Omowumi Omole, Interdisciplinary Humanities
Asking the Hard Questions: Omowumi Omole’s Journey Through Faith, Gender and Justice
Omowumi Omole’s academic path began with a question — a child’s quiet curiosity in the face of tragedy. Growing up in Nigeria, she watched as families turned to churches and mosques for healing, often bypassing hospitals until it was too late. The consequences were heartbreaking, and the patterns unmistakable.
“Why do we trust divine intervention over medical science?” she asked. “Why do women bear the heaviest burden in these decisions?” These questions didn’t fade with time. They became the compass guiding her life’s work.
Years later, while working at a Nigerian government agency, Omole found herself in spirited conversations with colleagues about gender inequality and the role of religion in shaping public policy. These weren’t just intellectual debates — they were reflections of a society where religious interpretations justified unequal laws, cultural norms silenced women, and institutions failed to protect them. Determined to understand these dynamics more deeply, she pursued a Masters in African Studies with a focus on Gender Studies. But she wanted more than understanding — she wanted tools.
That search led her to UC Merced’s Interdisciplinary Humanities Ph.D. program. “It was the perfect space to explore these questions critically,” she said, “with in-depth theoretical foundations, fieldwork and purpose.” At UC Merced, Omole found not only academic rigor but mentorship that transformed her approach. Professor Daniel Thompson, a guiding force in her journey, helped her turn lived experience into scholarly inquiry. Under his mentorship, she learned to weave history, religion, law and gender politics into a framework that could challenge entrenched norms.
Her current research dives into Nigerian Pentecostalism, particularly the teachings shared in premarital counseling classes. She examines how these faith-based ideologies shape public attitudes toward women-centered legislation — bodily autonomy, marital consent, reproductive rights. “I’m asking whether these spaces reinforce norms that silence and marginalize women or empower them,” she explained. Her work has the potential to inform culturally grounded advocacy strategies and reshape conversations about law, religion and women’s rights across African societies.
But Omole’s impact isn’t confined to academia. Since 2012, she has led an initiative that provides free sanitary products to indigent girls in rural and urban slum communities across Nigeria. What began as a small act of compassion has grown into a grassroots movement for menstrual dignity and education. “It’s about more than products,” she said. “It’s about challenging the silence and stigma surrounding menstruation — issues deeply tied to the religious and cultural beliefs I study.”
Omowumi Omole is a scholar, an advocate and a voice for those whose stories are often left untold. Her journey is proof that asking hard questions can lead to transformative answers — not just in theory, but in the lives of real people.
