The International Women’s day was celebrated on the 8th day of March 2018 with the theme; PressForProgress. The United Nations’ findings indicate that the gender gap if concerted efforts are not taken would take about 200 years to close. But even with this gloomy statistics, like everything typical of the new world order, the whole ceremony became the celebration of all women without minding the fact that some women have participated expressly and impliedly in the death of more women and children in the world in the past 30 years. For example in the United Nations today sits at the Security Council an implacable war war-monger called Nikki Haley. Though, she follows in a historical trajectory of American women like Madeleine Albright, Condoleezza Rice, Hillary Clinton, Susan Rice, and the mother of them all, Margaret Thatcher in search of enemies to be rendered homeless. What is at play is that Vagina Politics as always have become a substitution or another name for women empowerment. As it is evident Vagina Politics always have a capacity to obfuscate the fundamental essence of women struggle and afflict it with the notion that politics once led or ascribed to a woman is good. For example, during the last election in France, a prominent female activist in Nigeria was full of gusto that Marie Le Pen, France’s equivalent leader of skin heads was about to emerge the president of France, just as many of them were with the prospect of Hillary Clinton in American election.
For us, the question of women liberation is part of the project humanity, that deprecates the oppression of one class by the other, and the men and women of war industry be not allowed to thrive and decimate women and children across the world. As Leon Trotsky asked long ago, in time of war who are the most vulnerable, if not women and children? There are many women who do not love their fellow women or believe in the emancipation of women, all they believe in, is some tokenism to help keep the nigger running while the system they subscribe to with their male counterpart grind everybody to dust. And the best way to swing the tide towards the perpetual domination by one group against the other is the victimhood of Vagina politics. We are not too sure if women empowerment is to allow the production of women politicians who will like their male counterpart steal the state as state officials do in Nigeria.
The negative effect of Vagina Politics is that generations of women get easily mis-educated on women who should be their role models. For example, ask any young lady or man how much they know of the great Jazz singer; Billie Holiday or Nina Simone? You may likely draw a blank, but these two women during their lifetimes contributed to the course of black people with fewer resources more than Oprah Winfrey with their songs and activism. But Vagina Politics would take Oprah Winfrey shoulder high above them, not for any thing but mockery of Black Women who live and toil in depressive human existence that the reason why they are not billionaires like Oprah Winfrey was that they were not smart. They will be reminded they were not entrepreneurs, but the history of mankind is not one dimensional, it is a multiple project of diverse means and ideas.
As we celebrate International Women’s Day, let us step away for a moment from Vagina Politics and peep into the world of some of the best women like Billie Holiday who should be celebrated. Billie Holiday reminded us that the word tree has a penchant of breeding Strange Fruits and the Black person is the first to be hanged on such trees. This was in her acclaimed song; Strange Fruits. Interestingly, when Billie Holiday sang Strange Fruits, the White establishment banned the song from being played on radio or television. But years later, the song was to be rated as among the top 10 songs of the 20th Century by Time Magazine. In tribute to Billie Holiday, a true warrior of women liberation and freedom for all, we have reproduced the song Strange Fruits and you will learn of history, no school of Vagina politics will teach.
Southern trees bear strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze
Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees
Pastoral scene of the gallant south
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh
Here is fruit for the crows to pluck
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck
For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop
