In rural Kenya, losing a husband can disrupt a delicate network of patronage, social ties, and tradition.
The documentary “Widow Champion” follows Rodah Nafula Wekesa. Her husband has died. Much of his family blames her for his death. Women bring sickness and death through communicable diseases like HIV and even witchcraft, in the eyes of many of her countrymen. A widow is often owed by another family member. A dowry has been paid, and she must honor that dowry to the investing family, even if he’s a brother of the former husband.
We tag along with Wekesa as she fights for her dignity against her in-laws. You feel the tight-knittedness of community and its inescapable opprobrium. We are trapped with her against community members in modest living rooms, a stone’s throw from her own home.
She’s not alone. Other women in the community face similar circumstances. They are ostracized by community members. They’ve contracted HIV from an in-law. And so on. However, they have a lodestar in Wekesa.
Wekesa leads meetings for the affected women, empowering them to fight the same battles she wages. And that’s exactly what she is – a warrior. A low-key one. She is friendly and persuasive, convincing obdurate community members to back off with kind words. All she wants is to live her life with basic dignity.
It’s a simple film, with simple settings, with characters reaching for simple goals in an impossible landscape. Our plucky heroine has to win over her fellow widows and thorny community members alike. She sure works her charm on the audience.
“Widow Champion” screened at the Tribeca Film Festival.
