It's been 5 years since Lagos Government instructed the police to brutalise and ultimately kill protesters at Lekki Tollgate. The true number of people killed and injured remains a mystery. It's important to remember this day, it's probably more important than celebrating Nigerian Independence Day (NID), because any celebration of Nigeria can whitewash the brutality and reality of the conditions endured by people living in Nigeria.
Though I have defended people in diaspora celebrating NID, I think 20th October can be a day of remembrance, a day dedicated to freedom of speech, a day to celebrate dignity and human rights for Nigerians, a day to highlight the cruelty of authoritarian state governments and promise to respect the human rights and freedoms of Nigerians.
The reason I celebrate Nigerian independence as a part of the diaspora is because I am a minority in Europe. I'm not celebrating the state of Nigeria the country, I don't even believe Nigeria should exist as I am opposed to statehood. I celebrate my dark brown skin, delicious food, banging music, knowledge passed down and gorgeous attire. I celebrate the things that I was taught to despise.
I don't celebrate the material conditions of the average Nigerian living in Nigeria, I don't celebrate the corruption and cruelty of Nigeria, I don't celebrate the patriarchy and queerphobia of Nigeria, I don't celebrate the terrorism, megachurches or religious extremism of Nigeria, I don't celebrate the minimisation of traditional practices or glorification of foreign things, foreign people and foreign ways.
I celebrate my west African heritage, not to anger or dismiss the issues Nigerians in Nigeria face but I celebrate to acknowledge the issues I've faced being a Nigerian outside Nigeria.
Can Nigerians in Nigeria feel contempt towards me for celebrating? Sure. But it won't stop my celebration because same way I'm ignorant of their struggles, is the same way they are ignorant of my struggles. Our struggles shouldn't divide us but actually unite us against our common enemies: neo-colonial entities, white supremacy, capitalism and patriarchy.
Nigerians in Nigeria can whack us diasporans about our proximity to whiteness, our comfort paid for by their exploitation and our apathy towards their struggles, however Nigerian independence was a win against imperialism and worth celebrating. We have so much more to do to truly be free but our pride in our heritage does not negate or undermine the path to true freedom.
Happy Nigerian Independence Day.
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January 2026 update fuck all this. Fuck the Nigerian state and fuck anything that ever looks like whitewashing or patriotism for Nigerian nation state. I'll celebrate my Yorùbá heritage everyday and honour my ancestry and ancestors without that green white green bullshit. Shout out to the Nigerians in Nigeria trying to survive that evil ass corrupt corporation dressed up as a nation state. Sorry, ma binu 🙏🏿
