Celebrated Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has described feminism as a justice movement that has been deeply misunderstood, often clouded by political misrepresentation.
During an interactive session with students and staff of Veritas University, Abuja, Adichie said many people wrongly assume that feminists are women trying to battle men.
“When I say feminism is politicized, what I mean is that people don’t understand what feminism really means,” she explained. “People add all kinds of political meanings. Oh, it’s a woman who wants to fight men… but it’s not.”
She said feminism is no different from racial justice or the advocacy for people living with disabilities.
“It’s a justice movement in the same way that racial justice is a justice movement,” she added. “All movements that have excluded groups of people—that’s the same thing that it is.”
‘We Have Lost a Lot by Excluding Women’
Adichie lamented the damage done by shutting women out of intellectual and social development for centuries. She said the world has lost too much talent and intelligence simply by not allowing women to thrive.
“The world has lost a lot from women being excluded,” she said. “Men and women are granted intelligence. So we cannot say men are somehow automatically more intelligent than women.”
She reminded the audience that many brilliant women throughout history were denied education, only to be married off instead of being allowed to pursue knowledge.
“Who knows—perhaps today we might have cured all different kinds of cancers if we had let these women in,” she said. “We’ve used half of the intelligence that God gave us as human beings by excluding women.”
For Adichie, feminism is about fairness and inclusion, not war. “It’s not about fighting anybody. It’s about justice,” she said firmly.
‘Dream Count’ and the Power of Possibility
Adichie also introduced her latest novel Dream Count, which she described as a tribute to ambition and imagination.
“Dream Count is a novel that I hope will make people remember their dreams,” she said. “Sometimes we put our dreams in our pockets because we don’t think that they will come true.”
She said the book particularly aims to encourage women to hold on to their dreams—even those who aspire to enter public office in male-dominated societies.
“It’s worth trying because you never know,” she told the audience.
Veritas University’s Vice Chancellor, Prof. Hyacinth Ichoku, described Adichie as a global icon and inspiration.
He urged students to emulate her focus, saying, “If you dream hard enough, your dream will count. If you work hard enough, your dream will count.”
He added that Adichie’s story is proof that students can discover and pursue their purpose while still in school.
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