Women’s Rights – Page 2

Read: Yes
Length: 339
Quick Review: An in depth look at the transformation in status, perception, and participation American women have undergone in society through the centuries.

20180115_111033(0)-01.jpeg — All the Single Ladies by Rebecca Traister

Rebecca Traister had me hooked when she stated, “I always hated it when my heroines got married” within the first few paragraphs. All the Single Ladies is a look at modern women and where we have come from.

All the Single Ladies is a fun yet in depth look at the history of women with a focus on American women. There are tons of statistics, but you won’t drown in them. The statistics serve a purpose to educate but are still interesting. Traister utilizes her own single life as well as friends, colleagues, and others’ experiences as single women. One thing Traister conveys more than anything else is that singledom is incredibly diverse looking different for everyone.

Traister is not anti-marriage, anti-male, anti-woman, or anti-single. When she began her journey writing this book, she was a single woman living in New York City. At some point in her life and book journey, she met a man. She is now a married woman with two daughters.

This has been on my reading list for awhile since I am a single lady. For as excited as I was, I was also a touch tentative. Rebecca Traister is a white woman. There is nothing wrong with this. When looking at a subject, there is the tendency to look at people similar to oneself. I was worried there would be a deficiency of inclusivity and diversity of perspective, socio-economic background, race, etc. I was pleasantly surprised. From the beginning, she states that she sites more white, New Yorker writers than most of us probably know. Throughout the book, she does a good job of talking about all women and not just those she identifies with. She spends a great deal of time discussing the disparity between white women and women of color, poor women and middle class/wealthy women, and more. She explores the fact women of color and poor women have enabled wealthier classes of women “freedoms.” How there is a dependency between the two discrepancies. How white women have lead change by co-opting opinions and actions of women of color.

Traister spends a lot of time emphasizing the complexities of women’s issues.

Nothing Traister wrote was groundbreaking. At least, it wasn’t ground breaking or remotely shocking to me. I spend a lot of my time listening to women’s stories and reading about the history and complexities of women’s status in society. If it’s not something you have spent a great deal of time lingering on, there will be lots of information packed into a fairly short book.

(I have fun finding mistakes, and she had one mistake on page 153: the date should be 1938 but reads 1838. Oops! Only off by 100 years.)

I highly suggest this book. It’s interesting and fun. Personally, it rejuvenated my love of being a single woman in America. I would love to hear Traister’s opinions about women’s status post the 2016 presidential election.

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Memorable Quotes
“…these single American women have already shown that they have the power to change America, in ways that make many people extremely uncomfortable.”
“Any time women do anything with their lives that is not in service to others, they are readily perceived as acting perversely.”
“When people call single women selfish for the act of spending on themselves, it’s important to remember that the very acknowledgement that women have selves that exist independently of others, and especially independent of husbands and children, is revolutionary.”
““It takes a lot to qualify a man as selfish”” Amina Sow
“The state must play its role in supporting a population that no longer lives and dies within a family unit.”
“at the heart of independence lies money.”
“When it comes to female liberty and opportunity, history sets an extremely low bar.”
“women’s maternal status is often treated as the singularly interesting thing about them”

Title: All The Single Ladies; Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation
Author: Rebecca Traister
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks
Copyright: 2016
ISBN: 9781476716572

Read: Yes
Length: II (236)
Quick Review: Alexis Okeowo tells the story of four African countries in the midst of their own battles with extremism through people most affected by them.

I like to think of myself as a fairly aware person, and I have found my African knowledge to be extravagantly more informed than the average American’s. I will admit my knowledge of this century’s goings on in Africa are severely lacking. It is mostly my fault, but not entirely. Unless our soldiers are dying or a super celebrity gets a hold of something, the media seldom covers African issues. When they do, you probably have to dig for it. In college, my research focused on the linguistic evolution of North African immigrants in France, so naturally I have an extensive knowledge of North African history and culture. Okeowo addresses African issues with extremism as well as the lack of media coverage and more in A Moonless, Starless Sky without making you feel terrible for not knowing about the struggles of an entire continent.

Okeowo is a first generation daughter of Nigerian immigrants. Having grown up in the deep south hearing about the homeland, she decided to move to Lagos, Nigeria after college to work as a reporter. She is currently a staff writer at The New Yorker, but her time in Africa shaped her. Her debut book A Moonless, Starless Sky, which is released on October 3 of this year, addresses an issue she is so clearly passionate about.

Stories from the countries of Uganda, Mauritania, Nigeria, and Somalia are deeply moving, heart wrenching, and yet hope-filled looking to the future. Each country has been dealing with extremism for decades. As Americans, we have heard about the child soldiers in Uganda, slavery in Mauritania, the Boko Haram in Nigeria, and terrorism in Somalia. What was talked about briefly in the news has been ongoing for years and continues after coverage fades. Of the four countries, Somalia has been covered the most in recent American media due to the military interaction within the country, but still it has faded from our attentions and visibility. Okeowo tells the stories of normal people having to cope with the effects of terrorism on their lives, their families, their culture, and their country. Even in the midst of immense turmoil, there is a theme of bravery. Sometimes the simplest acts convey bravery and even resistance. In these moments, the average person can be thrust into a position of power becoming a symbol of activism providing a glimpse of hope for change.

Okeowo writes with intensity and honesty. She captures the humanity and struggle of those forced to commit atrocities with no problem pointing out double standards, struggles, scare tactics, and more she encountered while traveling, interviewing, and witnessing local life. She writes without qualm about the complexity activists face in their battle to extinguish extremism in their countries. Among the serious subject matter, she has poignant moments of humor, sarcasm, and irritation. The book is so relatably human in it’s approach to a topic saturated in monstrosity.

A work of literary journalism, Okeowo accomplishes a devastating roller coaster of feelings in a mere 256 pages. It is impossible to read A Moonless, Starless Sky without being emotionally sucker punched. Intertwining the larger issues with the stories of the impact they have on the people, Okeowo’s words will haunt your thoughts long after the book has been closed. My only criticism is: I want more.

Title: A Moonless, Starless Sky; Ordinary Women and Men Fighting Extremism in Africa
Author: Alexis Okeowo
Publisher: Hachette Books
Copyright: 2017
ISBN: 9780316382939