During the End SARS protest three years ago, a group of women–the Feminist Coalition– took full control of organizing. Providing access to medical facilities, legal services , security, food, drinks and other things to make the protests a safe and peaceful one for all the youth who took to the streets, these 13 women showed without a doubt that strong leadership of the future –and the present– was from women. Damilola was one of these 13 founders of the Feminist Coalition.
Damilola Odufuwa has taken to challenging patriarchy from all sides; in a lighthearted way with Wine and Whine, a virtual conversation series with other women while ‘sipping wine’, and with FemCo, where she and other (founding) members tackle more serious issues like the EndSars protests.
In an interview with For Creative Girls, Damilola shared that with Wine and Whine, she wants “women to feel safe, valued and understood when they come to a W&W event. The world doesn’t listen to women enough.
I also want women to develop and own their talents. We tend to have a skills aspect at most of our events. So wine & whine but also learn something/create change.”
Damilola’s resumé is quite diverse; MTV, National Geographic, ZUMI, CNN Africa, Zikoko, and Konbini. In March 2022, Damilola became the Head of Product Communications at Binance Africa. She’s the co-founder and CEO of Backdrop, an app that lets people find and share places around the world.
Talking with Global Citizen about her work with Feminist Coalition, she said “So many feminists like me are constantly speaking up on social media, doing our part in our communities to fight the discrimination Nigerian women face daily.”
“These actions are bringing about a sea change in society but it just feels like it’s not enough, there’s so much more to do. In 2020, with the rise in violence against women during the pandemic, I felt even more frustrated by what is clearly a state of emergency on gender-based violence.”
“Over the past few years, Nigerian women and activists have crowdfunded on Twitter to support other women and girls who have experienced gender-based violence, marginalisation etc. These funds were used for legal aid, education, mental health support, housing and shelter, and more.”
Damilola has been recognized by several distinguished organizations for her work on female empowerment. She was listed in Times’s Next 100 list in 2021, was named by British Vogue as one of 12 Women Leaders That Changed The World in 2020, and was one of Bloomberg’s 50 people that changed global business in 2020. She also won The Future Awards Africa Prize in 2020.
