09/01/2026
Senedu Gebru held many impressive roles throughout her life: teacher, parliamentarian, anti-fascist activist with the Black Lions, President of the Ethiopian Red Cross Society, secretary of the Ethiopian Women’s Work Society, and Director of the Empress Menen girls’ school.
Emahoy and Senedu were sent together to Switzerland for schooling when they were both very young. [Slide 2 is a photo of Emahoy and Senedu together as girls.] Senedu later earned a reputation as an acclaimed playwright, and in 1949 asked Emahoy to compose a piece for her play, The Book of My Heart, which was written in commemoration of their brother Meshesha who had been killed during the Italian invasion. That piece was “Ballad of the Spirits,” which Emahoy performed from behind a curtain during the play to preserve her modesty. “The Homeless Wanderer” was also composed for one of Senedu’s plays, in 1951.
Click the linktree under our bio to find an essay written by Senedu’s daughter, “From Mother to Daughter: Lessons Senedu Gebru taught me” by Gohalem Assefa, written in 2015. A quote: “Of all the things I admire about my mother, it is her courage to stand up for her convictions and engage in actions that supported her convictions.”
