- [I] #xref [[female fighters]]
### West African Amazons defended children
> Houédanou was a teenager when the Amazon died. Memories surge when she smells a certain mustard spice. Navifovo cooked for neighborhood kids. They ran to the house when they were in trouble.
>
> “Their parents couldn’t beat them here,” Houédanou said, grinning. “Even before we started talking about ‘human rights,’ Navifovo wouldn’t allow it.”
>
> She laughed. “Everyone knew the old lady would win the fight.”
- [[The Amazons of Dahomey by Danielle Paquette#West African Amazons defended children|View in Vault]]