Martha Tadesse
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse
@marthinolly.bsky.social
500 followers 100 following 120 posts
Humanitarian photographer | Feminism ጃስ | 🏳️‍🌈 Current project 📸: Queer African stories
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Nov 17
I’ve been documenting the lives of queer Ethiopians & Eritreans, but finding a safe space to share these stories has been exhausting. I always have to turn replies off on IG, even though I’d love to engage more. And never even bothered to share on X. #BlueSky community, buckle up ✨
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Sep 24
Discounted registration is not compensation. If an organization truly value art as advocacy, healing, and change, they need to value the artists behind it with fair pay. Isn’t
compensation equity in practice? How do you ask for art projects and treat artists as customers?
womendeliver.bsky.social Women Deliver @womendeliver.bsky.social · Sep 23
🎨 Attention artists and collectives from around the world! Do you want your work showcased on the global stage at #WD2026 in Narrm (Melbourne), Australia? At the world’s largest gathering for gender equality, art will take center stage as a force for advocacy and change. 🗓️ Applications are open 👇
A beige-colored graphic with a yellow and red earth patterned ribbon, featuring Narrm patterns, that forms a large upward-pointing arrow on the left side. We commissioned artists from the Oceanic Pacific region to create patterns of weave associated with their cultures. In this arrow, there are also weaves that represent Narrm, our conference's host country. The main title in bold, italic, indigo-purple font reads: "Expression of Interest: WD2026 ARTS PROGRAM." Below this are two yellow buttons, the first reading "Applications," and the second reading "are open!". The Women Deliver logo is in the top right corner, with the text "WD2026 Hosted by the Oceanic Pacific" next to it. A beige-colored graphic with a colorful patterned border featuring Narrm patterns on the right side. We commissioned artists from the Oceanic Pacific region to create patterns of weave associated with their cultures. In this arrow, there are also weaves that represent Narrm, our conference's host country. The title reads: "We are calling for two types of ARTISTIC CONTRIBUTIONS:". The text "ARTISTIC CONTRIBUTIONS" is in large, bold, italic, indigo-purple font. Below the title is a dark purple, rounded shape containing a bulleted list of two types of art: "Performance Art – live works such as music, spoken word, dance, theatre, and storytelling." "Digital Art – visual works such as photography, illustration, multimedia, and other digital submissions." The WD2026 Women Deliver logo is in the top left corner. A beige-colored graphic with a colorful patterned border featuring Narrm patterns on the right and top-left sides. We commissioned artists from the Oceanic Pacific region to create patterns of weave associated with their cultures. In this arrow, there are also weaves that represent Narrm, our conference's host country. An orange, rounded speech bubble contains the text: "Selected digital works will be showcased throughout the Conference in Narrm (Melbourne), Australia, while selected performers may be invited to share their art live on stage, creating spaces for connection, reflection, and movement building." In the bottom-left corner is an indigo-purple icon with a stylized uterus inside a heart shape, next to a raised fist. The WD2026 Women Deliver logo is in the top left corner. A beige-colored graphic with a colorful patterned border featuring Narrm patterns on the right side. We commissioned artists from the Oceanic Pacific region to create patterns of weave associated with their cultures. In this arrow, there are also weaves that represent Narrm, our conference's host country. The main title in bold, italic, indigo-purple font reads: "WHO CAN APPLY?". Below the title is a dark purple, rounded shape containing a bulleted list of eligibility criteria: "Open to individual artists, groups, and collectives worldwide." "Works can be visual, performance-based, digital, or multimedia." "Applications accepted in English, French, or Spanish." and "Collaborative submissions encouraged." A red icon of a person speaking at a podium is positioned in the bottom left corner. The WD2026 Women Deliver logo is in the top left corner.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Apr 29
I've been engaged in a research project for over a year with an incredible research partner I'm deeply grateful for. Our work focuses on online violence against queer individuals in Ethiopia. Our reflection has finally been published:

genderit.org/index.php/fe...
genderit.org
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Apr 23
Picked my favorites 💐
✨ Tulips ✨ Dalton Farms, NJ
Reposted by Martha Tadesse
rebeccasolnit.bsky.social
Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · Apr 20
Thanks to my friend Harriet for pointing out that the women went to Christ's tomb and saw he was not there, the angels showed up to describe what happened, & the women then told the apostles, who dismissed them. A Biblical account of women not being believed.
The Women going to the Sepulchre, 1912, Robert Anning Bell Painting of women in blue garments walking leftward, one woman, and then five behind her, on a flat plain, hazy sky ....
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 31
Thank you 😆
marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 30
First half marathon ✅
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 26
Please HALF Marathon 🥲
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 26
I can’t believe I am actually running my first marathon this Sunday 🎧🏃🏾‍♀️✨
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
Why queer archive?

Because queer stories shall start with queerness not queerphobia.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
All this hate crime is deeply embedded in the narrative of keeping Ethiopia safe and holy, driven by fear based rhetoric that motivates people to partake in this hate. (Years of misinformation and disinformation + propaganda that are still available in different social media platforms) /End
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
August 2023

For months, an organized campaign targeting queer communities unfolded on TikTok, involving doxing (those assumed to be gay), threats, mob justice calls, and misinformation, with participation from government officials, religious leaders, influencers, and users.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
March 2022

<<ስለ ኢትዮጵያ ዝም አንልም: ትውልድን ከግብረ ሰዶም እንታደግ>> org (We will not be silent about Ethiopia. Let us save generations from Gibre Sodom) hosted an event to raise awareness about homosexuality and how Eth can prevent its spread.

youtu.be/SEXdSH6qAJA?...
ስለ ኢትዮጵያ ዝም አንልም
YouTube video by ስለ ኢትዮጵያ ዝም አንልም (Sile Ethiopia Zim Anilim)
youtu.be
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
June 2019

Toto tours to Ethiopia
(US based LGBTQ+ tour operator announcement on their visit to Ethiopia which included Lalibela Church)

A press conference was held by anti gender activists stating “they should not come or they will be attacked.”

religionnews.com/2019/06/14/e...
Ethiopia tour for gay, lesbian travelers in jeopardy amid backlash from faith groups
CHICAGO (RNS) — A trip to Ethiopia planned by a Chicago-based tour company for gay and lesbian travelers is in jeopardy amid a backlash primarily from religious groups in the African country, where ho...
religionnews.com
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
July 2015

Former President Barack Obama’s visit sparked a widespread rumor that his visit aimed to discuss decriminalization of homosexuality. Comments on Dr Tedros Adhanom’s post speak volume about that time.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
June 2012

Conference entitled “Homosexuality and its Associated Social Disastrous Consequences” was held at the AU. Featured a research finding that “homosexuality is a result of inappropriate upbringing and linked it to STDs, HIV, and severe psychological disorders.”

76crimes.com/2012/06/15/e...
Ethiopia balks at Western pressure for LGBT rights
Add Ethiopia to the list of places that are crying foul at Western governments' decision to consider a developing country's anti-homosexuality laws before
76crimes.com
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
December 2011

During the 16th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) held in Addis Ababa, messages of protest spread, claiming that the conference’s objective was to promote homosexuality & pressure the Eth govt to pass supportive legislation.

globalvoices.org/2011/12/01/e...
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 18
Key dates on the evolution of anti homosexuality advocacy and online violence against LGBTQIA+ communities in Ethiopia: 1/
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Reposted by Martha Tadesse
monaeltahawy.bsky.social
Mona Eltahawy @monaeltahawy.bsky.social · Mar 17
Fuck this fucking fascist fuckery.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 7
A portrait of queer Ethiopian American friends who found this big friendship while in college.
marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Mar 7
In the face of relentless disinformation and the shattering weight of systemic denial, queer Africans continue to create safe spaces for themselves. Every quiet search for connection and every hidden gathering is an act of defiance — a refusal to be erased.
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Reposted by Martha Tadesse
zekuzelalem.bsky.social
Zecharias Zelalem @zekuzelalem.bsky.social · Feb 17
"Now or never" - @thecontinent.org.

Thread: While Europe was getting scolded at its own Munich Security Conference, African leaders were in Ethiopia for the annual African Union summit. As @simonallison.bsky.social explained, it was a critical summit, with Africa facing a new Trump led world order.
The African Union’s moment of truth At this weekend’s summit in Addis Ababa, our presidents must decide: Does the continental body serve them, or us? NEWS ANALYSIS Simon Allison In March 1990, the Tanzanian statesman Salim Ahmed Salim visited Muammar Gaddafi in Tripoli. At the time, Salim was just six months into his long tenure as secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity. According to Salim’s notes, the Libyan dictator made him wait before eventually granting him an audience in the ruins of a former presidential compound that had been bombed by US warplanes several years earlier. Gaddafi had turned the compound into a museum. On two chairs set up outside a tent, the pair discussed the major issues of the day – civil war in Ethiopia; clashes Cover of this weekend's edition of The Continent's digi newspaper... Skyrise buildings in Addis Ababa, including the HQ building of the African Union is seen...as well as a busy road with vehicles driving by a billboard that reads "now or never for the African Union." It is next to a drawing of the Lion of Judah, a symbol seen in many places across the Ethiopian capital.
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Reposted by Martha Tadesse
theferocity.bsky.social
Saeed Jones @theferocity.bsky.social · Feb 16
Publishing this during black history month is DIABOLICAL. LMAOOOOOOOOO!!!! The NYT is so wild.
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Feb 10
🤩 Ethiopian and Eritrean queer stories to the streets. To be seen. To be heard. A song of resistance ✨

Billboard from Exposure Photography Festival. (📸 Mitra Samavaki)

Calgary, Alberta
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marthinolly.bsky.social
Martha Tadesse @marthinolly.bsky.social · Feb 7
My photography project Wonderfully Made, which highlights the Ethiopian and Eritrean queer community in the US, is featured in this year’s Exposure Photography Festival and opened last night ✨

If you are in Calgary don’t miss it - at Contemporary Calgary.
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