Mai Musodzi: Tears for women empowerment

Tanaka Mahanya Features Writer
The story of Mbare, one of the oldest high-density suburbs in Zimbabwe, cannot be complete without reference to the name Musodzi Ayema, popularly known as Mai Musodzi.

A leading African philanthropist, the illustrious woman was born Musodzi Chibhaga in 1885, and served the township with distinction.

A niece to Nehanda Nyakasikana (Mbuya Nehanda), she married Frank Kashimbo Ayema, a Zambian sergeant with the British South Africa Police (BSAP) in 1909.

Despite challenges faced by women in their quest to break the glass ceiling due to cultural and systematic impediments, Mai Musodzi, a social worker, was determined to leave her mark.

The general belief that recognises men as family heads and subtly dominating partners in all contexts did not at all weigh her down.

It is a norm in patriarchal societies for men to be viewed as aggressive or hostile, thus reducing women to customary victims at the mercy of their partners.

It is such a perception that Mai Musodzi sought to demystify. During the colonial era, she was unwavering in liberating women from male domination.

After embracing the Christian faith, she changed her identity to Elizabeth Maria Ayema. At a time when colonialism was wreaking havoc in African communities, she grabbed opportunities outside existing structures.

Despite economic challenges encountered during the era, she worked with available resources to bring about change.

Although her formal schooling was hardly average, she managed to change the lives of many women as a way of liberating them from male dominance.

Due to her compassionate heart, Mai Musodzi became an influential figure among Catholic women engaged in charity and social welfare services.

When the “Chita chaMariya Hosi Yedenga” (the union of Mary Queen of Heaven) was formed in the 1940s in St Peter’s Parish, she became the first chairperson.

As a champion in defending women against false accusations in their communities, she took it upon herself to have them set free.

“It is men who cause many divorces,” she once said, when men accused women of causing break-ups in relationships.

Widows evicted from their homes were always welcome and given temporary shelter in her home.

Eventually, she founded women’s clubs to improve women’s livelihoods, which is also one of the key factors to development and self-sustenance at the familial                                                          level.

Because women did not have adequate and efficient maternity facilities, Mai Musodzi campaigned for such in the township so that black women would have safe deliveries.

Mai Musodzi helped found the Harare African Women’s Club in 1938.

The women’s club assisted the destitute and the needy, especially those who did not have any other sources of income.

The club helped those arrested by the police or evicted from their houses, and also the children of poor families, the sick and the handicapped.

Mai Musodzi was awarded an MBE (Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) in 1947.

She was among selected guests invited to a banquet with Queen Elizabeth and the royal family at the Government House.

She died on July 21, 1952 aged 67, and was buried at Pioneer Cemetery in Mbare.

As we celebrate women’s month, there is need to propel efforts to build a global community of strong women who will help each other succeed and mentor girls ascending the ladder into dedicated adults.

Projects and campaigns to promote and encourage each other like some women are doing nowadays should be encouraged.

In present times, women have not learnt how to be effective supporters of each other, but that’s changing rapidly. Organisations such as Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association are working towards creating a world free from injustice and inequality through offering free legal advice about women and children’s rights.

In times when fellow women need advice, it is offered at no cost. Through the initiative, women empower each other to become tomorrow’s employers and leaders.

These have developed women into becoming their own bosses and offering opportunities in trading.

Part of people’s survival instinct involves helping others in worst of circumstances.

But these female heroines have not been given the prominence they deserve. The United States of America, for example, celebrates phenomenal women so that they become known to the rest of the world.

From time-to-time, stories are written to promote their hard work in bringing about a better world.

The present and future generations should be taught about heroines who died serving their communities, and learn to admire them as their role models.

Even though a hall has been named after Mai Musodzi in Mbare, history has not given her the prominence she deserves.

Very few people know her because of failure to educate one another on the great work she did.

In the United States, Rosa Parks earned herself a lot of respect when on December 1, 1955, she boarded a bus in Montgomery, Alabama.

Instead of going to the back of the bus, which was designated for blacks, she sat in front.

When the bus started to fill up with white passengers, the driver asked Parks to move.

She refused.

Her resistance set in motion one of the largest social movements in history, the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Growing up in the segregated south, Parks was frequently confronted with racial discrimination and violence.

She became active in the Civil Rights Organisation at a young age, an administration that promoted equality between whites and blacks.

She died of natural causes leaving behind a rich legacy of resistance against racial discrimination and injustice.