Stereotypes are sometimes funny, but more often ridiculous, and every country in the world is battling with stereotypes because they rob people of their individuality, oftentimes reducing their humanity. It can also lead to discrimination and racism. There are several stereotypes of Nigerians that are not true; here they are.
Uneducated
In many parts of Nigeria, school attendance is not considered the only way to get an education. There are several other methods through which people get an education, an example being the Igbo apprenticeship system, where people are apprenticed to learn a trade with an artisan or business owner and by the end of the training the student expects to be set up in the same business. The uneducated stereotype is also pretty annoying because once Nigerians decide to get an education they sometimes go overboard. All institutions are run by Nigerians, who sometimes are not content with just earning a first degree, so they add Masters and oftentimes a Ph.D. to their repertoire during the course of a lifetime.
Every Nigerian Embraces Voodoo
There's a huge misconception about Nigerians and Black Magic. People often think that everything in Nigeria is run by Juju - another term for Nigerians Black Magic. People believes that Nigerian men sacrifice their souls and children to get riches by embracing witchcraft and sorcery. This is actually not true, let alone being close to the truth. Black magic may be a common trend in Nigerian movies, but not every single Nigerian has a hand in Black mafic. In fact, Nigeria is one of the most religious countries in the world, and most Nigerians are either Christians or Muslims.
Scammers
There are scammers in Nigeria, ergo all Nigerians are scammers. This stereotype is not only false, it is also harmful, because let’s face it, every country has its underbelly of criminals, but this doesn’t mean there aren’t citizens of those countries who are law-abiding. Nigeria, like any other country, has doctors, lawyers, writers, programmers, pilots, farmers, and criminals, so you have as much a chance of meeting a Nigerian scammer as an American scammer.
Knows Every Other African
There are some conversations Nigerians living outside Africa often have with people living in other countries, which sometimes goes along the lines of:
Foreigner: Where are you from?
Nigerian: Nigeria.
Foreigner: Oh, I know so-and-so, she’s from Uganda, do you know her/him?
Nigerian: ???
Africa is not a country, it is a continent with over 50 countries within its bothers, and those countries often have within them various cities, towns, and villages. One of the major problems is the difficulty of crossing borders within Africa itself, so it is difficult to know all the people from those other countries.
Loud
There’s a caricature of the Nigerian either talking on the phone or talking to a friend who’s always shouting at the top of her/his lungs, which is another false stereotype. Just as there are people who are excitably living in the country, there are also people who are quiet and soft-spoken.
Homophobic
A few years ago, the Nigerian government passed the same-sex marriage prohibition bill, criminalizing marriage between same-sex couples. This has caused a lot of outrage within the community leading to advocacies and activism that has led to giving voices to the hitherto quiet gay community in the country. However, within the past three years there has been a noticeable decrease in homophobic attacks and utterances. As with a lot of countries around the world, minorities often bear the brunt of discriminations, but this does not go to say all Nigerians are homophobic.
Nigerians are Remote and Less Advanced
Contrary to what a lot of Hollywood movies might have made you believe, Nigeria is well ranked as one of the most developed countries in Africa; and has everything you'd expect to see in a more developed country. Similarly, Nigerians don't live with wild animals in the jungle but instead have people that live the high-end life, middle-class life as well as those that live on the low-slums or ghetto, just like any other country.