Zhara Bedazzelled

When we started this campaign against the Nigerianisation of Yoruba culture, some people immediately screamed, “Tribal bigotry!” Of course. In a society where people are more afraid of being called tribalistic than they are of watching their own culture get swallowed by a national identity, defending your heritage is suddenly a crime. Some people would rather let their culture be erased than offend people who have no problem claiming it. Let’s talk about traditional headwear. Historically, Yoruba women had the Gèlè. In Senegal and other parts of West Africa, women wore headwraps commonly known as moussor, with styles and materials that differed from Yoruba head-ties. Igbo women also had traditional head coverings, including ichafu, often associated with scarf-like materials. These traditions were not identical. Different ethnic groups had different styles, materials, and cultural expressions. Yoruba women developed a distinctive tradition of elaborate head-tying, with the Gèlè becoming one of the most recognisable features of Yoruba women’s cultural fashion. As ethnic groups interacted, fashion crossed cultural boundaries. People borrowed, adapted, and popularised styles. And that is perfectly fine! What is NOT fine is taking a cultural practice associated with one ethnic group, stripping away its history, and then pretending that its popularity across Nigeria means it has no specific ethnic origin. Let me make this painfully simple: if a Yoruba cultural practice becomes popular among Igbo women, Hausa women, and women from other ethnic groups, it does not magically become an indigenous creation of every group that adopts it. Popularity is not paternity. Adoption is not invention. And national recognition is not proof of national origin. The same people who celebrate cultural diversity suddenly become uncomfortable when you insist on identifying the origins of a cultural practice. Why? Is Yoruba culture only worth celebrating when nobody is allowed to say it is Yoruba? You can wear the Gèlè. You can love the Gèlè. You can make the Gèlè part of your wedding outfit. But wearing something does not give you the right to rewrite its history. And before anyone starts shouting tribalism again, answer this question: If we cannot identify the ethnic origins of our cultural traditions without being accused of bigotry, what exactly is the point of having distinct ethnic cultures in the first place?