A Story of an Oppressed Entrepreneur

A Story of an Oppressed Entrepreneur

She is a young entrepreneur, I knew her way back since 2007, she was my junior in secondary school, she is quiet and calm. I met her again in October 2017 in the Islamiyya I joint, we happened to be classmates. She asked me to help her advertise her products on all my social media platforms. I told her I will in shaa Allah. But, it occurred to me to ask why she asked me to do that and I asked out of curiosity because I ask lots of questions as a mass Communicator. She told me she does not use the Social Media, so she can’t advertise her products and I grew more curious and asked why, then she added she had never used the Social Media because her #3years older brother stopped her from doing that, more curious than before, I asked why again, she replied “he only told me that it is not good and I had to comply”. I asked her if she wants to join, she said “yes but he won’t allow me to do that and he does not allow me have friends aside from his wife neither did he allow me go to the University saying I will not be good again if I go to the University and I can’t sale my trow pillows with all my expertise”, then I saw her eyes filled with tears. I asked if she can share this information with her parents, she said she lost her father as a child and her mother had always told her to treat her brother like a father. Let us turn the table? If she is older, will he be told to obey her ? Will he even obey her the way she is obeying him? Is this not oppression on the basis of gender? Now this is the interesting part, she told me he is on social media but will not allow her to join because she is a girl, I asked her to tell me his name and I searched him on Facebook and there he was with 1001 pictures on his page, some his NYSC Uniform, snapped and posted several pictures of him and girls shoulder to shoulder, arm to arm. It is sad how people use the little power they have to oppress others with the name of Protection. This is just one girl being denied opportunities. There are several girls out there just like her or even worst. People will say he is protecting her but why not let him protect himself as well? #NotAnotherNigerian #PovertyisSexist