Ezra Chitando, Anna Chitando, Ezra Chitando, et al.
Leiden
Brill
African American women have been keen to highlight that black women are at the 'bottom of the pile' in a society that espouses values of human equality. The situation of the women in Africa is probably worse, as their societies do not propagate human equality. Moreover they have to cope with many other problems such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, the threat of death and male dominance. Though African women theologians were few at the beginning of the 1990s, their number increased during the ten years that followed. This article shows how they were inspired by their sisters, the female African creative writers. Often they felt more solidarity with these sisters than with many African male theologians. Women African theologians and creative writers stand for the same struggle in order to prevent men using their religion - be it African traditional religion or Christianity - to oppress their sisters. African American women have been keen to highlight that black women are at the 'bottom of the pile' in a society that espouses values of human equality. The situation of the women in Africa is probably worse, as their societies do not propagate human equality. Moreover they have to cope with many other problems such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, the threat of death and male dominance. Though African women theologians were few at the beginning of the 1990s, their number increased during the ten years that followed. This article shows how they were inspired by their sisters, the female African creative writers. Often they felt more solidarity with these sisters than with many African male theologians. Women African theologians and creative writers stand for the same struggle in order to prevent men using their religion - be it African traditional religion or Christianity - to oppress their sisters.