Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - "What if we raise the bar for men?"

The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom awarded Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie the Africa Freedom Prize for 2020 in a virtual event on 14 December 2020.

In her award-winning works, Adichie relentlessly addresses the central social grievances and political challenges of our time. As one of the most important intellectual champions of women's rights, she inspires people around the world in their pursuit of freedom.

In her acceptance speech, “What if we raised the bar for men?”, Adichie focused primarily on the issue of male violence towards women.

“All over the world today, women are beaten, raped and murdered by men. These women would not suffer this kind of violence if they were not women. Yes, men suffer violence, but it is overwhelmingly women who suffer from the violence.”

Adichie goes on to make reference to the language used in describing violence towards women by men.
“Terms such as gender-based violence, violence by whom?” she asked, noting a recent United Nations statistic according to which, on average, 137 women are killed by a family member daily. “What this doesn’t say is that the perpetrator is often a male family member. It is no longer enough to criticise, it is time to think about alternatives and possibilities. There is a lot of focus on women who are the victims but there isn’t enough time focused on the perpetrators of the crimes. And so, what if we raised the bar for men?”

Together with the host of the event, South African journalist and media personality Redi Tlhabi, Adichie explored issues including how toxic masculinity is showing its true face in the Western political space, how the languages of culture and the practices of tradition undermine the female anatomy, and why African political leaders often choose quiet diplomacy when society calls for change in specific countries.

The event includes a special musical performance by South African musician Zolani Mahola.

See also the story of a domestic violence survivor: https://youtu.be/QN8dRmSYHmY

Видео Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - "What if we raise the bar for men?" канала Freedom Foundation Africa