Casting the Spotlight on Modern African literature

Modern African literature opens perspectives on matters with a far-reaching impact involving Europe, yet contemporary works are largely absent from European mainstream education.

Aware of this knowledge gap, a group of students from The Association of Students of African Heritage (ASAH) based at the Erasmus University campus in Rotterdam decided to fill it by organizing ASAH Narratives, a literary festival showcasing the current African and diasporic literary scene.

Among the guests who spoke at the event were Babah Tarawally, the author of the novel Blue Eyes, Isabelle Britto, a researcher for a documentary on Black resistance, and spoken word poet Babs Gons.

While attending the event, I talked to a group of organizers, including Elisa Weehuizen, Auguste Ouedraogo, and Lianne Enkhuizen, who shared behind-the-scenes of the festival, as well as their motivation for running the project and relationship with African literature.

Since this was the first time that this type of event took place at the University of Rotterdam, I wondered how the idea came about.

Elisa, Vice President of ASAH and Marketing Officer, explained they started small, driven by their members’ interests, and expanded the idea after encountering a funding source:

Auguste, Vice President of ASAH, noted that the aim was also to open the space for new perspectives:

Having a shared interest in African literature motivated Lianne, owner of The Base Bookspace, to join forces with the association and present some of the titles she stocks at the festival:

A space where you can gather with like-minded people is always crucial to help creative ideas flourish. This case was no different.

Elisa found ASAH to be a safe space to explore her African heritage while enjoying student life:

As an international student, Auguste discovered the association when he joined one of their events, and the experience motivated him to get more involved:

Another source of motivation behind grassroots projects like this is personal experiences that create the need for change.

For Lianne, it was her love of reading and taking part in a personal development workshop:

Auguste observed that the general awareness of African art and culture was quite limited:

Lastly, delving into the stories from Africa and beyond means a lot for personal growth.

Lianne described how she benefited as a person of dual heritage:

Hosting the first festival of its kind at their university, the team strived to create the proper appeal.

Elisa explained that the organizers were very particular about selecting guests who could draw people in: