‘It messed me up big time’: Attacks and taunts against gay Nigerian youth
Openly gay Nigerian student Matthew Blaise recounts the attacks and homophobic slurs he experiences at school.
From the African Human Rights Media Network
Matthew Blaise. Photo Source: Facebook
By Mike Daemon
Undergraduate student Matthew Blaise recently went on Twitter to share about 5 cases of homophobic assaults and harassment he has experienced living openly as a gay youth in Nigeria.
Homophobic attacks are common in the country. Every day, the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people are violated by state and non-state actors. Perpetrators enjoy impunity because the law doesn’t protect LGBTIQ+ people.
Religion and ignorance about LGBTI issues are the leading cause of homophobia in Nigeria.
Blaise is frustrated with his situation, having suffered multiple human rights violations and hate crimes says He is now struggling with his mental health, he says.
“Everything that happened to me messed me up big time, I won’t lie. I still haven’t recovered from any of them. I now deal with a complicated paranoia and anxiety. I’m not in a good place mentally at all. Much has happened. I have passed them but I know many will still come” he tweeted.
Read his tweets below.
I’ll share 5 assault cases I’ve gone through in the hands of homophobes and 5 harassment cases I’ve also gone through in their hands. I’d love you guys to RTS, so this people will see they are hurting us badly.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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I was once bruised badly on my wrist by homophobes in broad day. People were around but they never came to my rescue when the guys were doing shits to me. According to them, I was acting girly and they didn’t like it, so one slapped me and the other grabbed my wrist until I bled
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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Another incident was when I was coming back from the library with my friends at night. Some group of guys called me personally and threatened me but I didn’t bother much cause I was with my friends. On my way home,I felt stoned dropping heavily on me.They stoned me and my friends
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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That night. I got injured on my legs when I was trying to dodge the stones.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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A priest after going through my queer content on Facebook,saw me in church.Called me and grabbed my neck,dude choked me while using his other hand to punch me. According to him,I shouldn’t be sharing those contents. He punched hard many times and he didn’t stop until he got tired
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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Just last week, a lagos driver almost killed me because he felt my existence in his bus would stop his dick from functioning.
He said I was disgusting to him and threw me out of his bus. As usual, people were in that bus but never said anything.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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My lecturer implied I was disgusting to him because I was being girly. pic.twitter.com/jOEL3BFq53
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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A man at Yaba market once hit me very hard, and when I tried to talk back at him, the whole guys start calling me ‘gay’ ‘man akunna’ ‘ashawo boys’ and ‘leaking yansh’
I swear, I was embarrassed, Everyone was laughing hard. I felt the world could just swallow me that instant.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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I rose up my finger to ask a question in class, only for the lecturer to ask ‘why are you doing like Bobrisky?’ in a very derogatory manner. She added ‘you’re a man, you shouldn’t be doing this to yourself, it’s disgusting’
The whole class burst into laughter as I sank in tears
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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My literature lecturer after exams called me in front of many other lecturers and ask if I was a ‘shemale’. She asked and laughed like a devil with other lecturers. I didn’t respond. Another one asked why I was walking as if a vagina was there. They all laughed again
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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They said I wasn’t acting like a man.
I was more like a confused people and it’s not good at all for a young person.— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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A pastor in school spat at me and muttered abomination. He fucking did this and I couldn’t do anything?
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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My name was once published on a blog by a popular blogger in school. She outed me and exposed me to a lot of shits in school.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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I don’t even want to talk about the thousands of slurs, threats and rejections I face everyday because I being what I didn’t choose to be.
— Son of the rainbow? (@Blaise_21) September 27, 2019
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Source: Rights Africa
