Renowned novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has made history. The writer of hit novels “Americanah” and “We Should All Be Feminists,” recently became the first African to speak at Yale University’s graduation ceremony. The celebrated Nigerian born author gave a speech over the weekend, on Sunday, 19th May 2019.
Adichie touched a number of topics including gender equality. In the course of her speech, she referred to a man who insisted his wife must submit to him.
“The world is full of people like that man. Is it necessarily my responsibility to educate them? No. Do I want to?” she said. “Yes. Why? Because I think it’s worthwhile to give people the benefit of the doubt. Because I think it is worth trying to change a person’s mind if that would lead to a greater human good.”
Adichie gave the speech ahead of the school’s 318th commencement ceremony. Class Day has been a long-held tradition by the university. During the ceremony, the students are usually addressed by notable figures.
In the past, there have been other prominent figures, including Sen Cory Booker, former Secretaries of State John Kerry and Hillary Clinton, and former Vice President Joe Biden, who served as speakers during the annual ceremony.