Feb 17, 2022BIRTHING IBINUThey were beautiful and selfish. All they did was take and take and leave her empty with no remorse. Slowly, she became sick. And the only cure for her illness was murder. A murder of love, a murder of self. She killed her emotions with pills and alcohol, and then…2 min read2 min read
Oct 15, 2021CAPTURING THE ESSENCE OF LOHI AKHARUMEShe is known for her ability to capture the very essence of a person on camera. Her images give the impression of being set in a dreamy alternate universe where timeless stories exist in different shades of brown skin, stories of young love and womanhood. In her work, the saying…8 min read8 min read
Sep 19, 2021RED FRIDAYHer name was Kairetu, and there was a dead man in the backseat of her car. That was all she could think, over and over. It was like her mind had shrunken in size, leaving space only to accommodate those two things. My name is Kairetu, and there is a…4 min read4 min read
Apr 10, 2021THE GIRLS ARE NOT SAFE HEREA 12 year old girl who has been enduring sexual abuse from her father since she was seven years old. A Fulani woman raped to death at a farm in Esie after she and another woman were caught allegedly stealing cashew nuts. …2 min read2 min read
Sep 29, 2020THE MANY FACES OF SALIMA RUMONKUNThere was the one she wore to work. It was porcelain, resigned, compliant and emotionless. It greeted clients with a mechanical smile, its lips moving rigidly, as if tugged into action by the hands of an invisible puppeteer. Good morning, sir. Tea or coffee, sir? Mr. Adeyemi will be with…3 min read3 min read
May 31, 2020CRIMES AGAINST WOMEN AND UNDERAGED GIRLS IN NIGERIA: A WIDESPREAD EPIDEMICOver the course of six weeks, I followed various stories in the area of Crime, specifically crimes perpetrated against women and underage girls in Nigeria. These crimes ranged from rape to blackmail (sextortion) and in some cases, murder. In all these cases, two common denominators seem to be the lack…6 min read6 min read
May 30, 2020Dear Nelly : Everyone Thinks They Know What HappenedWhen I eat tomato stew I think of Arima, and how she scooped her miscarriage blood off the floor and into her mouth frantically, in an attempt to “put the baby back”. The baby that was never meant to happen in the first place, the baby Mama swore would be…4 min read4 min read
Feb 29, 2020THE WATERY GRAVEAt first, while Susu howled and I dreamt, all I could see was my skin. In the dream my skin spread all over me like sand in an endless desert. It covered my bones like fabric, it stretched tight, acres and acres of brown-brown skin covering my bones and me…2 min read2 min read
Dec 27, 2019THE GIRL WHO WAS MADE OF FLAMESFire-starter ocean-drowner destiny-stealer dream-taker That was what they called her when they thought she was not listening. Fire-starter ocean-drowner destiny-stealer dream-taker They sang it when they thought she was asleep, it rhymed, the words were not a lie. Her blood was gasoline and everything she touched caught fire. …1 min read1 min read
Dec 15, 2019PEPPERMINTThe taste of a thing is sometimes the key to a lost memory. It opens your mind and fills you with hazy nostalgia, reminds you of people you had long forgotten-on purpose or by accident-people you forgot you knew. …3 min read3 min read
