oppressive legacy, which led to a hegemonic discourse that often silenced violence against Black and Indigenous women in the former colonies (Gomes, 2019). The liberation movements in African countries also served as the basis for the formation of African feminism, which understands the identity processes of black women, looking at blackness, the role of women, fragmented identities in contemporary times, changes in post-colonial social structures, and ideological struggles. This study examines how social media platforms provide a voice to marginalized groups by echoing Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak's (2021) question, "Can the subaltern speak?". By employing content analysis and digital ethnography, this research investigates the revitalization of Pan-African and feminist ideals within current socio-political landscapes. The findings suggest that social media offers a unique lens to understand ongoing negotiations of identity, power, and resistance in post-colonial settings. The paper bridges anthropological theory with digital media studies, contributing to a comprehensive understanding of how Pan-Africanism and feminism intersect in the digital age. It underscores the critical role of social media in fostering Black feminist discourse and decolonial narratives, challenging traditional power structures, and offering new perspectives on identity and resistance.