“Nigeria Jones” explores how the title character attempts to honor her full intersectional identity as a Black woman. She constantly finds herself wrestling with societal pressures to elevate one facet over the other. The book’s author, Ibi Zoboi, first tackled these themes in the short story “The (R)evolution of Nigeria Jones.” We learn the full scope of Nigeria’s life in this novel.
Nigeria was raised in The Movement, an Afro-centric community led by her father. She was taught that Black women exist to serve the community — the community being Black men. Nigeria was homeschooled and had little contact with people outside of The Movement.
One of the only people she knows outside of her closed community is Katherine Dillon, who is a white midwife and friend of Nigeria’s mother. Katherine and her biracial daughter devote their lives to serving and elevating women. Nigeria spends time with them learning more about their woman-forward philosophy. Nigeria gets an unexpected chance to spend time away from The Movement in the broader community, and despite the risks, decides to go for it. Her experiences there force her to challenge her beliefs and give her the chance to understand more fully who she wants to be.
Zoboi writes a powerful, complex story where we see Nigeria being both fed and restrained by those who support different parts of her identity. It’s clear both sides have helped her grow and inform how she moves through the world. Yet, as her world opens through new experiences, she is able to question what people expect of her and what she’s been told to expect of herself. Witnessing Nigeria’s journey to understand how she can fully embrace her distinct Black and female identities will no doubt help other young women learning to fully embrace their own intersectionality.
Find Nigeria Jones at your local bookstore.
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