The Strength of Theory

Our strength lies in our theoretical development. 

Using the theory of African Internationalism, we are able to better articulate how African women who join the African Liberation fight are engaging in and working toward a world free from the oppression of African women and girls.

The socialist theory of African Internationalism is a theory of practice which can be seen throughout the ranks of the Uhuru Movement organizations. 

Women are visibly part of the rank and file and they are integral to the development of campaigns and the Movement’s leadership. 

As deserved leaders, African women have led and are leading areas of the work, which requires people under her leadership to report their work to her – Democratic Centralism.

African Internationalism, for the masses of African women not in the Party, offers a future where the leadership of women is not tokenism but necessary to the growth of the nation. 

African women will be released from the expectations of colonial roles and duties, ushering in a new African woman responsible for the birth of a free African Nation where women and girls are protected, because we will be the part of the revolutionary State. 

Our theoretical development has also pushed away from gender pop politics which splits us into multiple identities. Gender politics have become all the rage in academia, where it is taught. 

Whereas before, African women were trained in the struggles of our people to fight for their independence through liberation. 

Theory without practice is meaningless 

Our weakness has been that our membership has been overrun with petit bourgeois feminists or feminist leaning women who would get in the way of progress. That is due to how we’ve recruited women into the work. 

A heavy concentration of our members over the last five years have come through their attraction to us on social media. 

Less comes from what we are doing on the ground. However, not all of our members who meet us online are the petit bou. 

But their expectations of the type of work they will be engaged in is limited to social media content and “thought work”. 

For us, the measure of our effectiveness and recruitment will be in how we politicize and recruit from women who are the poor and working class. Front line women whose close proximity to the State has resulted in micro and macro confrontations that deeply impact the African community. 

Opportunities lie ahead

Our opportunities rest in going back to the basics. 

Organizing 101, how to build a branch or unit. It requires the constant measured work of contact collection, calling, and engagement that allows the working class to lead on the issues that impact us. 

This process creates leaders of African proletariat women. 

So ANWO will be creating activities that will get our members in the streets. 

We will organize and continue to build monthly events and create strong committees that can expand the work of our economic development projects which are geared toward the benefit of African working class women. 

Summary and moving forward

This Plenary more than many others before it represents a shift in the trajectory of our Movement. It is rooted in the intensity of the time and a recognition of a dying imperialism. 

African workers have to be poised to take power in our hands in our own interest. 

The Black Women’s Convention happening in Philadelphia, March 27-29, 2020 is following the example of the Party’s Plenary providing a big picture opening to the lives of African working class women and our leadership. 

Our Pre-Convention Conference is happening in Soweto, Occupied Azania (South Africa) on March 7, 2020, organized by ANWO forces and Party forces who live in the settler colony of South Africa.

We recognize that much of what is written about women doesn’t offer us a future, however, ANWO is strengthening ourselves so that we can lead ourselves to the future of our own.  

Join us at our convention and conference by registering at convention.anwouhuru.org and/or call us if you have any questions at 240-326-3959 (U.S.) or 061 319 8765 (Occupied Azania).

We are sisters united by revolution uniting to win bread, peace and Black Power for the entire African Nation!

African women must lead!

African working class women to the forefront!  

Women from across the country came to participate in discussions and panels that spoke directly to the interest of working class African Women.

Held on March 24-25, 2018, our theme, ”building the revolutionary capacity of African women,”  was aimed directly at African women who wanted to mobilize against the colonial conditions that disproportionately affect our lives.

The first day opened up with a tribute to African women heroes who fought for our people.   We highlighted the contributions of African women workers from the past to the present who struggled  in the interest of African people.

We believe this was important for setting the tone of the Convention because often we witness praise of African women who work in the interest of the oppressor’s system;   women like Oprah Winfrey and Michelle Obama for example.

This was followed up by my presentation which laid out the ideological contradictions of the  women’s movement, which exploits the colonial conditions of African and other colonized women, to propel the issues of white oppressor nation women.

My presentation put out the need for working class African women to determine our own trajectory as an anti-colonial movement to dismantle white power in all of its forms; including its manifestation in the form feminism.

In our call to attend the convention we spelled out our position as one against colonialism not patriarchy.

“We are clear that the white oppressor nation is the colonizer, and as such carries out violence against the colonized in the form of political, economic, social and judicial policies.”

“ We therefore understand that the following is colonial violence; Welfare, State-Sponsored kidnapping of children, police brutality and murder,  domestic abuse, sex work, underemployment, homelessness is colonial violence, poverty, poor or inadequate healthcare, mis-education, gentrification, drugs and police in schools.”

Panels Highlight the Political Maturity of African Women workers

Other high points from the convention was the discussion on the “African Village: the relationship between African men and women,” which included  Africans who are Gender and Sexuality Non-Conforming (GSNA). The goal of this panel was to discuss and propose resolutions to overturn contradictions that often keep the  nation divided.

The  “All Black Hair is Political “panel approached the issue of  the attack on the identity of African woman through an attack on our hair.  We confirmed that a resistance to these attack, is resistance to colonialism.

The Black Immigration presentation, given by Elikya Ngoma, whose experiences as an African from Haiti living in Miami helped us understand the influence of colonizer immigration law contributes to dividing the nation, exploitation of African women and children, the break up of families and criminalizing African immigrants.

The, “African women to the forefront” panel explored the use of electoral politics and campus organizing as a way to raise the political consciousness of our people.

The “Independent African Economy” panel, which included Kunde Mwamvita, Dr. Aisha Fields and Kalambayi Andenet  who represented the independent economic institutions of the Movement. They put forth the importance of building and supporting African economic institutions that have a responsibility to the masses of our people.  This panel drove home that it’s not enough to Buy Black but instead we should Buy Black Power.

All of these panels and presentations offered our attendees an opportunity to interact with the speakers; asking questions, offering their own testimony and thoughts.  The audience engagement was amazing. Even the performers and vendors, were active participants.

There isn’t any intersection for the poor and working class

The political success of this convention proved that there is a need to discuss and mobilize around the issues affecting  working class African women.

What constitutes black women organizing today is divided between the working class and the petit bourgeois middle class, whose stance is often  riddled with opportunism.

African women workers who experience some of the deepest contradictions as a result of colonial exploitation, had an opportunity to become members of the African National Women Organization. Now they do not have move alone, but participate in a revolutionary process that empowers and embolden.

This point was reiterated during the conference by Ro’Shawndra Earvin who joined ANWO in the heat of her struggle to get access to the resources her mostly white campus afforded  to white women sexual violence victims, but were denied to her.

She stated that she called on Sharpton’s, National Action Network (NAN),  the NAACP and others to help her, no one answered the call. When she called on ANWO, however, we were there.  We her helped to develop a plan of action to ensure we expose the contradiction.

ANWO the organization of revolutionary African women

The strategy of the African National Women’s Organization is to forward the objectives of poor and working class African women.

The political theory of African Internationalism, helps us understand our place in the world, why African women experience a special oppression. When we understand this we are better positioned to fight and win.

African internationalism also helps us  understand that “under colonialism, African people as a whole, but specifically African women, have been conditioned to internalize and accept direct violence from the oppressor.”  Conditions that we no longer intend to be victims of.

Join the growing movement of African women who are organizing against the colonial exploitation of African women.  Find out more about us on anwouhuru.org

We are winning!