Hannah Kudjoe

Hannah Kudjoe , née Hannah Dadson (born December 1918 in Busua , British Gold Coast colony , † March 9, 1986 in Accra , Ghana ) was a Ghanaian freedom activist and resistance fighter. She was one of the best-known nationalists in the Ghanaian freedom movement and was temporarily responsible for national propaganda for the Convention People's Party .

Life

Hanna Dadson was born in December 1918 in Busua , in the western part of what was then the British Crown Colony of Gold Coast (now Ghana), the youngest of ten children. After finishing school, she worked as a dressmaker in Tarkwa , where she later married her future husband JC Kudjoe, who ran a gold mine at Tarkware. However, the marriage did not last long, so she decided to move in with her brother EK Dadson, who was actively involved in the United Gold Coast Convention Party (UGGC). In June 1947, Kwame Nkrumah stayed with the siblings and persuaded Hannah Kudjoe to join the freedom movement.

After meeting Nkrumah, she became actively involved in the UGCC. After the British colonial power arrested the so-called " Big Six " in March 1948 , Kudjoe collected donations and actively campaigned for their release. Within the UGCC, she was mainly active in the youth work committee. After the split in the UGCC - when the decision was made, Kudjoe was the only woman present - she followed the supporters of the newly founded Convention People's Party (CPP).

As part of the CPP, Kudjoe was particularly involved in the so-called " Positive Action " campaign. The campaign mainly consisted of numerous protests and political strikes to fight for independence for the Gold Coast. Kudjoe was then responsible for National Propaganda (English: National Propaganda Secretary ) and was considered a well-connected and well-mobilizing activist of the party.

After the independence of the Gold Coast in 1957 (and its renaming to Ghana), Kudjoe founded the All-African Women's League in the same year , which was later renamed the Ghana Women's League . As part of her work for the Women's League, Kudjoe fought for more crèches and kindergartens and recruited teachers and educators for these facilities. She also got involved in an "anti-nudity campaign" in northern Ghana, which consisted of distributing donated clothing to women, as well as improving hygiene in rural areas. Kudjoe was primarily active independently of the CPP government, which led to an uneasiness towards her, so that she gradually reduced her commitment.

Kudjoe died on March 9, 1986 at the age of 68 in the Ghanaian capital Accra. The memorial service was held on July 6, 1986 at the Calvary Methodist Church , Accra.

Individual evidence

1. ^ ^{A b c d e f} Jean Allman: The Disappearing of Hannah Kudjoe: Nationalism, Feminism, and the Tyrannies of History . In: Journal of Women's History . tape 21 , no. 3 , September 11, 2009, ISSN  1527-2036 , p. 13–35 , doi : 10.1353 / jowh.0.0096 ( jhu.edu [accessed October 24, 2016]).
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Heroes of Our Time: HANNAH CUDJOE - Freedom fighter and social worker. (No longer available online.) In: www.ghanaculture.gov.gh. National Commission On Culture, November 30, 2007, archived from the original December 1, 2017 ; accessed on October 24, 2016 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.