Imagining Movement Building in The Gambia: Inclusion and Accessibility within Feminist Spaces for disabled women with Sira

This is an interview series with women in The Gambia or in the diaspora on what it means to them to be part of a community/network of feminists that show solidarity, support, and create networks for more advocacy and reach both online and offline. The main aim is to show how the advocacy spectrum in The Gambia can be difficult to penetrate based on disabilities, identities, networks, and experience or lack thereof in activism.

This is the first article in the series with Sira, a Gambian feminist, deaf, non-sign language literate woman, and a free radical.

Maimuna: Hello Sira, can you tell me about yourself and your feminist journey?

Sira: My name is Mamy Sira and I’m a feminist. I grew up with a hearing disability as a result of which most of the information I come across/absorb is either from books or digitalized. I spent most of my life indifferent to the concept of feminism and was only familiar with the whitest brand of feminism. Luckily for me, that changed a few years ago and I started on the most amazing journey that changed my life and how I viewed everyone around me. I’m a businesswoman and I’m based in The Gambia.

Despite being pretty new to practicing textbook feminism (four years) I like to think my feminist beliefs are quite broad. I’m always ready to learn and unlearn and I believe everyone is capable of doing the same if they want to. My feminism is inclusive and to me, the fight is for all of us even women who choose to disregard the feminist agenda. I have been part of feminist movements online largely because my journey started there.

Maimuna: Thank you for that profuse introduction. You spoke about your presence and participation in feminist movements online. How do you navigate offline feminist spaces?

Sira: That’s a rather tricky question because although most organizations/movements are open to all women it also largely depends on what type of disability you have. In my case (being deaf but not sign language literate) it would be easy to join organizations/offline movements but I often feel like my presence is just for visibility and moral support. I necessarily do not learn much from being present due to the limited/lack of legible communication in those spaces. Being in those spaces make me feel good because I’m surrounded by like-minded women, women eager to learn but also makes me feel like I’m back in school and relying solely on the blackboard to understand the lesson, whereas my peers have the added advantage of in-depth explanations directly from the teacher’s mouth.

For such spaces to be more inclusive of marginalized women they’d have to be accessible to women in wheelchairs and women with hearing disabilities etc, equipped with translators for English-illiterate women since most of these spaces largely cater to educated women; and near enough for economically disadvantaged women to attend. It seems like a lot to expect but where inclusivity is concerned it’s step by step

Maimuna: I think that usually, the lack of resources and facilities can be a strain so much that it may look like “normal” women and women living with disabilities are competing for spaces in the feminist sphere. Do you ever feel like constantly being left out of spaces created by women due to your disability?

Sira: As I stated above, making spaces and information more accessible to women offline. In my feminist journey, I have come across a fair few disabled women who like me find it much easier to be included in online discourse than offline. For women with the disability I have, sign language translators and digitalized speech to text translations would go a long way in ensuring we’re privy to the same information as our abled counterparts.

Maimuna: I know I described you like a free radical above, have you ever worked with any feminist organization in the Gambia if not, why is this so?

Sira: No, I haven’t. My advocacy has always been very singular and individual and perhaps my disability tends to ignite a sense of imposter syndrome that makes me feel I’d be more of a liability in physical advocacy. I advocate by personally speaking out and especially to those closest to me. Hopefully, I can learn to start putting myself more out there!

Maimuna: Are you part of any formal or informal organization of disabled women, and in what way do you think that these two spaces can cater to each other?

Sira: Funnily enough once I got over the initial shock and confusion of suddenly losing my hearing, my life pretty much went back to normal with of course some adjustments especially in how I communicated with others. It never occurred to me to be part of any organization catering to or advocating for disabled people. This certainly reeks of privilege but personal reasons stopped me from joining any type of organization or group regardless of their purpose.

Maimuna: I know you love reading, please share with me and my readers two books that have had a great impact on your feminist awakening?

Sira:

The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta!! This was one of my first African reads. Nnu Ego’s story opened my eyes to the universal sufferings of women who are often left to fend for themselves and an entire family yet so closely policed and expected to be subordinates and submissive to a man, any man.

So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba had a similar impact on me and remains the first book I recommend to anyone wanting to read an African woman’s written story.