The mainstream media has now become fixated on the horrors committed in Nigeria by the extremist group Boko Haram. The terrorist group kidnapped over 270 girls at gun point on the evening of April the 14th 2014. The school in question had been closed due to previous violence by this same terrorist group but was reopened so the girls could take their final exams. Weeks later, the girls are still missing and word from Abubakar Shekau (Boko Haram’s leader) is that the girls will soon be sold as wives and into sex slavery. I can’t imagine the ordeal these girls are going through and regardless who helps in the process of getting them back to their families safely (US, Britain or the Nigerian Government) I’m thankful that the outcry for action has taken place. Nonetheless, I wonder where the outpouring of support, hashtags and Facebook groups were when this same terroristic group killed as many as 29 school boys between the ages of 11 and 18 on February 25th 2014?
…But You Can Kill The Boys
A couple of weeks prior to the 270 plus girls being kidnapped, reportedly up to 29 boys (early reports said 59 boys) were killed at the Federal Government College in the town of Buni Yadi. Boko Haram invaded the school at night and shot some of the boys in their sleep. Some that fled on foot were also gunned down or while others had their throats slit. In some buildings, Boko Haram locked the boys in and set them on fire, burning the boys alive. The female students present were spared and told by the militants to get married and reject western education.
There were a few obscure reports scattered throughout some media outlets concerning the slaughter of these boys but for the most part there was silence. Zero protests and marches on government facilities. No comments from the President of the United States or First Lady; no congressman or senators forceful expressions of outrage or any hashtags like #BringBackOurGirls.
On the day of the massacre the US was going through NFL withdrawals after the Super Bowl and attempting to figure out if Richard Sherman was a “thug” or highly college educated. In foreign news, Syria and Ukraine were dominating the headlines while Nigeria was still hearing backlash due to President Goodluck Jonathan signing a bill in January criminalizes same-sex relationships and marriage with penalties of up to 14 years in prison. The media seemed to just not care about the mass murder of those “black boys over there” but why not? Honestly, this lack of coverage is nothing new. In September 2013 over 40 students were killed in their dorms by Boko Haram and so far in 2014 they have killed over 1500 (over 5000 since 2009) men, women and children. By the way, Boko Haram translates to “Western education is sin” which is why they attack so many students in conjunction with their “normal” mass slaughtering.
Maybe if the incidences concerning the murder of the boys and the kidnapping of the girls were not just a few weeks apart, I wouldn’t have questioned what comes off to me as the selective coverage by the mass media over these atrocities. I don’t even want to begin to speculate on what the media response would’ve been if 250 Nigerian boys or 250 Nigerian gay men were kidnapped. Are we so desensitized to death concerning black males and engrossed in viewing black males as threats that stories like the massacre at Buni Yadi are deemed non-news worthy? Perhaps but that doesn’t mean we can’t ask #WhatAboutOurBoys
Wow. Im at a lost for words after reading that. We forget about the bigger picture worrying about shit thats not important. We programmed by what mass media wants us think, rather then practicing critical thinking to wake up from this zombie state we seem to be content with. Appreciate that ocky, keep bringing that heat because we need to hear things that makes us uncomfortable to remind us we got more work to do. #salute bro
I agree with all of the above. It’s a shame that this part of the same situation can be easily and quickly swept under the rug, but I’m not surprised. The black male is vilified & disregarded over and over. We are only really glorified or congratulated when we are putting money in people’s pockets.
As a Nigerian, I was very happy to see that action was taken to save the girls but I was disappointed at the lack of action taken by our president, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan. He took no initiative and to make things worse, the militia/military was scared of taking action against Boko Haram for fear of being killed. I thought to myself, “So…. why are you in the army? You’re supposed to be willing to die for the security of the people in your country!” Such nonsense!
Boko Haram as you stated has been taking the lives of people for a long time now and many of the killings go unreported especially abroad (U.S., U.K.) but there are Nigerian media outlets large and small that do report the killings and suggest that something be done. However, Goodluck Jonathan and his fellow politicians do so much as breathe while sitting pretty in office… keeping all the money for themselves and not caring about uplifting the people of my country.
I read a report yesterday that the First Lady of Nigeria actually ordered some protesters arrested.
You mean protesters against Boko Haram or the Nigerian government itself? If you are referring to the Nigerian government, then I’m not surprised at all.
Its an ugly truth, but a truth nevertheless, that black males’ lives are considered as low to no value-globally. When and if that ever changes is anyone’s guess. However it won’t be anytime soon.
I dont the frame is accurate. Its like you said in the introduction “mainstream media has now become fixated on the horrors committed in Nigeria by the extremist group Boko Haram.” While the specific sets of victims of the horrors of these atrocities may be receiving differential coverage, the differential coverage should not be used an issue to further reinforce socially constructed binaries. Rather, we should focus on the fact that these heinous crimes are occurring, and encourage the media to equally report relevant facts related to taking action.
Nonetheless, not all outlets can cover everything and thats where alternative sources come to play. But then again Im sure theres a tactic to frame just like anyone wants to attract readership to their thoughts on whats important.
“Are we so desensitized to death concerning black males…”
now that’s a scary thought.but people are like that about soldiers in the middle east so it may not be too far_fetched.
This is not surprising. I asked the same question. Where was the outrage when Boko Haram killed Nigerian boys who were just trying to get an education? This happened on many occasions and it barely got mentioned in the media and there was no outrage in Nigeria or anywhere else. The fact is males both adults and children are considered expendable, especially black males.
It kind of reminds me of “missing white girl syndrome” here in the U.S. A black, male victim will be lucky to get 30 seconds on the news, while a white female victim can get coverage for weeks (I loved the short skit Family Guy had around this phenomenon).