Feminist Self-Care Beyond Capitalism

From feminism to body positivity to mental health, self-care has become yet another concept commodified by capitalism. In a world that constantly thrives on profiting from women’s exhaustion, self-care must become a radical act of reclaiming control over one’s body, mind and soul. 

In October 2020, what began as a trend on X (formerly known as Twitter) would become one of the most significant moments in Nigeria’s contemporary history. The hashtag #EndSARS emerged as a symbol of wider socio-political discontent, beginning with protests against the police brutality perpetuated by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) unit of the Nigeria Police Force. SARS had, over the years, been perceived as notorious given their record of abuse, false profiling and extrajudicial killing of Nigerian citizens. This time, in 2020, angry Nigerian youths reacted to the killing of a young man by a SARS officer with a massive nationwide protest. Fuelled by wider displeasure with misgovernance in the country, #EndSARS took on many meanings and became a movement through which angry youths called for a renewed governance.  

But in the blink of an eye, we witnessed some of the nationwide protests degenerate into nights of concerts, music and even a teaser for a pageantry. However, the most disturbing element was the commodification of the movement itself. In a few weeks, brands began to sell Soro Soke ‘merch’ using different platforms. ‘Soro Soke’, which translates to ‘speak up’, was a rallying cry for Nigerian youths who were demanding an end to police brutality. It represents a rejection of silence and oppression, a symbol of resistance that urges people to raise their voices against injustice. Simply put, Nigerians were protesting for their right to life. For many Nigerians, the term represents the pain and history of the ones we have lost. When we say ‘Soro Soke’, we think of people like Bolanle Raheem, a pregnant woman who was shot and killed on Christmas Day in 2022 in the presence of her family. We think about the peaceful protesters shot at Lekki Toll Gate on 20 October 2020. We do not think of it as wearable items or things that should be profited off of like the ‘Soro Soke Denim Jacquard’. 

A popular influencer had also released a collection of candles and named it ‘Soro Soke’. Although she did issue an apology and withdrew the candles from the market, the fact remains that the very core of things that are personal and collective to us have been slaughtered at the altar of capitalism. Think about the very core issues that we create movements for and see how capitalism has encroached upon them. When we reduce our movements to disembodied fashion items, we dilute their radical potential, spirit and letters, turning our activism into mere consumer products. We shift the focus from systemic change to individual expressions, which makes activism only about performative participation. With this, we disconnect the struggles behind movements, and activism only becomes a tool that benefits capitalism. For instance, what does the Soro Soke dress do for or tell someone who has never heard of the #EndSARS movement before? What does it tell someone who encounters the movement through its ‘merch’ first? It evokes no sense of solidarity or empathy. This, by itself, dishonours the sheer will and power of the movement...