#EndSars: The Message You Deserve

Dear Nigerians,

Taking a cue from the new 'he-who-shall-not-be-named', I would like to begin this open letter to you all by saying that it has become necessary for you to receive the message you deserve, for your hearts to be soothed, and your hope restored.

The events of the past two weeks that culminated in the #LagosMassacre, especially at Lekki toll gate have been met with varied reactions: grief and despair by those who understood the essence of the #EndSars movement, but smug indifference and victim-blaming by those who did not care for the disruption of their routine.

Firstly, let it be known that in the history of this millennium there has been no movement of such magnitude initiated, managed, and peacefully maintained by a decentralized online mobilization of youth, aside from ours.

When else has it occurred that over a thousand young people trekked 32km--nearly thrice the length of the longest bridge in Africa--to Akwuzu in honor of all the young people whose promising lives were cut short by the police brutality of members of that division? 

Or that over 600 barristers, nationwide, threw themselves into the unpaid task of ensuring that complete strangers arrested for peacefully protesting were released? 

Or even that a young man threw himself on the back of a woman (DJ Switch) he had no blood ties with, to protect her from the bullets fired by soldiers, and died?

Your generation of Nigerians is absolutely incredible. The initiative, creativity, generosity, dauntlessness, and passion took the nay-sayers by surprise.

Think about the milestones for a moment:

-  nigeriansenators.firebaseapp.com was created so that we could text and email our senators demanding them to work towards #EndSars.

- In around 24hours the financial target for supporting the protests was met and exceeded. Food, tents, raincoats, etc were provided and an account of how funds were being spent was provided by the Feminist Coalition.

- When the flutterwave link for donations was compromised, the Feminist Coalition switched to bitcoin in no time and money continued to flow.

- Various petitions aimed at social justice were created and signed by thousands of people from around the world. 

- A web application was created where protesters could sign in and sign out so that missing persons could be identified immediately.

- Solar-powered charging units that supported lots of individual points, were built for protesters to keep their devices charged at Lekki.

- Independent funds were crowdsourced for prosthetic limbs for two protesters in less than 48hours thanks to @aprokodoctor.

- Twitter came to a historic stop for one full hour. When it was back up, #EndSars had a customized emoji and Jack tweeted for us.

- When government-sponsored thugs began harassing peaceful protesters, private security agencies were hired.

-  A global candlelight ceremony to honor the victims of police brutality was held.

- We got international broadcast media to pay attention when local media ignored us. Did you watch Taooma live with the US Consul General?

- Oke Obi-Enadhuze (fallen hero) and others designed an app to help blood donations reach those in need.

- Soro soke radio was born.

- In Abuja, peaceful protesters celebrated a traffic warden who had been doing a great job. They hailed him to the point that he cried for joy.

- Two toll-free helplines were created so that protesters could request medical, legal, mental health aid, etc, and so many people volunteered that at a point, volunteers had to be turned down.

- DJ Switch's Instagram live--courage in the face of death.

All this and more in 12days. Nigerians came together shunning religion, tribe, and social class. Nigerian youth did everything on that list in 12days. This is a victory that can never be tainted.

Unfortunately, it is only in Nigeria that the police exist to protect the government from the average citizen. Before, during, and after the protest, the government has remained adamant in its decision to consistently fail us. 

Hoodlums are having a field day but military and police deployment were delayed, probably because they weren't unarmed protesters.

However, even in the midst of this orchestrated chaos, let our resolve remain strong when we think of our fallen heroes.

Let us heal. Think. Plan. Help.

Remain determined to have the Nigeria where 'the child of a nobody can become somebody without knowing anybody'-Aisha Yesufu

Stay strong. Stay Hopeful. Stay jiggy.

Signed,

A Lazy Nigerian Youth