Graduate Student, Centre for Gender Studies
University Of Birmingham, Centre for the Study of Global Ethics
University of Greenwich, History, politics and Philosophy
SOAS University of London, Centre for Gender and Religions Research
Thesis Title: Christianity and feminism in the Kenyan women's movement
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Sian Hawthorne
Nadje al-Ali Mark Faulkner |
About
My doctoral research is interdisciplinary and spans the fields of gender studies, feminist theology, religious studies, anthropology and ethics.
In my thesis I will examine and map the connections, if any, between feminism(s)/womanism(s), the work of African women theologians, and the aims and activities of the YWCA and other Christian women’s groups in Kenya. Whilst some African women theologians identify themselves as feminists or womanists, some reject these labels entirely, for a number of reasons. Others remain sympathetic to feminist/womanist aims whilst not necessarily using this vocabulary to describe their positions or activities. This suggests that African Christian women, in both their personal and professional capacities, embody a wide and varied range of complex understandings and positions regarding feminism(s) and/or womanism(s).
Through my fieldwork in Nairobi, I will determine the presences and absences of both feminism(s) and Christianity(ies) in the women’s movement in Kenya. In collaboration with the YWCA, I would like to examine the influence of both feminism (including feminist/womanist theory and activism) and African women’s theology on their work.
For the purposes of this research I will define African women’s theology as the academic and pastoral work of the Christian members of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians (CCAWT). I am especially interested in the work of those CCAWT members who originate from Kenya, or who live and work in Kenya, or who have written about Kenya. These include Musimbi Kanyoro, Esther Mombo, Teresia Hinga, Nyambura Njoroge, Philomena Mwaura, and Mary Getui, to name but some of the most well-known.
Contact Information
| Homepage: | |
| Address: | Worcestershire, UK |
| IM: | eleanorhiggs |
