THE INTERVIEW | Jenabou Dembaga: "It is women as a group, as a community, who can organise themselves, take action and change society"
The "Fe(r) i dones" conference, organised by the Office of Religious Affairs (OAR) in collaboration with the Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Pedralbes, will be held from June 29 to 6 July. In this second edition, under the subtitle “Communities as agents of change”, the conference seeks to explore and debate the ways in which women of different beliefs and convictions organise themselves and act in the community, always bearing in mind the desire to raise awareness of, and appreciation for, the role of women in different convictions and beliefs. One of the many new aspects of this edition is that it is co-curated, together with Montse Castellà, by Jenabou Dembaga Susoko, who was involved in the first conference and who we interviewed today.
Can you please start by telling us a bit about your professional and academic background, your work as an activist and so on? Are you affiliated to any organisations?
My career can be split into three areas: firstly, my professional career, which is the reason I’ve been invited to curate this conference, which I’m really enjoying and learning lots from; secondly, my academic career, which focuses primarily on sociology and early childhood education and where I’ve worked on issues relating to gender, racialisation, ethnicity and more; and finally, my work as an activist, which is closely linked to my academic career and to Afro-feminist activism and activism against Islamophobia and discrimination on religious grounds. I currently have links to two organisations working in these areas: Diabi ji Soninké, a Spanish organisation that works on issues relating to the Soninke communities*, and Umbrales Umma, a group of Muslim women who address a variety of issues to do with women and Islam. This organisation’s core aim is to work, debate and reflect on all those people who live within the “threshold” of Islam, including those who are not Muslim as such.
Believer, young, woman, activist, feminist, Muslim, Afro-descendant… What is it like, living with all these labels in today’s social context?
We’re currently seeing a boom in feminist as well as anti-racism movements. I’m very aware that it’s these diversities in me that make me realise that people are made not just of one thing but of a combination of many things, which makes us rich from a spiritual, cultural, social and other points of view. Cities’ civil and social movements are also enriched. In other words, people are made of many different pluralisms and diversities, not just on the spiritual side but also as regards diversity of gender, origin, language and others, giving Barcelona a rich, plural and diverse set of citizens.
You took part in the first edition of the conference “Fe(r) i dones” (2021). What is your assessment?
I think it’s a really good conference, both now and in last year’s edition in October, which I was involved in, because it brought together different women with religious traditions and spiritualities, representing many different convictions from Barcelona’s entities and communities, and I wasn’t aware of any other similar events having ever taken place. It was an event for working from women’s point of view. I’d never taken part in an event featuring women from religious communities. For example, I didn’t know that there were communities of Jewish women in Barcelona, and I met some of them at the round tables for reflection held at the conference. I had the chance to exchange thoughts and impressions with women who were fighting their own fights within their communities and had very interesting approaches. I also think the conference raised awareness about women’s role and importance in the various spiritual traditions both worldwide and of course locally in Barcelona.
This year you are co-curating the second edition. What new and interesting things will we find in it?
The second edition of the conference will focus on communities of women as agents of change. In other words, last year’s conference focused on sacred texts, ritual practices and religious and spiritual transmission and on how they are seen and experienced from the varied perspectives of women in a variety of traditions. And in 2022 it is women as a group, as a community, who can organise themselves, take action and change society. In summary, organisations and communities of women as active agents in the transformation of society at both local and global levels.
As you were just saying, communities are the protagonists of this second edition. Why have you chosen the topic of “Communities as agents of change”? Why is it important for women to work together?
Women working as groups and communities are key to social transformation, not just in the religious arena but also in the transformation of every aspect of Catalan society, and in particular in Barcelona. We work as a group to create networks, synergies and unions between people with different spiritual beliefs. This way, we can say: “Hey, we’re here. We’re getting organised as women, critiquing what’s going on inside”. People often have an image of religious or spiritual women as passive and inactive women living within a patriarchal structure. That’s true, but women have transformed society and continue to do so today. Women have always been agents of change, and this conference raises awareness of what’s already being done and was being done before. We live in a patriarchal society, but we must record and highlight the fact that women have always been there and they are and will continue to be drivers of transformation.
This year 2022 brings various new developments to the conference, such as more formats and venues for events, as well as a longer conference. Why?
The previous edition took place over only two days, two afternoons, and the whole thing was held at the Reial Monestir de Santa Maria de Pedralbes. This year’s edition will take place from 29 June to 6 July, at different times and in various venues in the city. I’d first like to mention the decentralisation of the conference. Some events will be held at the Reial Monestir in Pedralbes, but others will be held in a variety of places in Barcelona. For example, the inauguration will be held at the Centre de Vida Comunitària de Trinitat Vella, a very fitting place for this year’s topic. We believe that this decentralisation will make the conference more accessible, making it easier for the public to attend, as people will find that some events are “just round the corner” from their homes. Secondly, by having more varied events, the conference will attract different types of audiences. There will be open workshops led by Barcelona’s communities, a talk, a round table with international women’s spiritual communities, conversations on social media with women who play prominent roles in the religious arena, guided tours and more. There will also be children’s activities, particularly on the final day, so that women can enjoy the closing day’s events, thus incorporating this accessibility and work-life balance perspective. Finally, the fact that the conference will now run for eight days is also linked to the change in format of its events and, therefore, to the aim of giving people a greater chance to attend and make the conference more accessible. In summary, the conference aims to be an enriching event not just in terms of content but also in terms of form.
You were saying that online communities will also be at the heart of some of the events. What do you think of the growth of religion and spirituality on social media?
Social media provide very powerful and enriching tools for creating a community feeling, encouraging many people into action. Furthermore, in social media people can find leading figures in every field, such as in the religious, feminist or anti-racism arenas, that they can identify with. It’s a very important platform for encouraging members of civil society into action. I think that raising awareness of these leading women on social media and online communities as agents of transformation and creators of communities, activities and workshops on online platforms is very important. It’s also worth noting that, in parallel to this, they lay bare and discuss internal issues relating to gender, relations between men and women and other issues, which I think makes them a very powerful focus deserving of greater attention.
The physical isolation we’ve all experienced in our relations with others due to the pandemic has caused us to seek leaders, activities and more in every aspect of our lives. Social media are here to stay. Thinking about the future, I think that women’s religious communities will play a very important role in these online communities. Particularly female religious leaders, something that wouldn’t even have appeared on television when we were children or teenagers. Now, on the other hand, some girls identify with these female role models, who help them live with confidence and self-esteem. For example, seeing a veiled Muslim woman working in politics can really change you.
In general, why is the “Fe(r) i dones” conference important? What impact do you hope it will have?
Personally, I think it’s important for debunking the myth that women have a passive role in their own religious communities. The conference highlights this role of women organised in the form of communities as agents of change; women capable of bringing about change not just in the past but also in the future. “Here we are, and we’re still going”. With this premise, my hope is that the conference will gradually become a benchmark of and for Barcelona, not just for its women but also for women’s communities worldwide. My hope is that “Fe(r) i dones” can become a benchmark and give rise to dialogue and synergies between religions and between different women’s communities while debunking and tearing down the myth that religious women are passive beings. In short, I’d like the conference to become firmly established as a pillar that raises awareness and appreciation of the idea of women as “active women” within religious and spiritual traditions.
Before we finish, how do you see the future and impact of women in the various religious and spiritual traditions? Where is it going?
I think that spiritual women will play a very significant role in explaining today’s societies in the future. Firstly, in my opinion, in relation to discrimination on religious grounds. In other words, women suffer the brunt of this type of discrimination. And secondly, I know for a fact that women’s communities are currently fighting against cross-cutting issues such as climate change, sexist attitudes, racism and deforestation, among others. These fights are mainly led by women’s communities. I think that women and religions will play a very significant role in the future, not just locally but globally. I’d also like to add that, in my opinion, women are more open to dialogue. Due to our role in healing, we tend to create bridges between women both within and between religions. The stigmatised image of religious women as passive women who fail to take any action is no longer representative in this globalised world we live in.
The interview with Montse Castellà i Olivé, curator of the first edition and co-curator of this year’s edition together with Jenabou Dembaga, is available HERE.
