ifedayo oshin (Ondo, Nigeria)

Until the philosophy
That holds one up
And the other down
Is finally discredited

Until the ideology
That makes a man superior
And woman inferior
Is permanently abandoned

Until there is no
Second or third class woman
Or the girl-child below the boy
In any society

Until the basic human rights
Are equally guaranteed to all
Without regards to sex
Or paralysis of traditions

Until the ignoble and unwholesome
World systems and beliefs
That holds our sisters back
Have been toppled and utterly destroyed

Until the shape, figure
And voice of a woman
Is of no significance
Than the colour of her teeth

There will never be light nor flight
Neither will there be breath, but death
There will always be strife and strike
And efforts but no results.



'' dedicated to all women all over the world, especially those who still suffer under the oppression of patriachy of male hegemony''