#EndSARS: My Children Received Death Threats
Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde Discusses Family’s Ordeal During #EndSARS Protests
Nollywood actress and filmmaker Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde has shared her family’s distressing experience during the 2020 #EndSARS protests, revealing that her children faced death threats that led her to reconsider her role as an activist.
In an interview on the current affairs program Rubbin’ Minds on Channels Television, broadcast Sunday, Jalade-Ekeinde reflected on the intense backlash she experienced during the protests, calling that period the most perilous of her public advocacy career.
“I am used to death threats; I have received them many times,” she stated. “But I have never seen anything like what happened during #EndSARS. It was intense.”
The situation escalated alarmingly when her children began receiving threats. “My kids started getting death threats. That was when it became weird,” she said, expressing her distress.
Jalade-Ekeinde emphasized that her participation in the protests extended beyond social media. “I was on the streets during #EndSARS. I was doing international advocacy. I spoke with CNN, engaged with international NGOs and embassies, and I was doing a lot of work,” she explained.
The threats, she noted, evolved from online abuse to physical confrontations. “When people started coming physically to my home and place of work to look for me, I knew I had to worry about other people and not just myself,” she said.
The actress’s disclosure highlights the significant personal risks faced by advocates in the ongoing fight against police brutality and for social justice in Nigeria.
