Award ceremony BIGSAS honorary doctorate for Dr. Fatou Sow
Abstract
- Abstract
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On 18 May the University of Bayreuth will festively present Dr. Fatou Sow with the BIGSAS Honorary Doctorate. With this award, the Senegalese sociologist Dr. Fatou Sow – based at the Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Paris – is recognised for her unwavering commitment to the cause of women and her outstanding scholarly achievements in feminist topics on the African continent. Sow is a veritable pioneer of gender studies and African feminism, who has worked at the forefront of women’s rights in West Africa and beyond for more than half a century.
The award was first announced during her keynote lecture at the Africa Multiple Cluster of Excellence conference on 14 July 2021 and will now be festively celebrated on 18 May this year.
The ceremony will take place on campus, however may also be attended online. Please register for either event format by visiting https://bigsas-award-ceremony.wr-events.de/
Origins & context
- Title
- Award ceremony BIGSAS honorary doctorate for Dr. Fatou Sow
- Language
- English
- Date
- June 1, 2022
Identifiers & sources
Full text
- Transcript
- [Music] good evening distinguished ladies and gentlemen all protocols duty observed gooden amt manudam and good evening monica you look great tonight what's the occasion good evening ngozi thank you today the feminist scholar dr fartuso is being awarded an honorary doctorate by the university of byroid and by bexas our graduate school he said feminist scholar it's ironic because i don't consider myself feminist really i'd say that it's to the merit of feminism that we are both standing here tonight two women pursuing their phd in the framework of pixas the byroid international graduate school of african studies you and ngozi adagu are pursuing a phd on the topic writing back to empire newspapers non-elites and decolonizing in the global public sphere 1937-1957 exactly a significant part of your thesis interrogates women's actions and amplifies their voices in addition last year you co-edited a book on gender and patriarchy in africa and you published a paper questioning how an american scholarship program in the 1960s and 70s excluded nigerian women oh really okay but what about you monika roma you're pursuing a phd with a working title towards a fluid ecosystem conceptualizations of water at the senegalese coast and in december 2021 you traveled all the way to senegal to conduct research and interview women because they were underrepresented in your online research yes and furthermore you are developing a critique of wall of dictionaries which are influenced by the scholars gender so while you're right i'm all for women's rights but yet the concept of feminism is still alien to me and so i'm looking forward to hearing more about the concept this evening and dr fatusso is an outstanding advocate of feminism she's a pioneer in the fields of gender studies and african feminism and she has pushed for women's rights for more than 50 years however before she takes the floor we have a lineup of important speakers oh yes we have the great honor to welcome to the stage wait for it the president of the university of byroid professor dr stefan leibler drumroll please [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] come on you can do that this is our present [Music] [Music] good thank you [Music] [Applause] [Applause] a africa studio with africa and global students under foreign international graduate school for african studies pixar's embryo 2007 inspired midfield excellent cluster center in africa in acc's einstein arctic inder deutsche buildungslandshaft the university by hold thank you [Applause] thank you professor leibler for emphasizing the merits of african studies at the university of byroid and now we welcome on stage the dean of the cluster professor dr rudiger zesselman the floor is yours [Applause] dear president of the university of pyroid professor dr leibler the deputy mayor of the city of pyroid mr andreas sippl and the other distinguished guests mentioned by the president i would also like to greet them if you if they are in the room they were not on my list but on my list is of course dear dr soh recipient of the big sis honorary doctorate and the outgoing president of the african studies association of africa professor dr ado marco ampofo the president of the african studies association united states professor dr alito dear colleagues and friends especially those who have come from far to attend this ceremony allow me to start on a personal note chef so i'm extremely pleased to have you here with us to celebrate your achievements for the cause of women in africa and i'm deeply moved because tonight marks the end of a road we have traveled together distinguished guests where is the african in african studies this question expresses one of our major concerns in the africa multiple cluster of excellence at the university of byroid and as an african studies institution with a global reputation africa has been high on the agenda of our university since its establishment in 1975 as our president just pointed out and big sus the byroid international graduate school of african studies was built on the maxim research on africa only with africa it's impressive record of currently 86 junior fellows and if i'm not mistaken 176 alumni and more than half of them from africa if i'm not mistaken this constitutes a tremendous achievement in which bixas takes great pride and rightly so and i must also add here that i was uh also very impressed by the two young junior fellows who are the masters of ceremony today and i think we can already clap for them now [Applause] so looking at the state of african studies more broadly there are other records that are much less impressive imbalances in academic knowledge production persist and throughout the global north many people can continue to consider africa as a problem to be solved rather than a voice to be heard and in the africa multiple cluster of excellence the largest collaborative research institution african studies in germany and i like to emphasize this as does our president the only standalone cluster in the state of bavaria we seek to redress some of these imbalances by establishing new forms of research cooperation with african studies institutions in africa and we work together with our partners from joseph gizebel university in burkina faso my university in kenya rhodes university in south africa and from the university of lagos in nigeria we are jointly working to reconfigure african studies and also the advisory board of our cluster features four outstanding african scholars and we have the board's chair here with us professor marco ampufo so likewise the director of the african cluster center at moyer university is here professor peter cimate and also professor yakuba banjoro the director of the african studies sorry the african cluster center in wakarugu and i think we should also give them the huge applause they deserve so dear colleagues and friends in seeking to make the african more visible in african studies and to make african voices heard let me rephrase my earlier question where are the africans among the laureates who receive honorary doctorates many of you are probably aware that the university of pirate has already awarded two honorary doctorates to africans who both happen to be towering figures in african literature the first recipient was the nigerian nobel laureate wallace inca in 1989 who also joined the first pixar's advisory board in 2008 and the second was the kenyan intellectual and novelist gugiwationgo who received the first pixar's honorary doctorate in 2014 in the same room we are gathering in today and he delivered his speech in kikuyu some of you were here and remember that but we had also had to translate it and a third one a third already doctor it didn't come to pass as the proposed recipient the celebrated art curator or queen vaso passed away in march 2019 before bixas was able to confer the honorary doctorate on him everything was already set for this ceremony and he actually was buried on the same day we wanted to award him the doctorate in may 2019 but still the number of africans awarded with such honors in the global north is shockingly low and it is even lower when it comes to women so i cannot claim to have undertaken a systematic search but i only came across one african woman who was awarded an honorary doctorate in germany and this was the late nobel peace prize laureate of 2004. she became an honorary doctor in 1992 at usu in giesen her alma mater where she had studied agriculture in the late 1960s so dfr2 there can be no doubt that you are a veritable trade blazer you were one of very few women to receive university education in senegal in the early 1960s and you are now one of the first african women to receive an honorary doctorate in germany and the first at the university of pyroid in addition to producing enduring scholarship and advancing african feminist studies you have worked at the forefront of women's rights in africa and beyond for more than half a century it should not go unmentioned that you had to weather quite a few severe storms while remaining unrelented in your dedication to the cause of african women the significance of your work for what we seek to accomplish in the africa multiple cluster of excellence cannot be overestimated distinguished guests tonight's celebration is a milestone for our university as well as for its african studies focus area i am thrilled to this this is great turnout here in honor of dr fartuso thank you all for being here and for making this a memorable event join me in welcoming doctor so with standing ovations [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Applause] and i'm i'm afraid i have to go off script here i think i also need to mention a few people who who need to be acknowledged for what they have done in preparation of today's event of course we are always deeply grateful to our president and the university board for the support they are giving us but i should specifically mention um the dean of big stars professor andrea berens who will speak in a moment and her team dr christina sherra michelle hazel and others who i'm probably not aware of jakob noi is here and such events always happen because there are many hands and many brains and many legs involved and especially also the junior fellows who participate and this is really great they really deserve a big gratitude for making this possible and i would also like to mention um professor uda fendler weissen of individualization in the cluster who has actually prepared a pre-award ceremony event yesterday where some of our guests attended and actually had a lot of fun and danced a lot with the musicians who were also here today so this is also an integral part of what we seek to do here likewise who defendless team doctor doris leur and and renata kova and others lyanna vysotsky should not go unmentioned who has been instrumental in making all this possible and and also the director of our gender diversity office dr christine ford william who organized this outstanding event today in the morning with our guest [Applause] with with the four giants as i called them professor francoise vegas thank you again and professor alidu whom we will hear shortly and professor oda marco ampofo and of course our laureate today and um i'm sure i forgot some people who were involved here um but let's just thank everyone who was involved in planning this event and making it possible thanks [Applause] thank you professor seizerman for reiterating once again the absence of africa and african studies we still have some work to do and now we welcome on stage professor dr andrea barrens well as spokesperson of bixes [Applause] wow these standing ovations are always very moving so yes dear president of the university of pyroid professor dr leibler dear deputy mayor mr tzipl dear professor fartuso dear professor ado marco ampufo dear professor alido and dear professor vergess dear honorable guests and dear friends and colleagues it is the first time that fachuso and i are meeting in connection with this honorary doctorate award ceremony it is therefore a great honor for me as the spokesperson or let's say as the new spokesperson of the byroid international school graduate school of african studies or bixas to be in a position to welcome you fatu to the university of byroid to celebrate your considerable contributions and achievements in your illustrious academic career and to be able to award this doctorate to you we are privileged to confer this honorary doctorate on you for your dedication to african feminist scholarship your engagements with higher education to promoting the interests of especially african women scholars and your unstinting and graceful honesty in pointing out the necessity for change as an academic activist perhaps a brief description of bixas is in order although you have already heard a bit about it at this point to provide you with some context to this award ceremony this graduate school was founded in 2007 funded as part of the excellence initiative of the german federal and state's governments and its funding agency dfg the german research foundation until today it is the only institution funded under this program that has a clear focus on the study of african countries and contexts and it is the only one in the humanities in the federal state of bavaria currently 86 phd candidates or junior fellows are pursuing their doctorates at bixas with themes pertinent to african continental and diasporic life worlds with its interdisciplinary approaches in supervision and mentorship the graduate school offers a range of more than 20 diverse disciplines at the university of byroid apart from that the junior fellows are in constant exchange and contact with international colleagues from africa and beyond who actively engage as co-supervisors mentors and supporters one should say that language has always been a point of focus at pixas although our phds have the options to write their thesis and german and english french or portuguese particularly the francophone scholars have seen a lack of opportunities to live out their academic discussion cultures in french it is also in the light of this that the biggest honorary doctorate is highly significant because it is not only the first ceremony for a pioneer feminist african but a francophone one at that in our work dear father in your work dear fatu you have shown the relevance of underscoring the position of women in african societies and the academy and the necessity to take active steps in advancing their opportunities to access higher education you told us how you were one of the very first to receive this education in senegal you have underlined the difficulties that still exist for women in advancing their careers both within their own universities and of course also internationally among many other themes you have engaged with and written about how it is crucial for women to access natural material and financial resources for them to take part in decision-making processes as regards political cultural and religious contexts as well as in the division of labor you stand for women's rights in their access to equality freedom health education employment and political agency by this you have constantly shown and continued to do so the relevance of untiringly insisting on and not forgetting about these issues at pixar's we are highly inspired by your life and work as a feminist researcher educator activist and academic role model for young scholars which we take as a shining example in consolidating our commitment to our current and future junior fellows here at the university of byroid thank you for do so for leading the way and with this let me pass the word back to our masters of ceremony ngozi and monica thank you [Applause] thank you professor behrens for the welcome address and now for our first music interlude for the day from ali khaita and machimo tsango [Applause] so [Music] do [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] do [Music] [Music] [Music] so [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] so for a while there i had the music playing on loop in my head so now it's time for us to hear about the outstanding work that our honoree has accomplished so far and professor dr usina alidu will do the honors professor alidoo is professor in the department of african middle eastern and south asian languages and literatures and comparative literature at rutgers university she has been and still is president of the african studies association so now professor ali do will now enlighten us on dr sewell's living legacy the fluorescents [Applause] thank you in the african traditions the greetings are long and the gratitude are long but it defeated the moment so now i would like to first say the blessings of the moment to be here and gathering in person we are forever grateful to all the almighty to nature for blessing us with the possibility of being together salaam shalom habarigani in our corner inaudible even yesterday you say before because of kovid even the music was not playing so initiate and to the sister who danced yesterday we say abrigada asante sana in dogu yeah so thank you grazie thank you all for the possibility and thank you by roth thank you the state of bavaria for allowing us to be here together and thank you mr president and thank you the mayor and thank you my sisters andrea christine and linda and marie and every single person here who has made it possible for us and for me as an african girl growing up in the sahel niger to be able to come and say thank you jarama georgia younger we love you we love you and be faith so in all humility in praise of eminence the living legacy of dr fartuso african feminist scholar great advocate of secularism gender equality and women's citizenship rights i would like to open my remarks by saluting the community of byroid university for its extremely well informed decision to bestow the 2022 honorary doctoral doctoral degree to dr fartuso dr fartuso is no doubt one of africa's greatest feminist thinkers who has maintained a remarkable record of humanity's consciousness through both her erudite scientific works and her feminist engagement with universal modern principles of human rights especially in relation to gender equality in society so at this moment in world history that calls for global consciousness and ethical commitment to redress legacies of injustices exclusion and marginalization based on difference geographic civilizational racial class gender sexuality culture religion and politics to name a few i cannot think of a more deserving african intellectual icon to celebrate with a university highest honorary distinction than dr fartuso thank you greatness it what comes to my mind each time i read and get inspired by dr fatouzou's brilliant scholarship we celebrate yes daughter her courageous stance in examining the ways in which the citizenship rights of the underprivileged in society are undermined by political elites who bargain with expropriative and predatory neoliberal global forces such forces have included transnational corporations that continue to exploit african waters and fishing resources in ways that have improvised impoverished local livelihoods and negatively affected gender relations part of dr fatiso's enduring legacy has been that of confronting institutional patriarchy within francophone african academy in senegal and state patriarchy in govern governance in the area of neoliberal democratic pluralism that engendered what she rightly called spiritual patriarchy she tirelessly pioneered the inscription of the study of sexuality and gender within the patriarchal maldominated francophone study african studies as an institution builder dr fatuso brilliantly used her leadership status at codexia to bring a feminist sensibility to critical inquiry in a male-dominated african social sciences field by collaborating with other illustrious african feminist scholars and activists from the so-called anglophone african and african diaspora worlds such as dr aisha imam and amina mama dr fatouzou succeeded in transforming codersia by giving intellectual legitimacy not only to african gender and sexuality study but more importantly by exposing scholars and policy makers to diverse feminist theoretical frameworks from marxist feminism feminist echo criticism and others and methodological approaches in the social sciences the result of dr fatiso's revolutionary academic intervention has been the production of the groundbreaking french english bilingual edited volume entitled engendering african social sciences published by quadersi in 1997 another publication sex gender sex genre associated a translation angel angel social african and catholic 24 uh 2004 credited to her and her co-editors aisha imam and amina mama and their contributors this volume is an important scholarly contribution of feminist african and african scholars to global knowledge production the book has also helped in breaking down colonial linguistic borders in the african academy that prevented reflective scholarly cross-fertilization urgently needed between scholars from french and english-speaking african universities dr fatou's source pioneering feminist collaborative works as exemplified by this groundbreaking edited volume brought to light distinguished feminist african and non-africans trans-dis female and male scholars whose research focused on gender and sexuality in africa from both interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary perspectives another landmark of her feminist collaborative work on women's sexuality and reproductive health worth mentioning is her co-editing work with renowned senegalese feminist codubop building and transforming institutions such as the academy require visionary leadership that includes establishing constructive collaborative relationships as demonstrated in dr fatouzou's record in harnessing diverse african and africanist feminist human capabilities dr fatiso stands as one of the pioneering avant-gardes african feminist scholars of muslim background to denounce the negative impact of what she rightly called the new religions in africa that advocate caught female disenfranchising patriarchal spirituality in the era of neoliberal democratic pluralism her outstanding studies on african feminist movements and decolonial thinking are timely chronicles that expose world academy and human rights defenders to the contributions of african feminist intellectuals and human rights advocates committed to the achievement of gendered equal citizenship in postcolonial african countries dr fatiso's incisive works exposed the complicity of patriarchal political elite with neo-liberal forces in engaging in nepotistic biopolitical governance that have left the population in precarious conditions my generation of scholars and those after us searching for feminist critical thinking have benefited immensely from the academic foundation set by dr fartuso and i am and we are forever grateful to you to our iconic feminist visionary dr fartuso [Applause] dr fatouzou's pre-eminent role in feminist transformation of african social sciences re-energized a fresh engendering humanism in francophone west africa and beyond my own works examining muslim women's agency in both nigeria and kenya benefited tremendously from dr franciso's brilliant analytical rigor for addressing gendered ideologies and cultural political economic policies that seek to exclude the diversity of women's and girls reality in society and endeavor to keep them as subordinate and marginalized citizens in society clearly her work has been critically beneficial not only to african muslim societies but also to the other world's cultures through the comparative lenses it has continued to offer as a result her work is repeatedly cited well beyond african studies and has continued to inform the works of many feminist organizations like women under muslim law laws and others the 1990s were characterized by a certain euphoria of the promise of democratic pluralism born out of the intersection of decades of african social struggles and political elite embrace of neoliberal political and economic restructuring of african states while political elite elites including those in women's movement welcomed the dismantling of military dictatorship and single party autocratic and often masculinist regimes dr fatou saw questions against lowering our guards and have emphasized the urgency of keeping a vigilant eye on a looming danger of neoliberal globalization through the importation of gender afflictive ideologies which have bearings not only on indigenous cultural rights but also on on women's rights and girls rights in society for neoliberal organizations operates within a hierarchical mercantile logic which imperialistically displaces any non-compliant indigenous local cultural frame of references an ambiguous defender of secularism dr fatiso offers pointley a critique of neoliberal globalization whose early manifestation in most african countries including her own country of senegal had been the imposition of structural adjustment program subs from the mid-80s through privatization of public welfare sab was an assault on african economic rights that resulted in further economic impoverishment of populations that had just begun to heal from the impact of the transatlantic and mediterranean slave trade and european colonialism dr fatou so powerfully inscribed economic rights at the center of african feminist critique of neoliberal economic policies that have led to the violation of african human rights with gendered manifestations one western liberal ideologue including neo-liberal feminists wish to limit issues of rights women's rights and human rights only to cultural the cultural arena dr fatuso challenges the hegemonic racialization of global humanities by re-entering the right to economic welfare as fundamental to the protection of human human rights and human dignity in africa and in the global south doctor so comments i quote the issue of human rights democracy and citizen participation have never been debated debated as much as there today both internationally and in africa the world is now dominated by the idea and the rules of the free market which are forcing political changes obliging state to open up the world market these changes are altering the relationship between state and citizens the state is reshaping itself in line with the prescription of the international financial institution ifis and the world trade organizations to make itself less present or totally absent in contexts where its wrongs was previously very prominent african states seem more concerned about their shared survival in the world market than in satisfying the needs and interests of their own citizens and of course dr saw further exposes the danger of economic neoliberalism which has given legitimacy to religious fundamentalism as a competing force within the new pluralistic order that has used its economic and cultural position to violate women's cultural rights as we experience in africa this religious fundamentalism has been varied and has included islamic fundamentalism christian fundamentalism and transform african indigenous religions that are hidden to prominence giving prominence to female spiritual leaders again dr fartuso states i quote the talk of women human rights heard in international forum masked the violation of citizen rights in general women's rights in particular which accompanies globalization in particular it is increasingly difficult to address women's rights when policies reduce social budget and privatize resources and basic services to the poorest populations how can we sustain the few gains made for equality between women and men when states are unable to guarantee that these are reflected in women's lives women experience globalization daily when they go in search of water at the hydrant in poor neighborhoods or when they busy themselves in thousands to other ways to fulfill the needs of their families these are needs that men are no longer able to meet or need arising from the cutting of state provision for education or health services under the constraint of structural adjustment policies it is primarily women who pay the actual cost of privatization and of the economy and of course dr fartusco's work highlights the ethical challenge of neoliberal globalization as a major danger to the non-violent symbol symbiotic multicultural coexistence that characterize many post-independence african societies taking an example from senegal dr fartuso persuasively offers an analysis of how islamic fundamentalism as a byproduct of neoliberal pluralism is negatively endangering senegal multicultural and multilingual spiritual traditions and the tradition of peaceful coexistence she contends that this is new formation of patriarchal spirituality is further erasing the prominent female spiritual leadership roles that characterize indigenous senegalese societies and a sense of democratic gendered cultural sovereignty i quote dr fartuso you see i'm a linguist i have to be in dialogue with her quote women participate in them as actors or leaders of worship female dignity divinities govern the areas bordering the sea and rivers between dakar cape verde and saint louis on the north coast of the country fishermen's wives make offerings to mom jared and mom cumberbank as both prepared to leave the shore at the beginning of the fishing season this is an important activity in a country with over 600 kilometers of coastline women healers fat cat preside over fertility rights to cure infertility or protect a pregnancy and possession rates including ceremonies of exorcism an administered drug yield yielding plant for therapeutic purposes in case of physical or mental illness or emotional crisis brought on by different types of problem including difficult marital relationship and of course the intersection of neoliberalism and fundamentalism islam and their patriarchal articulations in their attempt to erase indigenous spiritual belief systems and liberal uh gendered practices is engine endangering the cultural heritage of the female dimension of african senegalese spirituality as reflected in the spiritual lexicon of indigenous languages that remain resilient even after senegal's embrace of islam and christianity dr dr fartuso accepts quote in the new world religions there is much less of a leading role for women islam in particular leadership of religious rights is mostly taken by men this has had an impact on the traditional reads by adding a few verses from the quran to the their incantations male healers have taken over from female healers giving the rights a new holy dimension women have given up their roles as high priestesses the master of worship and healers who were referred to as shamans shamans in colonial ethnological terminology have attained an even higher status than they had before the coming of the new religious belief thus we are now witnessing subtle changes to cultural practices in line with the gradual islamization of the country a spiritual patriarchy is now established the important titles of serene journal marabat are given to men but never to women no matter what the degree of their acquired wisdom and of course doctor so erudite work on senegal has offered a framework for examining similar phenomena in other african societies in the work of neo-liberal religious fundamentalist globalization she questioned against the intolerant characteristics of religious fundamentalist globalization that promote inter-faith violence as experienced with boko haram boko haram in nigeria lord resistance army in uganda al-shabab in somalia kenya three of the most little religious extremist movement operating in africa today her work insists on the need to uphold the universalist moral ideals of understanding one's human rights through the respect and protection of the human rights of others a possibility reflected in african humanistic embrace of cosmological pluralistic coexistence and engendered inclusion of female spiritual leaders dr saw influential intervention begs for a more complex and nuanced understanding of what is at stake at the intersection of neoliberalism cultural relativism and universalism in the field of human rights in global north engagement with global south she calls for a more feminist scrutiny of this dynamism at the local national and global level dr fatou saw's meditation on the urgency of african feminist movement to take an uncompromised position of upholding ethical commitment to the juncture between religious diversity human rights and women's rights led her on international women's day in 2018 to denounce denounce religious fundamentalist attack on sexual and reproductive rights of women and girls in society as a fundamental violation of women's and girls citizenship rights within neoliberal democracy as experienced in senegal and many african countries with muslim majorities dr saul forcibly challenges us i quote what does religion culture and politics have to do with my body and is it my body mine it is very important to promote a human rights approach in which citizens and women in particular can be involved in decisions and policies about their bodies we cannot let partial bodies continue to detect women's health and women's rights and of course furthermore at the center of dr fatou saw secularists call to hold accountable patriarchal african states and political elite that bargained their political seats with religious leader is the question of women's right to hold public executive positions and to have a public life she noticed that the political gains that had been achieved by the secularist movements movement in advancing women's rights and girls right were once again compromised in many african countries it even become evident during the debate on the reform of what is commonly known as the family code in muslim majority countries including senegal mali and niger that the power of religious leaders especially islamists during the democratic pluralism had produced a setback for women's rights dr fatu saw comments i quote while women's movement in africa have tried to promote new social contracts that advance social justice gender equality they first continue continual backlash by those who seek to revive religious and cultural values that hold the women's back well secularization of the law has helped to promote women's rights especially after 30 years of major international summit and occurred on women the environment human rights population and more this achievement can continue to be challenged by a large number of ordinary people and fundamentalist group state and religious authorities across africa maintain close ties this mingling of religion and politics have become evident in public debates about sexual freedom contraception abortion aids prevention hiv aids prevention sexual orientation same sex parenting and bioethics euthanasia medical assisted conception genetic testing cloning stem cell research etc this question posed moral challenges to individuals identity and religion and of course in some then dr fatison has built an influential african feminist library of her own that continues to feed african and global academy and other species befitting from her feminist human rights decolonial interventions this sustained phenomenal scholarly feminists and human rights achievement over several decades is what makes our doctor father so most deserving of the highest recognition and honor from an august world university such as the university of baird where we are gathered today so on behalf of multiple generation of feminists from africa the african diaspora worldwide and feminist african africanists and women's rights defenders around the world and african studies association congratulations dr fatison [Music] thank you our greatest gratitude to the university community of byroid for such an honorable gesture of bestowing the honorary doctoral degree on our iconic feminists dr fatiso thank you beloit university peace gratitude and love thank you [Applause] so [Applause] so [Applause] [Applause] thank you professor ali do i feel blessed to be here tonight and i felt extremely blessed this morning to be empowered by my older sisters merci beaucoup gerard and now alicata and matumazango can we hear some more music [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] um [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] [Music] do [Music] do [Music] can we sing [Music] more louder [Music] coming [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] hello well is this on number three well i guess um cinema to ask our president on stage and of course you fatou say awakened [Applause] [Music] wow [Applause] i will [Applause] so i will speak a few words in french [Music] that's the person generation merci beaucoup [Applause] foreign [Applause] okay i am supposed to read the document the universe the university of byroid awards upon my glasses i'll get them sorry i didn't know i have to read i thought i didn't know it oh my god the university of byroid awards upon decision of the byroid international graduate school of african studies big s professor dr fatou so born on 11 july 1941 in dakar senegal the honor and the academic degree of doctorin the philosophy erin halber dr phil harzi in appreciation of her outstanding achievements in the development of african feminist studies and her unwavering commitment to the cause of women in africa byroid 11 july 2021 which was the original date the president and me the dean of pixar's which was then martina drescher [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] let me just add that this certificate was issued on fatou's 80th birthday was a birthday present and i think we should also mention the instrumental role of your predecessor professor martina drescher who actually initiated this whole process and she's over there let's [Applause] and fatu [Music] received this by mail in the car last year july and she had to give it back to us so that we could hand it over today and she was scared she would not get it but here it is i'll follow you back [Applause] [Applause] and now the floor is yours stefan lebla prison investor pirate professor doctor rudiger systema prophecy dr andrea berland professor dr martina drescher professor dr utter fandler professor dr christine watt william professor dr usaina alido professor dr adam marco ampofo professor doctor francois verges merci le mer simple madame de mission le mans descent community academic dc avenue [Music] a professional he accepts is rudiger gender and moralities anime [Music] merci usa [Music] uh academic senegalese african matteo say community conviction performed so [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] youtube [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] thank you [Applause] [Applause] not you know monika just like professor ledoux said when i grow up i want to be just like dr so how so well in many excellent ways but um i get to bring my own degree um qualifications to my own conferral ceremony which is i in fact i think it's so cool totally cool please welcome on stage one last time alicata and madhumi sango [Applause] so [Music] [Music] so [Music] baby [Music] [Music] food [Music] shooting [Music] [Music] [Music] you [Music] what [Music] so [Music] [Music] this so [Music] [Music] [Music] good [Music] [Music] [Music] do [Music] hey [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] me [Music] dude did [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] um [Applause] okay thank you [Applause] yeah at this point what remains at this point we would like to invite you all to the buffet which you find right outside the door you cannot miss it and there will be something for everyone however no pork options available like but with all this talk about decolonization i can't wait to see the decor nice menu so i'm expecting things like fufu those kind of options how can you forget the national dish of seneca well i don't want to start a culture war between the senegalese and senegal where the dish originated from and the nigerians and guineans and we all know who makes the vegetable of rice don't drink okay you made it [Applause] i'll just guess so finally and everyone's so excited and hungry and we have tried to keep within time we'd like to thank all are distinguished ladies and gentlemen who um joined us on screen and in person and wish you a pleasant and warm evening [Applause] you