Veteran Nollywood actress and outspoken advocate Kate Henshaw has once again used her voice to challenge the status quo, this time addressing the persistent culture of patriarchy and gender inequality in Nigerian society.
In a bold and emotionally stirring statement, Henshaw reflects on how women are still perceived as lesser beings, not only socially but also structurally through outdated laws and cultural norms that favor men at the expense of women’s dignity and agency.
“Nigerian men see women as lesser humans,” she writes. “Even our laws are designed to favor the men.”
But for Henshaw, the issue is more than legal, it's spiritual and moral. She references the creation story in the Bible, not to argue superiority, but to advocate for balance and equity in relationships and society at large.
“God created the man first, no doubt,” she states. “But He then took the woman from the man’s side not from his head to be above him, not from his feet to be beneath him, but from his side, to reign beside him.”
This symbolic positioning, she argues, has been deeply misunderstood or intentionally ignored in a culture where dominance is expected of men, and submission is demanded from women, often regardless of how they’re treated.
“Funny enough,” she adds with a hint of irony, “our men leave the shores and go out, and there they show them pepper! But back home, they see us as less than human.”
The hypocrisy, she points out, lies in how Nigerian men adapt and comply with gender equality laws abroad, yet revert to deeply patriarchal behavior once home, where the system often allows or even encourages it.
“The average Nigerian man would push his partner to the limit,” Henshaw concludes, “and still expect submission.”
Her words, now widely shared online under the #Afrocania hashtag, have reignited discussions about gender equality, emotional labor, and systemic misogyny, both in homes and in the halls of power.
As always, Kate Henshaw remains a fearless voice for women, reminding society that equality isn’t a threat to tradition, it’s the fulfillment of it.
