A tribute to my dear (Dr.) mother
By: Chinomnso Onwunta
Tags: Gender Equality, Motherhood, PhD, Africa, Feminism

My mom deserves the title Dr. — just as Dr. Jill Biden deserves her title.

Title page of my mom’s dissertation

The opinion piece featured in the Wall Street Journal by American essayist Joseph Epstein, suggesting that Dr. Jill Biden remove the Dr. from her name because amongst many things — “she had not delivered babies”, is ludicrous and shows the perpetual misogyny within our society. This article made me instantly think of my late mother. I assume in Mr. Epstein’s deep-rooted patriarchal views, he forgot how the term Dr. is used in society.

So, here’s a quick reminder: the use of the title Dr. is both for someone who is qualified to treat ill patients (eg. a physician) or someone who holds the highest university-level degree. This term is to be assigned accordingly indiscriminate of gender. My late mom was a Dr. — just as Dr. Jill Biden.

Coming from a Nigerian family that emphasized the importance of education, we all understood that a Doctorate degree (Doctorate) symbolizes the pinnacle and the rubber stamp of your knowledge and contribution in your field of expertise. My mother understood this! It was not lost on her as to the challenges that she would face in reaching that summit. As someone who was at the forefront of gender equality in the church and Nigeria-at-large, she had her fair share of opposition and struggles on her academic and life journey.

Nevertheless, she persevered!

My mom completed her first degree in Nigeria. She was an “elder” and then an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria — at a time when women ministers were few and far between in the church. Following our family’s transition to South Africa, she went on to complete her post-graduate diploma in Theology — then her Master’s in Theology. And finally, completed her PhD in Theology in 2009. I remember the sense of pride that filled my family at the conclusion of her studies. She had summited that mountain to become the first female minister in the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria to hold a PhD degree. She had earned her right to be called Doctor! Sadly, she passed away in 2011 — two years after receiving her Doctorate degree.

The dissertation of her Doctoral degree is titled: “Gender stereotyping in church and community: A Nigerian feminine perspective”

My mother understood the privilege she had in getting that far and also the fact that many other women do not have that same privilege. She made it her life’s work to fight for the disenfranchised in the church and community — many of which were women and children. She left a legacy that transcends beyond the work she sought to accomplish. She pioneered the way for many other women within communities in Nigeria. She was a trendsetting academic, a loving mother, and a champion for gender equality. She had been fighting for gender equality well before gender equality became SDG 5.

I am proud to call her the late Dr. Ijeoma Esther Onwunta and I hope to continue her legacy. I would be glad if I were to become half the woman she was or achieve half of her accomplishments.

I live in peace with the knowledge that: My mother achieved what she wanted to achieve for herself — what she couldn’t finish is what she wanted to do for others.

Dr. Ijeoma Esther Onwunta — your legacy lives on!

You can request access to my mom’s thesis here:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/44138207_Gender_stereotyping_in_church_and_community_a_Nigerian_feminine_perspective