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IN MEMORIAM: SUSAN GEIGER
Susan Geiger, an innovative historian of African women and especially women in Tanzania, passed away April 13, 2001, after a struggle against leukemia. She taught at the University of Minnesota from 1976 to 1999, and played a central role in building many communities of feminist and international studies scholars on that campus. She had a profound influence on students and peers in the fields of Women's and African History, and played a pivotal role in building the Department of Women's Studies, the Center for Advanced Feminist Studies, and the MacArthur Program. She was also instrumental in establishing the Women's Caucus of the African Studies Association, and was active in numerous women's history organizations and activities.
Susan got her Ph.D. from the University of Dar es Salaam in 1972, writing about "The Search for Political Focus on Kilimanjaro: A History of Chagga Politics, 1916-1952." Prof. Isaria Kimambo was her advisor. Her research interests remained focused on Tanzanian history and politics, but her research and publications on women and nationalism in Tanzania broke new ground regarding gender and nationalist movements.
Susan Geiger's study of the leadership activities of illiterate Muslim women in Dar es Salaam fundamentally changed the view that the Tanzanian anti-colonial movement was led solely by men who were products of Christian mission education. She first published her findings in an article, "Women in Nationalist Struggle: TANU Activists in Dar es Salaam," International Journal of African Historical Studies 20, 1 (1987): 1-26. Her conclusion represented a complete switch from arguments that the colonial powers had brought about their own end by educating the men who formed the anti-colonial organizations and then came to power after independence. If women who were outside the colonial educational system were involved in the struggle to end colonialism, there were obviously other factors involved in developing an anti-colonial consciousness. Her book, TANU Women: Gender and Culture in the Making of Tanganyikan Nationalism, 1955-1965 (Portsmouth, N.H.: Heinemann, 1997) presents this information in an unusual format as an extended plural biography of the women who were involved in the nationalist movement in Tanzania (then Tanganyika), switching between a narrative history of that era, the particular stories of individual women, and the extended account by Bibi Titi Mohammed of her life. As Geiger commented, she used those life histories "to confront the biases, silences, and resulting distortions found in existing histories of the period of Tanzania's nationalist movement" (p. 6).
Her interest in the uses of oral history and life histories to develop an understanding of women's place in history can be seen in several publications, including her work with the Personal Narratives Group, which collectively edited Interpreting Women's Lives: Feminist Theory and Personal Narratives (Indiana University Press, 1989), and in more recent articles such as "Tanganyikan Nationalism as 'Women's Work': Life Histories, Collective Biography and Changing Historiography," Journal of African History 37 (1996): 465-478.
A memorial fund in Susan's name has been established to support research, writing, outreach and related activities in Tanzania that focus on women and/or gender issues. Grants may be awarded to individuals or to organizations whose projects reflect Susan's commitments to women's history and gender equality. The Tanzanian Gender Networking Programme will administer the memorial fund.
For more information about TGNP, visit their worldwide web site: http://www.tgnp.co.tz or contact the Programme Coordinator, TGNP, P.O. Box 8921, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. For questions about the memorial fund contact Janet Spector: JDSPECTOR@aol.com
TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE SUSAN GEIGER MEMORIAL FUND. In the U.S., the treasurer of the Tanzanian Studies Association is receiving donations. Checks should be made payable to the Tanzanian Studies Association, earmarked for the Susan Geiger Memorial Fund. Funds will be transferred to TGNP.
Mail checks to: The Tanzanian Studies Association
c/o Professor Aili Tripp, Treasurer
Department of Political Science
University of Wisconsin-Madison
110 North Hall, 1050 Bascom Mall
Madison, Wisconsin USA 53706