In WhatsApp groups and on X (formerly Twitter), you’ll find them young Africans trading tribal slurs like currency, mocking each other’s accents, flags, foods, and histories. What begins as “banter” often drips with inherited hate. These aren’t just jokes. They are warning signs digital grenades with delayed fuses.
Once, our fathers fought against colonial empires. Now, their children fight each other on the comment sections of viral videos.
But here’s the chilling question no one dares to ask aloud:
If this generation, armed with smartphones and short tempers, ever ascends to power, will they bomb first and speak later?
A Generation Online, but Not United
Social media was supposed to unify us across borders. Instead, it’s becoming a weapon. Hashtags that should spark movements now spark mockery. We’ve replaced pan-African ideals with pan-African insults. Unity is trending nowhere.
Inherited Trauma, Amplified by Technology
Our continent bears scars: genocide in Rwanda, xenophobia in South Africa, coups in the Sahel, tribal wars from Nigeria to Sudan. But instead of healing these wounds, some youth now wear them like medals, justifying division, feeding ego, and romanticizing violence.
The Meme Culture that Dehumanizes
A meme mocking an entire ethnic group. A joke about civil war. A comment glorifying a dictator because “he made our tribe proud.”
Today’s jokes are tomorrow’s justifications. We forget: genocide begins with stereotypes, not gunshots.
What Must Be Done Before It’s Too Late
Civic Education must return real lessons about nation-building, empathy, and historical truth.
Pan-African youth summits and dialogues must be institutionalized, not just for policy wonks, but for students, creators, even influencers.
Re-education through media series, songs, and books that humanize one another across countries.
Accountability in tech, flagging hate speech and promoting positive digital citizenship.
Mentorship from African thinkers who promote unity and justice, not egotism.
If we don’t teach African youth to become peacebuilders, they may become power-holders with scores to settle.
We are playing with fire. And when memes become missiles, no one laughs anymore.
Abioye Tosin Lawrence Writes, Campaigner HATE-AGAINST-NIGERIA
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