Twitter Ban: Ehikhamenor Alludes to Maya Angelou’s Poem with Painting

Twitter Ban: Ehikhamenor Alludes to Maya Angelou’s Poem with Painting

Yinka Olatunbosun

Many thought it was simple yet powerful. A painting of the iconic blue bird that is the logo of the micro-blogging site Twitter has arrested the attention of art lovers and the general public on the social media platforms. A masterpiece from one of Nigeria’s most innovative contemporary artists, Victor Ehikhamenor, the painting is titled ‘Do You Know Why The Caged Bird Sings?’

The background to the painting is quite interesting. On Friday June 4, the Nigerian government announced the suspension of Twitter on the premise that the app owners allowed its platform to be used “for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence.’’

Before the suspension was announced, the Twitter app had been used by Nigerians for self-expression, business, citizen journalism and crime fighting initiatives; news gathering and dissemination, entertainment, propaganda and agitation for citizen’s rights and justice. Hence, the global outrage that ensued after the announcement was overwhelming- from the diplomatic community to labour unions and yes, artists.

This is why Ehikhamenor’s ‘Do You Know Why The Caged Bird Sings?’ speaks volumes about the underlying issues that made Twitter the most potent tool for young Nigerians to demand for accountability. In the painting, the bird’s beak is fastened with a padlock that bears the Nigeria’s national colours in the flag order, that is green-white-green. No doubt, the painting with its title alludes to the poem by Maya Angelou ‘Caged Bird’ which is loaded with themes of racial oppression, freedom versus captivity and happiness versus sorrow. With the poem, Maya Angelou appropriated birds as metaphor to convey the frustration and suffering of the oppressed.

To answer the question posed by Ehikhamenor, the viewer is required to do some soul-searching to find truthful answers using thought-provoking questions such as: Could there be a connection between the social reality of the average Nigerian and the high voltage of anger expressed on twitter? If there are adequate job opportunities for Nigerians in Nigeria, would there be spare time to use the platform to trend for trending’s sake by needlessly bullying a politician? Or fanning the embers of war?

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