Witch-Hunting, Globalization, and Feminist Solidarity in Africa Today
2008; Bridgewater State University; Volume: 10; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1539-8706
Autores Tópico(s)Sex work and related issues
ResumoWitch-hunting did not disappear from repertoire of bourgeoisie with abolition of slavery. On contrary, global expansion of capitalism through colonization and Christianization ensured that this persecution would be planted in body of colonized societies, and, in time, would be carried out by subjugated communities in their own name and against their own members. (Silvia Federici, Caliban and Witch, Women, The Body and Primitive Accumulation) Discussing witch-hunting as a global phenomenon, at end of Caliban and Witch (2004), and commenting on witch-hunts that have taken place in Africa and other parts of world in 1980s and 1990s, I expressed my concern that these persecutions were rarely reported in Europe and U.S. Today, literature on return of witch-hunting on world scene has grown and so have media reports of witch-killings, coming not only from Africa, but India, Latin America, Papua New Guinea. Yet, with few exceptions, (2) social justice movements and even feminist organizations continue to be silent on this matter, although victims are predominantly women. By witch-hunting I refer to recurrence of punitive expeditions by young male vigilantes or self-appointed witch-finders, often leading to murder of accused and confiscation of their properties. Especially in Africa, this has become a serious problem over last two decades continuing to this day. Just in Kenya, eleven people, eight women and three men, were murdered in May in Southwestern province of Kisii, accused of witchcraft (USA Africa Dialogue 5/24/08). Studied mostly by anthropologists, witchcraft accusations and killings should concern all feminists, North and South. For in addition to inflicting an unspeakable suffering on those accused, and perpetrating a misogynous ideology that degrades all women, they have devastating consequences for communities affected, especially younger generations. They are also emblematic examples of effects of economic globalization on women, further demonstrating that it contributes to escalation of male violence against them. In what follows, I discuss witch-hunts in Africa, examining their motivations and suggesting some initiatives that feminists can take to put an end to these persecutions. My argument is that these witch-hunts must be understood in context of deep crisis in process of social reproduction that liberalization and globalization of African economies have produced, as they have undermined local economies, devalued women's social position, and generated intense conflicts between young and old, women and men, over use of crucial economic resources starting with land. In this sense, I see present witch-hunts on a continuum with such phenomena as dowry murders and return of sati in India, and killings of hundreds of women in Mexican towns at border with U.S., victims of rapists or snuff/porno producers. For, in different ways, they too are an expression of effects of integration into global economy, and men's readiness to vent on women their economic frustrations and even sacrifice their lives to keep abreast of advancing capitalist relations. These witch-hunts are also on a continuum with worldwide return of the supernatural in political discourse and popular practice (e.g. satanic cults in Europe and U.S.), a phenomenon that can be attributed to proliferation of fundamentalist religious sects but, significantly, has emerged in conjunction with globalization of economic life. My analysis concludes that while mobilizing against these egregious violations of women's rights, feminists should put on trial agencies that have created material and social conditions that have made them possible. These include African governments who do not intervene to prevent killings or punish them; World Bank, International Monetary Find and their international supporters, whose economic policies have destroyed local economies, fueling a war of all against all. …
Referência(s)