Sehin Teferra is an

Ethiopian Ethiopians are the native inhabitants of Ethiopia, as well as the global diaspora of Ethiopia. Ethiopians constitute several component ethnic groups, many of which are closely related to ethnic groups in neighboring Eritrea and other parts of ...

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

activist who promotes the idea of Ethiopian identity and sees herself as pan-Ethiopianist.

Childhood and education

Sehin Teferra was born in

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; ,) is the capital city of Ethiopia, as well as the regional state of Oromia. With an estimated population of 2,739,551 inhabitants as of the 2007 census, it is the largest city in the country and the List of cities in Africa b ...

. She attended primary school at Nazareth School and high school at Sanford English Community School. She obtained a sociology undergraduate degree at the

University of La Verne The University of La Verne (ULV) is a private university in La Verne, California. Founded in 1891, the university is composed of the College of Arts & Sciences, College of Business & Public Management, the LaFetra College of Education, College o ...

campus in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

, a master's degree in international development with a focus on

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

Clark University Clark University is a private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1887 with a large endowment from its namesake Jonas Gilman Clark, a prominent businessman, Clark was one of the first modern research uni ...

, and obtained her PhD at

SOAS University of London The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS University of London; ) is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the federal University of London. Founded in 1916, SOAS is located in the Bloomsbury area ...

in 2015.

Feminist activism

Sehin co-founded a feminist group ''Setaweet'' and a corresponding firm ''Setaweet Plc'', in a "hybrid social enterprise model". During October 2011-July 2102, Sehin carried out research into the situation of

sex worker A sex worker is a person who provides sex work, either on a regular or occasional basis. The term is used in reference to those who work in all areas of the sex industry.Oxford English Dictionary, "sex worker" According to one view, sex work is ...

s in

, carrying out "90 interviews, seven focus group discussions with sex worker women and their male partners, as well as two groups of male university students". She found that the sex workers did not see themselves as victims, and that they were "intelligent, humorous and often honest about the opportunities and challenges of being a sex worker". Sehin summarised by stating that the "views and experiences of the women ho wereinterviewed paint a complex picture where many women come into their own, negotiating with their sexuality an income while withstanding the 'occupational hazard' of rampant violence." In February 2021, Sehin stated that Setaweet had recorded testimonies from victims of sexual violence in the Tigray war. The victims attributed rapes to the

Eritrean Defence Forces The Eritrean Defence Forces (EDF) ( قوات البحرية الارترية) are the combined military forces of Eritrea composed of three branches: Eritrean Army, Eritrean Air Force and Eritrean Navy. The Army is by far the largest, followe ...

(EDF). Sehin stated that Setaweet's documentation showed that rape was "happening on a large scale" and that "parents in Tigray

ere Ere or ERE may refer to: * ''Environmental and Resource Economics'', a peer-reviewed academic journal * ERE Informatique, one of the first French video game companies * Ere language, an Austronesian language * Ebi Ere (born 1981), American-Nigeria ...

shaving their daughters' heads and dressing them 'as boys' to protect them from rape".

Points of view

Ethnic identity

Sehin disagrees with

Awol Allo Awol Kasim Allo is an Ethiopian academic, author and lecturer who started teaching law at University of Keele in 2016. Early life and education Awol Kasim Allo was born in the village of Wate-Chimmo near Gassera in the former Bale Province in Et ...

's views on ethnic identity in Ethiopia, arguing that Awol incorrectly rejects the existence of an Ethiopian identity by misrepresenting it. She described Awol as a bigot for denying the right of Ethiopians to see themselves as having an Ethiopian identity. Sehin identifies herself as pan-Ethiopianist.

Violence

According to Martha Kuwee Kumsa, Sehin "categorical yassociat s the

Qeerroo Ethiopia's National Youth Movement for Freedom and Democracy, popularly known as Qeerroo, is a social movement organized with ideology of Oromo nationalism in Ethiopia. In traditional Oromo culture the term means "bachelor" or youth but within the ...

with violence, which Martha criticises as hiding the diversity among Qeerroos. Also according to Martha, Sehin criticised Awol Allo for criticising violence against Oromos but not violence by Oromos. Sehin described Awol as having "fanned the flames of ethnic bigotry" in relation to the June 2020

Hachalu Hundessa riots The Hachalu Hundessa riots were a series of civil unrest that occurred in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia, more specifically in the hot spot of Addis Ababa, Shashamene and Ambo following the killing of the Oromo musician Hachalu Hundessa on 29 ...

that followed the murder of

Oromo Oromo may refer to: * Oromo people, an ethnic group of Ethiopia and Kenya * Oromo language, an Afroasiatic language See also * *Orma (clan), Oromo tribe *Oromia Oromia (, ) is a Regions of Ethiopia, regional state in Ethiopia and the homelan ...

singer

Hachalu Hundessa Hachalu Hundessa (; ; 1986 – 29 June 2020) was an Ethiopian singer, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Hachalu played a significant role in the 2014–2016 Oromo protests that led to Abiy Ahmed taking charge of the Oromo Democratic P ...

. She interpreted Awol's use of the word "they" in relation to the protests as an ethnic "us-vs-them" attitude. Sehin interpreted Awol's criticism of arrests made in relation to the protests as supporting the violence and of ignoring the evidence of the possible involvement of the

Oromo Liberation Front The Oromo Liberation Front (, abbreviated: ABO; English abbreviation: OLF) is an Oromo nationalist political party formed in 1973 to promote self-determination and the independence for the Oromo people inhabiting today's Oromia Region and Oromi ...

in the murder. She accused Awol of being "silen against the atrocities committed by his own side."

Criticism

Martha Martha (Aramaic language, Aramaic: מָרְתָא‎) is a Bible, biblical figure described in the Gospels of Gospel of Luke, Luke and Gospel of John, John. Together with her siblings Lazarus of Bethany, Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is descr ...

criticised Sehin for Sehin's criticism of Awol, in which Sehin described Awol's view of Ethiopian identity as a "bogeyman of Ethiopianness".

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , title= Sehin Teferra (PhD) , date= 2018-02-28 , website= Association of Women in Business , url= https://www.awib.org.et/currency/spotlight/item/1168-sehin-teferra-phd.html , access-date=2020-12-19 , archive-url= https://archive.today/20201219003848/https://www.awib.org.et/currency/spotlight/item/1168-sehin-teferra-phd.html , archive-date= 2020-12-19 , url-status=live {{cite news , last1=Kumsa , first1=Martha Kuwee , title=Our diverse feminists must team up to disavow epistemological violence , date=2020-12-16 , newspaper=

Ethiopia Insight Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

, url=https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2020/12/16/our-diverse-feminists-must-team-up-to-disavow-epistemological-violence/ , access-date=2020-12-19 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20201219012019/https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2020/12/16/our-diverse-feminists-must-team-up-to-disavow-epistemological-violence/ , archive-date= 2020-12-19 , url-status=live {{cite web , last1 =Teferra , first1 =Sehin , title=The 'epistemological violence' of Awol Allo , website=

, date =2020-09-25 , url =https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2020/09/25/the-epistemological-violence-of-awol-allo/ , access-date = 2020-12-19 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20201219013527/https://www.ethiopia-insight.com/2020/09/25/the-epistemological-violence-of-awol-allo/ , archive-date= 2020-12-19 , url-status=live {{cite web , last1 =Teferra , first1 =Sehin , title=Agency within Ethiopian sex work: withstanding violence , website=

Open Democracy openDemocracy is an independent media platform and news website based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 2001, openDemocracy states that through reporting and analysis of social and political issues, they seek to "challenge power and encourage d ...

, date =2012-08-21 , url =https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/agency-within-ethiopian-sex-work-withstanding-violence/ , access-date = 2020-12-19 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20201219015624/https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/5050/agency-within-ethiopian-sex-work-withstanding-violence/ , archive-date= 2020-12-19 , url-status=live {{cite news , title=News: Ethiopian women participation in politics up but a lot needs to be done , date=2019-12-19 , newspaper=

Addis Standard ''Addis Standard'' is an Ethiopian monthly social, economic and political news magazine published and distributed by Jakenn Publishing Plc, and was established in February 2011 by Tsedale Lemma, who is also the editor-in-chief of the magazine ...

, url=https://addisstandard.com/news-ethiopian-women-participation-in-politics-up-but-a-lot-needs-to-be-done/ , access-date=2020-12-19 , archive-url=https://archive.today/20201219020421/https://addisstandard.com/news-ethiopian-women-participation-in-politics-up-but-a-lot-needs-to-be-done/ , archive-date= 2020-12-19 , url-status=live {{cite news , title= Ethiopia confirms reports of rape in Tigray war , date= 2020-02-12 , agency = AFP , newspaper=

The Guardian (Nigeria) ''The Guardian'' is a Nigerian independent daily newspaper, established in 1983, published by Guardian Newspapers Limited in Lagos, Nigeria. History ''The Guardian'' was established in 1983 by Alex Ibru, an entrepreneur, and Stanley Macebuh, ...

, url= https://guardian.ng/news/world/ethiopia-confirms-reports-of-rape-in-tigray-war/ , access-date=2021-02-13 , archive-url= https://archive.today/20210213135944/https://guardian.ng/news/world/ethiopia-confirms-reports-of-rape-in-tigray-war/ , archive-date= 2021-02-13 , url-status=live {{void, template {{cite news , last1= , first1= , last2= , first2= , pages= , language = , title= , trans-title = , date= , publisher= , newspaper= , url= , accessdate=20... , archiveurl= , archivedate= 20... , url-status=live , url-access = {{cite web , last1 = , first1 = , last2= , first2= , author-link = , coauthors = , language = , title= , trans-title = , work = , publisher = , website= , date = , url = , format = , doi = , accessdate = 20... , archiveurl= , archivedate= 20... , url-status=live , url-access = Living people Ethiopian women's rights activists Ethiopian scholars Ethiopian women academics Year of birth missing (living people)