MOYO hosted a lecture theatre cinema and showed the Kenyan film Rafiki

Despite numerous parallel events and Christmas markets, lecture theatre 5 ¾ at the main university was packed. Numerous guests accepted the invitation from the MOYO association in cooperation with the Master’s programme in Gender, Culture and Social Change to a lecture theatre cinema.

The programme included Rafiki, which means “friend” in Swahili, a film by Kenyan director Wanuri Kahiu. Based on the award-winning short story “Jambula Tree” (2008) by Ugandan author Monica Arac de Nyeko, Rafiki tells the story of an African youth who resolutely rebels against homophobia, religious dogma and the strictness of their parents. Rafiki is about the young women Kena and Ziki, who fall in love and are confronted with the strict rules of a homophobic society.
Banned from screening in Kenya, which was only lifted after the director filed a lawsuit, the film is also part of the success story of African cinema. Rafiki is the first Kenyan film to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival, where it was received enthusiastically by audiences and critics worldwide.

After a short introduction, the film screening began immediately. The organisers deliberately decided against a subsequent discussion round, as the film deals with numerous topics such as violence against women, discrimination based on skin colour, gender and sexual orientation, etc.
This was one of the reasons why the screening was scheduled to coincide with the “16 days against violence against women” campaign. For this reason, it did not make sense to pick out individual topics for an exchange of ideas – rather, the film was intended to inspire viewers themselves to discuss and reflect on them with their friends and acquaintances.

Many thanks for your attendance and support!

Special thanks go to our sponsors: the Weer Adult Education Centre and the Tyrolean government funding body

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