In the October 24, 2024, Canadian HR live webinar, “microaggressions” were equated to “paper cuts”; while one may appear inconsequential, a series of them can be humiliating and unpleasant. “On the surface, microaggressions may appear as compliments or jokes,” it added. They do, however, contain unspoken insults, derogatory remarks, insensitive enquiries, or presumptions. They hurt both recipients and onlookers, even if they might not always be deliberate. The term “microaggression,” according to the Cleveland Clinic, was used in 1970 by Dr Chester Pierce, a psychiatrist at Harvard University, to characterise the frequent insults and dismissals he saw non-Black individuals employing against Black people. He thought that these encounters could significantly affect a person’s psychological and physical health over time.

In Nigeria today, microaggressions—including nonverbal aggression, microassaults, microinsults, and microinvalidations—are commonplace in day-to-day interactions. Both leaders and followers are guilty of committing microaggressions. Regardless of the conflict and complexity of our modern society, it is a subtly expressed form of prejudice against fellow citizens. It is now a political statement to disparage a person’s personality, ethnic group, race, or even humanity, whether on purpose or accidentally. It is no longer limited to people of colour.

Permit me to recall demeaning and diverse microaggression statements that have been permanently etched in my subconscious realm as a Nigerian. The former president, Muhammadu Buhari, during the Arise TV broadcast in 2021, made a statement that “Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) is just like a dot in a circle. Even if they want to exit, they will have no access to anywhere.” It was never expected of a nation’s leader to make such a microinsult to their fellow residents. By comparing the entirety of the Eastern states to a dot in a circle, the statement sparked a lot of negative reactions and angered the Igbo people in general.

A few rascals who attacked the Igbos in Lagos were also the subject of the unconscious bias statement made by the late Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, chairman of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo elders’ forum, that “Yorubas are political rascals, and we are going to handle them.” Iwuanyanwu later retracted the statement. However, the statement caused a great deal of animosity and negative banter between the Yorubas and the Igbos, even if the speaker denied it.

Dr Reuben Abati recently recounted on Arise TV’s Morning Show how Theophilus Benson, the first post-independence government’s minister of information, explained that Igbos don’t sell land to non-indigenous people. The Igbos were offended by this public declaration and reacted fiercely, demanding that Abati be fired. Many Nigerians have since come forward to refute Abati’s claim, emphasising that they purchased properties and constructed homes on Igbo territory.

Furthermore, Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, was both a perpetrator and a victim of microaggressions. He is being micro-aggressively attacked by those who gaslight him by claiming he is incapable of being president of Nigeria. Obi possesses the same level of fitness, mental stability, alertness, and competence as any other presidential aspirant or even more. But his recent allegation that the Yoruba stated that “Awalokan” in response to President Tinubu’s remark “Emilokan” during the 2023 presidential campaign is also a microassault on the Yoruba’s sensibilities over the PBAT’s individualised statement.

In addition, PBAT’s implicit exclusion of the Igbo from his key kitchen cabinet appointments is a microaggression that must be addressed right away because it is nonverbal. With a purposeful exclusionary strategy that was initiated by previous President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) and intensified by the current President (PBAT) through subtle micro-invalidation against the Igbo, it is impossible to create a functioning country, as everyone can see. Nigerians must be carried along in the effort to reform the system and make it functional. Therefore, PBAT should be reminded that whatever policies he validates today could be invalidated by his successor; nothing is cast in stone.

Furthermore, a group of individuals also micro-insulted the previous president (PMB) by spreading a fake report that he had passed away and that Jubril al-Sudan, a foreign national, had taken his place as president. It progressed to the point where prominent pastors and scholars began to believe the news and publicly preach about it. To persuade the bewildered nation and its citizens that the former president PMB was still the same person occupying Aso Rock, a national hearing and debate were held by a few distinguished and knowledgeable senators and members of the House of Representatives, particularly the then-senator Robert Ajayi Boroffice, who represented the Ondo North Senatorial District. Despite their trauma as leaders, PMB and his family accepted it as a sacrifice made by a leader, believing that “uneasy lies in the head that wears the crown.” Also, during the farmers/herders’ crisis in the Benue/Plateau axis, the whole Fulani race was stigmatised for the sins of the perverted ones. Similarly, the recent statement of Governor Bala Mohammed of the Bauchi State that “we will show President Tinubu our true colour” is a provocative remark that falls within the purview of the subject matter.

This whole scenario reminds me of another Igbo pastor who said, “One Igbo man is equivalent to 500 Hausa men” in a video doing the rounds on social media some time ago. This is the highest point of micro-assault. Again, the systemic barbaric attack on the Igbo traders calling them to relocate to their states by the so-called “Owner of Lagos” or “Omo Onile,” abetted by some government functionaries, is preposterous and unwarrantable. More than ever, rather than fostering unity, harmony, and a genuine sense of belonging, we have become tribalistic and divisive, and we have been subjected to atavistic fears and instincts in our daily lives.

Threading this path of micro-aggression at this pivotal moment in our country’s history is nothing but self-destructive behaviour that is detrimental to our collective psychology of interpersonal connections. What legacy are we leaving for our children who will inherit Nigeria? That is the important question. Is it the legacy of microassaults, microinvalidations, microinsults, and resentment and hatred? We cannot expect to have a strong nation if we keep going in this direction.

As we continue in our quest for democratic consolidation and socioeconomic growth, the need to address divisive microaggressions in politics and our social interaction becomes ever more pressing. If, instead of accepting racism and disrespect, we should strongly confront unconscious bias and discrimination, add to that a culture of respect and inclusiveness, and allow good governance practices, Nigeria stands in good stead to become a united, prosperous, and democratic nation. In the words of Nelson Mandela, “No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” It is through the cooperative effort of the entire people of Nigeria that the scourge of microaggressions will be vanquished and huge strides made toward a much brighter future that is more inclusive for generations yet unborn.

Rotimi S. Bello, a public commentator, peace and conflict expert, and HR advisor, writes from Canada.