Introduction: Culture, Gender and Religion in Archival Material

Culture, Gender and Religion in the Archival Material in Southern Africa: From History to Herstory is an initiative that is aligned to the vision and mission of the Circle of Concerned African Women Theologians. The Circle, as it is normally called, commits to fighting all forms of oppression including patriarchy, anthropocentrism, racism, gender, homophobia, class, among many other issues. The Culture, Gender and Religion in the Archival Material in Southern Africa project is a research work focused mainly on excavating the untold stories of women heroines in Southern Africa. It exposes the lopsided manner in which history in its broader sense has been written by white, European males, enjoying as it were the privilege to name, define, construct and direct the course of history. The anonymous adage goes that, “History is written by Victors.” Indeed, those who have the privilege of a scribe write what they want to write in their unique voice and from their own perspective and not merely copying others’ work. One renowned British historian, Hugh Trevor-Roper, is quoted as saying, “Perhaps in the future there will be some African history to teach. But at present, there is none; only the history of Europeans in Africa. The rest is darkness.” (Mazrui, 1978, p. 94).