ABSTRACT
Meandering through Tanzania’s newly renovated National Museum and House of Cultural Heritage, it is starkly apparent that women are mostly absent from the section on decolonization and post-colonial nation building, despite their important contribution in the liberation struggles. While critically questioning their erasure from public discourse, academic scholarship, and national displays, this chapter emphasizes the importance of rethinking political biographies so as to encompass women’s political role. The authors argue that conventional masculinist historical frameworks have been inadequate in capturing the significant and complex nature of women’s contributions to such projects, and imaginings of community. Drawing from the biography of Tanzanian women activists, specifically Bibi Titi Mohamed, this chapter illustrates how their involvement in various political activities shaped and was essential to the success of the liberation struggle in Tanzania. The analysis focuses primarily on their decolonial work, emphasizing the complex nature of women’s stories and representations in ways that have an impact not only on the telling of history but also on women’s ability to sustain an authentic political life and agency in the current moment. Women’s nationalist actions and efforts in the production of art to mobilize people at the grassroots level, giving speeches to women’s groups, and promoting health, education, and the like were/are not acknowledged as valid political contributions that warrant memorializing on the same stage as their male counterparts. This chapter rekindles a discussion of biography and its connection to power, and suggests alternative frameworks for more inclusive liberation histories.
