Seeking Sexual Freedom

Adventurous, curious, honest and at times totally mind-blowing. A book for anyone who cares about female pleasure. Which is to say, a book for everyone! – Afua Hirsch, author of BRIT(ISH)
Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah is officially our pleasure fairy godmother! In Seeking Sexual Freedom, she scours the African continent and its diaspora, learning about sexuality in all its forms, so that we can truly liberate ourselves. A generous and important book. – Ayesha Harruna Attah, author of THE HUNDRED WELLS OF SALAGA
Nana Darkoa tells bold stories for women who need them. I adore the overlaps in this text between spirituality, geography, culture and sexuality. A carefully researched book and conversation starter about pleasure, autonomy, as well as the function of history in creating new maps, this work will be eye-opening for many. – Eloghosa Osunde, author of VAGABONDS! and NECESSARY FICTION
Intimate and radical … Sekyiamah takes us on a journey across Africa and its diaspora - to Vodoun temples in Benin, kitchen parties in Tanzania, Candomblé ceremonies in Brazil - searching for the sexual wisdom colonization attempted to erase. With the vulnerability and clarity of a seasoned feminist, she weaves together ancient practices and contemporary struggles. Sekyiamah shows that the path to liberation requires an unflinching look backward to move forward. Frank, fearless, and deeply personal, Seeking Sexual Freedom is Sekyiamah’s invitation to join her in the revolutionary act of reclaiming pleasure. – Francesca Ekwuyasi, author of BUTTER, HONEY, PIG, BREAD
Seeking Sexual Freedom anchors itself through the Akan word and symbol, Sankofa, reminding us that erotic agency is not only ancestral but also the conduit to futurity. This sacred text is an offering of sexual porosity that transcends colonial narratives-a challenge against dismemberment, a pathway to wholeness. – Dr. Briona Simone Jones, editor of MOUTHS OF RAIN
Seeking Sexual Freedom strikes at the heart of what we all deserve: full bodily autonomy, deep relationality, and reclamation of traditions that are rightfully ours. Today’s global struggles against fascism will be strengthened by Sekyiamah’s insights and brilliance. We cannot afford another century of radical movements that fail to account for people as sexual beings, this book will help us reimagine what is possible. – Charlene A. Carruthers, author of UNAPOLOGETIC
A stunning exploration of how pleasure, ritual, and inherited wisdom can transform the way we understand ourselves. This book travels across borders and generations to reveal how intimacy becomes a site of healing, resistance, and freedom. A fresh and necessary perspective on sexuality, tradition, and liberation. – Oloni, author of THE BIG O
Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah has carved herself out a niche in African sexology. An important work of cultural anthropology, Sekyiamah chronicles these stories with insight, humor and vulnerability. – Chinelo Okparanta, author of HARRY SYLVESTER BIRD
Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah has done it again. Seeking Sexual Freedom is an essential history and a rallying cry for sexual liberation for Black women—cishet, trans, queer, sex workers, all of us. Guided by the principle that pleasure is our birthright, Sekyiamah’s inquiries and explorations across the African continent remind us that ‘tradition’ doesn’t have to be a dirty word and that our bodies can be sites of resistance. Seeking Sexual Freedom is chockfull of practical wisdom for cultivating joyful, erotic practices. I will return to my dog-eared copy again and again. – Deesha Philyaw, author of THE SECRET LIVES OF CHURCH LADIES

Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah is the author of The Sex Lives of African Women and Seeking Sexual Freedom. Her writing has appeared in The Guardian, CNN, Essence, and more. Her short stories have been published in It Wasn’t Exactly Love and The Pot and Other Stories. She is the cofounder of the award-winning podcast and blog Adventures from the Bedrooms of African Women. She is co-founder and co-director of the Institute for Journalism and Social Change.

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