In this chapter you will meet two distinguished Nigerian writers. Like so many authors on the continent, they straddle literary divides—between mainstream and genre, between fiction and non-fiction.
The writers talk about the divisions within Lagos, an area of roughly 23 million people that is both a city and one of the thirty six Nigerian states. These divisions include income, gender, orientation, and ethnicity.
You can read through the whole chapter by following the "next" links at the end of each interview, or jump to a specific interview by using the links below. Start with the Introduction. You can always return to this chapter index by clicking on the "100 African Writers of SF—Part Fourteen" link at the top of each interview, and return to the overall project index by clicking on the 100 African category, or clicking
here.
Human geography is a state of mind.
"I live in a society where it is possible for me to live in a nice apartment and provide some level of comfort for me, but I can step out my door and right next to me is a woman living on the street with twins."
“I have come to recognize Nigeria. Yes, it is not original; it is not true per se; but it works. I am no more just an Itsekiri. I have siblings from other tribes. Now we have to make those partnerships work based on mutual consensus. How are we going to share our wealth? Do we have a true federalism and monetary system? We need to fight for that space. The minority voices need to be heard and registered and given room to express themselves within that Nigerian identity.
“I’m Nigerian, I’m African, based on colonialisation. But my blood is Itsekiri.”
