After attending the rally in front of the Nigerian Embassy today in support of the #BringBackOurGirls organized by Ms. Omolola Adele Oso, I was comforted by several familiar faces and friends who came out to support and vent their frustration and rage. However, my rage only grew when it was apparent that no official from the Embassy was going to address the hundreds of people in attendance. It grew when we were informed that the logistics of the “protest” required that the use of the space outside the Embassy in what should be a public street had to be rented. It grew when Ms. Oso told me that her life had been threatened and that she can never return home. It grew further when she then informed me that she wasn’t afraid because she can call the FBI or CIA to protect her. Finally, my rage boiled over when I read the otherwise fine Washington Post article that numbered the attendees at only 60. I personally passed that many people who were leaving the rally as I walked the 4 blocks after finding a distant parking spot. Then upon reflection I asked myself, “Where are all the Feminists?”
It is not as if 276 girls kidnapped and sold into slavery is a small issue in a far off distant land. Nigeria is the largest oil producer in Africa which makes it the darling of American business that in turns creates the largest concentration of millionaires and billionaires on the continent of Africa. Nigeria has the largest population of Africans and because of the free flow of oil and money it is also the most corrupt, but kidnapping girls shouldn’t be foreign to us. Locally here in DC we have all seen the face of 8 year old Relisha Rudd who was abducted from a homeless shelter and possibly sold by her mother to a child sex ring if she is in fact, still alive. This child has been missing for months and Feminist outrage is no where to be found. I posted a poorly worded status on Facebook once that garnered the wrath of Feminists with comments of criticism and sparkling debate. I learned a lot from that dialogue and I pledged to be more aware and respectful of all women. Which is why I am at lost as to why I don’t see organized Feminist groups picking up on this issue.
Maybe they are taking their cues from the Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, who in the interest of the upcoming World Economic Forum on Africa wants to keep this quiet as to not to upset his guest or jeopardize foreign investors. Maybe they agree with the “First Lady of Nigeria” Patience Jonathan who condemns the protests, arrested activists, not kidnappers and is on record calling the abductions fake. The true irony in all of this is that Bineta Diop, the newly elected African Union’s special envoy for women, peace and security, is scheduled to co-chair the World Economic Forum on Africa that is being held for the very first time in Abuja, Nigeria. Hopefully, she will push the Nigerian government into action and inspire a feminist movement similar to the International Day to End Violence Against Women. Otherwise, the forum will be business as usual and this year China is getting in on the action.
So here we are at the mercy of the establishment still begging for help, mercy and justice. This is nothing new. We all know that until the lumpen proletariats become cogs in the wheels of the money machine and engage in direct action like divestment from Nigerian oil with zero tolerance of political corruption here and abroad, nothing will ever change. But at least when girls are being sold into slavery we should expect the support of Feminist organizations.
