Empowered Resistance

Theology plays a role in how we think about human agency for social change. One’s conception of God’s relationship to humanity, or lack thereof, can suppress or empower resistance to oppressive systems. The prophetic revolutionary fighter Aline Sitoë Diatta remains an inspirational symbol of resist...

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Main Author: Shandon C. Klein
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: UJ Press 2024-07-01
Series:African Journal of Gender and Religion (AJGR)
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/ajgr/article/view/3326
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author Shandon C. Klein
author_facet Shandon C. Klein
author_sort Shandon C. Klein
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description Theology plays a role in how we think about human agency for social change. One’s conception of God’s relationship to humanity, or lack thereof, can suppress or empower resistance to oppressive systems. The prophetic revolutionary fighter Aline Sitoë Diatta remains an inspirational symbol of resistance, not only for the Diola people of Senegal but also more broadly throughout West Africa. As “La femme qui était plus qu’un homme”—the woman who was more than a man—her legendary impact on subsequent generations offers the opportunity to investigate the empowering influence of the Diola indigenous faith tradition, awasena path, on moral and ethical formation. Employing the womanist theological ethics of Katie G. Cannon and Delores Williams, along with the quare theory of E. Patrick Johnson, this paper theorizes an ethic of resistance and an ethic of control. The paper will then explore Diatta’s use of both ethics based on an analysis of an African short film, À La Recherche Aline. Diatta’s embodiment of an ethic of resistance and an ethic of control within modern reenactments of her story depict her rebellion against colonialism as empowered by the awasena path and its theology. The film reflects a modern reception history of Diatta that continues to inspire those of African descent to defend against attacks on their personhood by white supremacy.
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spelling doaj-art-4a8cd26d309b4044bc9c6a2f95a00cd42025-01-08T08:59:08ZengUJ PressAfrican Journal of Gender and Religion (AJGR)2707-29912024-07-0130110.36615/5y8c5z25Empowered ResistanceShandon C. Klein0https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7833-3472Southern Methodist University Theology plays a role in how we think about human agency for social change. One’s conception of God’s relationship to humanity, or lack thereof, can suppress or empower resistance to oppressive systems. The prophetic revolutionary fighter Aline Sitoë Diatta remains an inspirational symbol of resistance, not only for the Diola people of Senegal but also more broadly throughout West Africa. As “La femme qui était plus qu’un homme”—the woman who was more than a man—her legendary impact on subsequent generations offers the opportunity to investigate the empowering influence of the Diola indigenous faith tradition, awasena path, on moral and ethical formation. Employing the womanist theological ethics of Katie G. Cannon and Delores Williams, along with the quare theory of E. Patrick Johnson, this paper theorizes an ethic of resistance and an ethic of control. The paper will then explore Diatta’s use of both ethics based on an analysis of an African short film, À La Recherche Aline. Diatta’s embodiment of an ethic of resistance and an ethic of control within modern reenactments of her story depict her rebellion against colonialism as empowered by the awasena path and its theology. The film reflects a modern reception history of Diatta that continues to inspire those of African descent to defend against attacks on their personhood by white supremacy. https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/ajgr/article/view/3326ethic of resistanceethic of controlwomanist theological ethicsquare theoryAline Sitoë Diattalived theology
spellingShingle Shandon C. Klein
Empowered Resistance
African Journal of Gender and Religion (AJGR)
ethic of resistance
ethic of control
womanist theological ethics
quare theory
Aline Sitoë Diatta
lived theology
title Empowered Resistance
title_full Empowered Resistance
title_fullStr Empowered Resistance
title_full_unstemmed Empowered Resistance
title_short Empowered Resistance
title_sort empowered resistance
topic ethic of resistance
ethic of control
womanist theological ethics
quare theory
Aline Sitoë Diatta
lived theology
url https://journals.uj.ac.za/index.php/ajgr/article/view/3326
work_keys_str_mv AT shandoncklein empoweredresistance