MPH student Omobolanle Adams, second from right, participates in an #ENDSARS protest that she organized at Boston Common in downtown Boston on October 18. Photo by #ENDSARSBoston.

social justice

‘Enough Is Enough’

MPH student Omobolanle Adams is organizing demonstrations in Boston to support the #ENDSARS movement, which calls for widespread reform and an end to police brutality in Nigeria.

Tina Ezekwe. Daniel Adewuyi. Chika Ibeku.

These are just a few of the 70 names that Master of Public Health student Omobolanle Adams read out loud to a socially distanced crowd of more than 200 people during an #ENDSARS protest at Boston Common on October 18.

The names belong to Nigerian people who have died as a result of instances of police brutality by the now-dissolved Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Nigeria. An early October fatal shooting of a man by a SARS officer sparked outrage and massive, weeks-long protests in the West African country, with citizens calling for the disbandment of the notorious police unit that developed a reputation for abusing power. Amnesty International has documented at least 82 cases of egregious acts by officers since 2017, including severe beatings, mock executions, sexual assault, and waterboarding.

Beyond the disbandment of SARS—which the government formally dissolved on October 11—protesters also demanded accountability for corrupt police officers, as well as broad reform by government officials to address the oil-rich country’s long-standing issues with poverty, economic inequality, public safety, and lack of basic necessities for too many people. The largely youth-led movement soared into a global cause, gaining international attention and support and fueling the Twitter hashtag #ENDSARS.

As the protests gained steam in mid-October, Adams, an international Nigerian student, wanted to contribute but felt powerless living 5,000 miles away in Boston. After voicing her frustrations on Twitter and musing online about organizing a local protest, she discovered other Nigerians in Boston, Cambridge, New York City, Washington, DC, and as far as London, who felt the same way and were in the process of planning demonstrations. Adams collaborated with several people, including SPH alum Ayomide Omotola (SPH’18), and planned a protest at the Nigerian Consulate in New York on October 11, and at Boston Common in the city’s downtown section on October 18.

“Organizing takes a lot of work, but I’ve learned so much about it through my program planning classes and in other activist spaces, so I wanted to use those leadership skills to make a difference,” says Adams, who is completing the epidemiology and biostatistics certificate at SPH and is set to graduate in December. “There is a huge Nigerian population in Boston, and we wanted to amplify our voices and make Nigerian government officials understand that enough is enough. We’re tired of this type of governance, and of the lack of justice and accountability.”

Adams planned the Boston protest in a matter of days, receiving a financial donation for posters, water, masks, and sanitizer from Nambi Ndugga, a policy analyst in the Department of Health Law, Policy & Management at SPH, whose initiative Public Health Care Packages provides such support. Adams says she was amazed by the positive turnout at the rally.

“This was a moment for all of us, as Nigerians,” says Adams. “So many of us have family members back home, and emotions are high. We wanted to provide a safe space for people to share their concerns and discuss how we can use our privilege in the US to amplify the ground work taking place in Nigeria.”

She says there is certainly an intersection between the Black Lives Matter movement in the US and the #ENDSARS movement in Nigeria.

“Black Lives Matter extends beyond the US,” Adams says. “Nigerian lives are Black lives, and they matter.”

Just two days after the protest at Boston Common, the now-infamous Lekki Toll Gate plaza shooting occurred, injuring and killing multiple protesters who were gathering peacefully at night in Lekki, a city in Lagos Sate, Nigeria. The shootings sparked renewed outrage at the brutal use of force, with protestors calling it a massacre. Many details of the shooting remain under investigation—such as the timeline of a curfew announcement for that evening, who cut electricity around the toll gate minutes before the shooting, and why there is a lack of security footage evidence in the area where the shootings took place—but multiple news reports suggest that the Nigerian Army opened fire indiscriminately into the crowd. The army initially denied involvement, then claimed they only possessed blank rounds, and on November 21, an army spokesperson admitted that soldiers carried live ammunition but still insisted that soldiers did not use them. Eyewitnesses have also said that SARS officers eventually arrived after the army retreated and continued shooting the peaceful protesters. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, the governor of Lagos State, has continued to deny involvement.

“This is why we have been so angry and frustrated, and can’t wait any longer for reform,” says Adams. “People are showing up with posters and you’re meeting them with guns. Why?

“That could have been me, or it could have been one of my family members,” she says. “As human beings, we’re saying enough is enough. Now we’re demanding for every single thing we deserve—for good jobs, good healthcare, good education, and for a system that works.”

While the Lekki incident managed to quell the protests in the streets of Lagos for the moment (protesters are reportedly being targeted for their participation in the rallies), the widespread movement for reform is far from over, says Adams. Past government tactics of bribing leaders of protests to back down—or by dividing groups among lines of class, ethnic tribes, or religion—is no longer working, she says. Instead, the #ENDSARS conversation continues to grow and gain support online. Adams has continued to collaborate with local organizers to hold candlelight vigils and town hall events to develop strategies and continued support of the movement.

“There are no leaders of this group—this is a decentralized movement,” she says. “We’re all leaders in this fight, including those who have passed away.”

Adams holds a lot of hope and faith into the future of a movement fueled by young people, most of whom are under 30 years old.

“I’m hopeful for the power of Nigerian youth, because we’re saying that regardless of your gender, sexual orientation, or religion, at this moment, the revolution is now, and we’re not turning back. I’m not sure what’s going to happen moving forward, but I know that this is not a fight that stops here.”

To stay informed about #ENDSARS events in Boston, follow ENDSARSBoston on Twitter and Instagram. To support the #ENDSARS movement in Nigeria, visit The Feminist Coalition.