Nigerian lives matter to young Londoners

The crowds gathered outside the Nigerian Embassy on Northumberland Avenue, near Charing Cross, chanting ‘Nigerian Lives Matter’ along with cries of ‘We are with you Baga!’ in response to the recent atrocities in the northeastern region.
Bwalya Newton, co-organiser of the protest group Nigerian Lives Matter, said they wanted to show “solidarity” with those suffering as a result of the terrorist violence.
She told the Evening Standard: “It’s important for Nigerians here to care. We’re in a place of privilege where we’re allowed to use our voices to shout loud and to highlight situations and issues which are important to us.”
According to the 2011 census, the number of Nigeria-born people now living in the UK doubled from 87,000 in 2001 to 191,000. This does not include the number of British Nigerians born in the UK.
Organiser Akinola Davies Jr said: “We should try to use our privileges to garner international support to demonstrate and pressure the Nigerian government.”
Bisi Alimi, a Nigeria-born activist based in London, told Channel 4 news: “I’m here to speak as a Nigerian to demand that something should be done but also to understand why the Nigerian government has been quite ineffective in targeting Boko Haram and I think this is a bigger question that needs to be answered before the general election next month.”