Patterns of Women Protest in the Niger Delta Environmental Struggle from 1925 to 2012

Women have always participated in local environmental and social struggles. In the colonial era, one of the most notable protests by women was the protest by Ibibio and Igbo women in 1929 against the British colonial administration demanding gender equity in the appointment of warrant chiefs and kicking against oppressive economic policies such as unfair taxation. With the onset of the oil economy, women have been involved in the fight for justice in the wake of environmental degradation and rising violence occasioned by oil exploration in the area. This paper looks at the pattern of women's protests in the Niger Delta from the colonial era, tracking the changes and continuities. One common feature of women’s struggle for gender justice is collective action through dancing, singing, demonstrations and strikes. In some cases, they have used culturally specific strategies like stripping naked. This study draws insight from feminist theory to draw the connection between gender and environmental politics. This study argues that despite the apparent invisibility in dominant discourse, women form the first line of social defence against socio-economic deprivation. The work will examine the historical trajectory of women’s struggles in the Niger Delta; and how the peculiar placement of women in the social relations and power dynamics of the Niger Delta has influenced their struggle for environmental justice. The study adopts a critical and analytical assessment of data based on historical enquiry.