Lagos assembly wants to fight racism

On Tuesday , Speaker of Lagos State House of Assembly , Mudashiru Obasa , and his colleagues urged the President , Major General Muhammadu Buhari ( retd . ) “ to issue an Executive Order for all streets, gardens and notable areas named after colonial masters or beneficiaries of slave trade be changed all around the country. ” They also resolved to call on the Lagos State Governor , Babajide Sanwo - Olu , to direct the Commissioners for Tourism , Arts and Culture, and Justice to look at the Listed Sites ( Preservation ) Law of 2015 “ with a view to removing all vestiges of slave trade and colonial superiority as a stand against racism . ”

The motion was moved by Noheem Adams who – while reacting to the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer, Derek Chauvin in Minneapolis – thought to draw attention to the realities of anti - black violence and racism despite slave trade abolition . They moved the motions because , according to Obasa , they want to “ correct the impression of colonial masters ’ supremacy by the White - skinned and to decry the incessant racist attacks and ill - treatments of Black people across the world . ”

I do not think I have read anything funnier in recent times . The trouble with some of these Nigerian politicians is that they watch too much TV , and they believe every serious issue is commutable to a farce . After watching news reports of protesters in western societies toppling the statue of Confederate soldiers and slave traders , these lawmakers too want to rename streets to “ correct ” the impression of white supremacy .

Unfortunately , racial supremacy is not an impression that can be corrected by wiping off the names of colonial masters and beneficiaries of the slave trade . Racism is a structure , and its pillars uphold our modern world . It is a mistake to think you can touch the formidability of its structure by renaming streets. By the time society starts to build a monument to a certain cultural practice or the person that embodies it , it means its norms have calcified . You can pull down statues , and rename streets and neighbourhoods , but the world that slave trade / colonialism built will remain intact .

First , there is little from the lawmakers ’ discussion of racism / slave trade /colonialism or their recommendation about confronting it that suggests they understand the subjects . Like Nigerians who correlate racism with their home -grown tribal differences, they supposed racial superiority could be cured by promoting African values and culture as a counter . Second is how , in their critique of race , they exhibited a massive blind spot on how they – as African leaders – contribute to the impression that black people are innately inferior .