Biafra in the present: trauma of a loss

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Periodical article

Title:	Biafra in the present: trauma of a loss
Author:	Oloyede, Olajide
Year:	2009
Periodical:	African Sociological Review
Volume:	13
Issue:	1
Pages:	2-25
Language:	English
Geographic term:	Nigeria
Subjects:	Nigerian-Biafran War Igbo ethnic identity
External link:	https://www.jstor.org/stable/afrisocirevi.13.1.2
Abstract:	This paper argues that the current politics in Nigeria and the perceived marginalization of the Igbos re-evoke and intensify the spectre of Biafra, an existing cultural trauma. It is what was lost, Biafra, as distinct from the perceived marginalization, which is the real source of present anxieties among the Igbo. In other words, Biafra, an 'assumptive world' of the Igbo was shattered; this shattering, a trauma in itself, continues to surface in critical moments such as when issues of revenue allocation and political arrangements are discussed. The questions arise: how does the theory of assumptive world help to understand Biafra as a traumatic loss? What is it about Biafra that makes its loss traumatic? What does Biafra mean for the Igbo? The paper discusses these questions. The immediate circumstances leading to the Biafra war and the key social actors that played an active role in the build-up are also discussed. Bibliogr., sum. [ASC Leiden abstract]