Reflections on the dilemmas of feminist fieldwork in Africa

Abstract

Twenty years ago, Sylvester (1995, pp. 941–969) both inspired and challenged me to ‘just go!’ to Africa, and into the field to conduct feminist fieldwork, but warned me not indulge in ‘feminist tourism’ (1995, p. 945). She outlined a strategy that I implemented, of ‘empathetic co-operation’ for the Western feminist doing research about African women (1995, pp. 941–976). This was based on Sylvester’s worldtravelling tips (1995, p. 957) derived from Alarcón (1990, p. 363), inspired by Jaggar (1983, p. 386–387), who cites Lugones’ doubts about white Anglo women researching women of colour: …Before they can contribute to collective dialogue [white Anglo women] need to know the ‘text,’ to have become familiar with an alternative way of viewing the world … You need to learn to become unintrusive, unimportant, patient to the point of tears, while at the same time open to learning any possible lessons. You will have to come to terms with the sense of alienation, of not belonging, of having your world thoroughly disrupted, having it criticized and scrutinized from the point of view of those who have been harmed by it, having important concepts central to it dismissed, being viewed with mistrust… [my emphasis].