"No more underground. We are here. We are queer. We are everywhere."
Meet the queer Nigerian men that found comfort and community in New York.
Meet the queer Nigerian men that found comfort and community in New York.
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00:00And you know what? I don't have to hide myself tonight. I just have to be myself.
00:05We are saying no more. No more underground.
00:08We are visible. We are here. We are queer. We are everywhere.
00:17In 70 plus countries, it's illegal to be gay.
00:20And in 7 of them, you can face the death penalty for being gay, including my own country, Nigeria.
00:30When you hear about migrants, refugees and asylum seekers,
00:34some of us came to this country because the laws in our country
00:38was not conducive for us to live in our home.
00:40I've actually had to hide myself for a very long time.
01:00And then suddenly I found a space where I can be who I want to be,
01:03regardless of my sexuality, my color, what I do.
01:07I just have to be myself.
01:09Like, wear what I want to wear, be who I want to be.
01:13And I really like that.
01:15And I realized that a lot of people back home need to have the same thing.
01:21This is all what it's about, like community and friendship and family.
01:25It really is a liberation movement and a community finding home in their chosen family.
01:38I literally met the boys that were in the film at Pride in New York City.
01:42And I saw a Nigerian flag behind me and I was like, wait a second.
01:46Is that like a Nigerian flag and a rainbow flag together?
01:50Like, I didn't know that there was anyone like me that existed.
01:54And it's been incredible to like direct a film that helps me find more of myself
02:00because I'm actually Nigerian-American.
02:02The Legend of the Underground is a story about a people who have been left broken
02:07but yet are so resilient and are so beautiful.
02:10And the story of a people who have been discommitted against for so long
02:14and get to share their stories on the biggest platform in the world.
02:17It's not just about gay rights. It's about freedom of self-expression.
02:25We are hoping this is going to be a movement.
02:28This is going to be the time where there is going to be a change.
02:30This is going to like start a conversation.
02:33Storytelling actually brings things like people's faces and it changes their mind.
02:39It's the beginning of a revolution and I'm so glad to be part of that revolution.
02:43Love knows no creed. Love knows no boundary.
02:47And express yourself however you feel comfortable expressing yourself.
02:52Let people be who they want to be.
02:54It doesn't change who you are. It doesn't change who they are.
02:58The only thing they are ever going to do is hide it from you.
03:01But let people be who they want to be.
03:04None of us is free until all of us are free.