Bijou Bidwell

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Bijou Edith Ernestine Bidwell (née Bijou Peters; born March 29, 1927 in Freetown ; died February 12, 2014 ) was a Gambian journalist, human rights activist and nurse.

Life

Bidwell attended St. Mary's Anglican Primary School and then the Methodist Girls' High School (now the Gambia Senior Secondary School ), where she was Head Girl .

At Bristol Royal Infirmary and King's College Hospital in Great Britain, she was trained as a State Registered Nurse and midwife ( State Certified Midwife ) from around 1947 .

From 1955 she worked as a nurse at the Royal Victoria Hospital (today Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital ) in Banjul, later in Basse . After her marriage, she continued her education in Public Health (Community) Nursing in the UK . Bidwell accompanied her husband to Mali (from 1968), Benin (from 1971), Nigeria (from 1974), Dahomey and Geneva , where she lived for a longer period from around 1977.

After returning to Banjul, she began working as a journalist and took a correspondence course at the London School of Journalism . She wrote under her maiden name Bijou Peters for The Point , The Daily Observer and other newspapers and magazines, among others . In her publications she campaigned for the socially disadvantaged in particular, named social problems and came into conflict with the church and the government.

Bidwell was involved in the women's rights organization GAMCOTRAP from its founding against female genital mutilation . She sat on the board of the organization for many years.

She also supported the Gambia Press Union and advised young journalists.

Bidwell died on February 12, 2014 at the age of 86.

family

Bijou Bidwell was part of an important Gambian family. She was born as the eldest child of the journalist and publisher Lenrie Peters Senior (1894-1965) and Kezia Rosemary Peters. Her mother was the granddaughter (daughter of the youngest daughter) of Thomas Maxwell (approx. 1823-1905), who was a priest in Sierra Leone and Cape Coast , Gold Coast (now Ghana ). Her parents were part of the Aku population .

Among her siblings were the historian Florence Mahoney (born 1929), the surgeon and writer Lenrie Peters (1932-2009), the development worker Ruby Peters (died 2008) and the actor Dennis Alaba Peters (died 1996).

She married in September 1956 the physician Ernest Bidwell (Ernest Samuel Walmsley Bidwell, 1923-2007). This worked for the World Health Organization (WHO). She had two daughters with him, Alaphia and Oremie.

honors and awards

The women's rights organization GAMCOTRAP made her an honorary member of the board for life.

The Gambian trade union Gambia Press Union (GPU) awarded her posthumously for her achievements in 2018.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h Modou S. Joof: A nurse and journalist who was truly fearless in confronting authority in both Church and State. Mrs Bijou Edith Ernestine Bidwell Nee Peters 1927-2014. In: The North Bank Evening Standard. March 7, 2014, accessed January 28, 2019 .
  2. ^ Gambia Education Dept: Report . Government Printer, 1947 ( google.de [accessed July 25, 2019]).
  3. ^ A b Quarterly News from the Association of Former WHO Staff. Retrieved August 7, 2019 .
  4. ^ West Africa . West Africa Publishing Company Limited, 1998 ( google.de [accessed July 25, 2019]).
  5. ↑ Michael Huxley: The Geographical Magazine . Geographical Press, 1982 ( google.de [accessed July 25, 2019]).
  6. ^ Awa: Gambia Women's Development Journal . Women's Bureau, 1989 ( google.de [accessed July 25, 2019]).
  7. ↑ Freedom . PDOIS 'Editorial Board, 1998 ( google.de [accessed July 25, 2019]).
  8. ^ Rose Marie Beck, Frank Wittmann: African Media Cultures: Transdisciplinary Perspectives . Köppe, 2004, ISBN 978-3-89645-246-7 ( google.de [accessed on August 7, 2019]).
  9. ↑ GAMCOTRAP hosts Inter-Africa Committee board meeting. Retrieved August 7, 2019 .
  10. ^ The Church Missionary Intelligencer . Church Missionary Society, 1906 ( google.de [accessed January 28, 2019]).
  11. ↑ Maxwell, Joseph Renner. Retrieved January 28, 2019 .
  12. ^ David Perfect: Historical Dictionary of The Gambia . Rowman & Littlefield, 2016, ISBN 978-1-4422-6526-4 , pp. 281 ( google.de [accessed on January 28, 2019]).
  13. ↑ obituary notice. Retrieved January 28, 2019 .
  14. ^ Dennis Alaba Peters. Retrieved January 27, 2019 .
  15. ↑ Gamcotrap pays tribute to Bijou Peters. In: The Standard Newspaper. March 14, 2014, Retrieved August 7, 2019 (American English).
  16. ^ GPU Awards Journalists. Retrieved May 7, 2018, August 7, 2019 (American English).
personal data
SURNAME Bidwell, Bijou
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Peters, Bijou; Bidwell, Bijou Edith Ernestine (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Gambian journalist, human rights activist and nurse
DATE OF BIRTH March 29, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH Freetown
DATE OF DEATH 12th of February 2014