{"id":9863,"date":"2020-07-27T23:00:01","date_gmt":"2020-07-27T23:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/akefestival.org\/archive\/?p=9863"},"modified":"2020-07-28T01:38:14","modified_gmt":"2020-07-28T01:38:14","slug":"ten-questions-with-niq-mhlongo-2-2-2-2-2-2-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/akefestival.org\/archive\/ten-questions-with-ademola-adefolami\/","title":{"rendered":"TEN QUESTIONS With ADEMOLA A. ADEFOLAMI"},"content":{"rendered":"

What does Ake Festival 2019 theme \u2018Black Bodies, Grey Matter\u2019 mean to you<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

It reminds me of the theme for a particular Ake edition, \u2018<\/strong>Beneath This Skin\u2019<\/em> – that talks about blackness and the recurrent killings of black people in the US.\u00a0For a people that have been made to think that their skin colour isn’t anything to celebrate; for a community of people who have been repressed, discriminated against, dehumanised and segregated from conversations for a long time, this year’s theme explores the dynamism of black bodies – a much-needed respite from being looked down upon. The theme exhorts us to celebrate blackness.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Which African or Diasporan novel do you think best explores the Black Body?\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think\u00a0Thando Mgqolonza’s\u00a0\u2018A Man Who is Not a Man\u2019<\/em>\u00a0does justice to the exploration of black bodies. Using a Xhosa rite of passage as an anchor, it interrogates cultural traditions that are associated with the black body.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You are asked to write an African femme fatale<\/em> as an alien. What physical attributes would she have?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A pair of eyes that automatically suck out the patriarchy accentuated misogyny and sexism in both men and women.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What book would you give to a dark-skinned young woman who has expressed an intent to buy bleaching cream?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Definitely\u00a0\u2018A Caged Butterfly\u2019<\/em>\u00a0by\u00a0Marian L. Thomas. And\u00a0\u2018Dark\u2019,\u00a0<\/em>by Acan Innocent Immaculate – it’s an essay in \u2018Selves: an Anthology of Creative Nonfiction\u2019<\/em> – that examines the politics of skin, and the use of bleaching creams.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Does the African writer have a specific role to play in the current world order<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

Writers have always had specific roles to play in the order of things. Coming home, I think African writers, by virtue of being descendants of a struggling race, have roles to play in creating an alternative narrative to the gory narrative of blackness.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Which person do you think best represents an African perspective in the ongoing discourse on gender?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Akwaeke Emezi, for me, stands as a symbolic figure in the politics of gender. Because they represent a gender symbol that many Africans aren’t ready to accept.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You\u2019re giving a talk at a symposium on mental health, which African novels will you reference?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2018Freshwater\u2019\u00a0<\/em>by Akwaeke Emezi,\u00a0\u2018Butterfly Fish\u2019<\/em>\u00a0by Irenosen Okojie, and maybe\u00a0\u2018The Fatuous State of Severity\u2019<\/em>\u00a0by Phumlani Pikoli.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Name a character from an African novel that you could rewrite as a different gender, and why.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Baba Segi in\u00a0\u2018The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives\u2019<\/em>\u00a0by Lola Shoneyin. Although, this would definitely alter the entire plot, I just can’t stop imagining Baba Segi as a female character. The roundness of the character, his politics, ideologies; I imagine what they’d look like in a woman.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What two things should every teenager understand about mental health?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. It is not your fault. B. Leaving it “in the hands of God” doesn’t change shit.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    What is your vision for the Black Body<\/strong>?<\/p>\n

    Universal acknowledgment and acceptance. A world where blackness isn’t looked at with suspicious attention. Basically, a world where black is not a crime.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    What does Ake Festival 2019 theme \u2018Black Bodies, Grey Matter\u2019 mean to you? It reminds me of the theme for a particular Ake edition, \u2018Beneath This Skin\u2019 – that talks <\/p>\n

    Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10918,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tenquestions"],"yoast_head":"\nTEN QUESTIONS With ADEMOLA A. ADEFOLAMI - Ake Arts & Book Festival<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/akefestival.org\/archive\/ten-questions-with-ademola-adefolami\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"TEN QUESTIONS With ADEMOLA A. 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