Sehin Teferra
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sehin Teferra | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Occupation | Women's rights activist |
Sehin Teferra is an Ethiopian feminist activist[1] who promotes the idea of Ethiopian identity and sees herself as pan-Ethiopianist.[2][3]
Sehin Teferra was born in Addis Ababa. 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 campus in Athens, a master's degree in international development with a focus on gender at Clark University, and obtained her PhD at SOAS University of London in 2015.[4]
Feminist activism
Sehin co-founded a feminist group Setaweet[1] and a corresponding firm Setaweet Plc, in a "hybrid social enterprise model".[4]
During October 2011-July 2102, Sehin carried out research into the situation of sex workers in Addis Ababa, 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 [who were] interviewed 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."[5]
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 (EDF). Sehin stated that Setaweet's documentation showed that rape was "happening on a large scale" and that "parents in Tigray [were] shaving their daughters' heads and dressing them 'as boys' to protect them from rape".[6]