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Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is known for advocating for women's rights. Speaking at the annual Friends of Europe political conference, she called for more gender empowerment and more equality across the globe.
"Obviously, I'm generalising, but we must work with generalisations. So, there are, of course, men who take women seriously. But I think, in general, culturally, men listen to men more than they listen to women. Men are more likely to take other men seriously. And the reason that I think it matters and the reason I think we should talk about it and hopefully try and make it stop is that it has serious consequences for women. Women who want to be in politics, for example, that it then becomes easier to dismiss them."
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The renowned author says there must be a shift. Chimamanda said, "We tell men what not to do, but we don't really tell them what to do - such as maybe telling them to speak up more on women's issues."
She added that the MeToo movement was a very hopeful thing because women were finally telling their stories, and women were finally believed.
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"So, when people say things like, well, men feel adrift in this new age, and it can sometimes feel as though it's an excuse for men and that we're saying, 'Oh, because you are no longer in some sort of exclusive grip of controlling everything, you're adrift'. But maybe it's that we're not saying here's what you should do.... And so, it's the kind of conversations that I'm interested in," she added.
