Female Empowerment: they can be the baddest cats in the whole damn town!

BY STEVEN KASZAB

Humanity’s history is full of badass women who did not let their male counterparts push them around. Some examples are imaginary like Sarah Connor, a woman taking on the challenge to save her son and the world from out-of-control A.I. machines (could happen). We see various examples of women taking up the challenges of policing, security, soldiering, cutting timber, firefighting, mining, truck driving and so on.

Look at the many women who have thrown their hats into the political arena: Canada’s Chrystia Freeland, Elizabeth May, or Americans AOC and Vice President Harris. What about the powerful and influential women that help rule the EU? There are many similarities found in those nations where women of power exist. Mostly democratically elected governments, growing respect for women’s rights and overall equality.  If you look further, you will see that those nations that do not have powerful women in places of influence are mostly men centric dictatorships like Russia, China, Middle Eastern Nations and so on.

The Eastern Church of the Catholic Faith, Islam and other religions speak highly of women; yet leave them to the nether regions of religious affairs. This historic machismo still is common throughout the world today.

Africa. Yes, let’s look at an African experience of historic importance. Hundreds of years ago in Africa there existed the true “Dahomey Amazons,” a group of approximately four thousand female warriors who battled for and protected the King and Kingdom of Dahomery. They were known as the Mino, and to most Africans and Europeans they were a force to be feared.

These women often volunteered, where taken as slaves, or given by their families to be trained as a bodyguard for the King, and then a spearhead battalion for war. Excellent elephant hunters, these women learnt early on in their training to be strong and merciless soldiers. They fought other tribes, and also the French and developed an honoured reputation among their enemies.

What made these women special was that they experienced an independence and freedom as the Mino that all other women in Africa did not have. They were a group of powerful, intelligent and inspirational women in an age of horrors. The French often said the Mino out fought, and out thought their male counterparts. The French normally would not commend their enemies, but such was Mino’s reputation that Europeans also made efforts to train women warriors in the Congo years later, but these were not successful. Women are the matriarchs of villages, communities and nations, or so said Miriam Makeba, affectionately known as Mama Africa.

Women are the warriors of today. Look upon progressive movements and find their leadership and most successful members to be women. Women are more progressive, more determined, more patient, more grounded than males. Women exemplify compassion, trust, stability and forethought. Women can also be protective bad asses.