The first time I joked about not wanting children—something like, “Would it be so bad if I didn’t have kids?”—I must have been seventeen, eighteen, or nineteen. My mother gave me that look African mothers give when their children say something youthful and naive, like, “I will use my first million dollars to buy balloons” or “one thousand acres of fried chicken.” My aunties, who were seated beside her, gave me similar looks. One even squeezed my lips with her …
Author: Shalom Esene
You meet him at the supermarket. You are at the counter, ATM card in hand. Chatter rising and falling, music bouncing on the walls. He taps your shoulder and you turn around. He has a strong …
There are stories of the ghost who limps, or weeps, or runs into the clothing shop on Sunday mornings. They say she is searching for her husband’s mistress. They say she walked in on a Sunday …
Nigerian Women Discuss Relationship Expectations, and offer tips for Dating in a Highly Misogynistic Society It’s a daunting experience to be sexually attracted – through no choice of yours – to those who oppress you. By …
I bought my first pair of short shorts in August of 2022. Describing them as “short shorts” might be a touch exaggerated; they hovered just an inch above my knees. Still, they marked the briefest shorts …
What My 20 Year-Old Self Thought She Knew and What She Should Have Known The first time I had sex, I felt as though my whole body was engulfed in fire, raging from my cervix straight …
The Regulation of Women’s Bodies and Suppression of Sexuality Initiated by African Mothers Nigerian Women Discuss Inheriting Sexual Stigma from Their Mothers and Coping with Traumatic Realities When I was 12 years old, I exchanged a …
How Women Are Finding their Confidence – and Improving their Sex Lives through Technology The rise of technology over the last few decades has been phenomenal. Through this ever evolving space, women have encountered both significant …