#BringBackOurGirls campaign sees support from celebrities globally

On April 14, 2014, the lives of more than 200 young Nigerian girls was about to change. And not in a good way.

Militant organisation Boko Haram kidnapped these girls from their school, as they appeared for a physics examination. This, after planting a bomb in the capital Abuja that killed dozens of people.  Abubakar Shekau, the organisation’s fanatic leader publicly announced his intention to ‘sell the girls…by Allah’. It has been almost a month since the girls were kidnapped, and there is still no trace of them.

Shekau said that the kidnappings were Boko Haram’s way of protesting the ‘Western education’ of the girls, saying that they needed to be married off instead.

“Allah has instructed me to sell them. They are his property and I will carry out his instructions,” he said.

AFP

Nigerian citizens were disappointed with the government’s flaccid response and inaction. Lawyer Ibrahim M. Abdullahi decided that something must be done to raise awareness about the missing girls’ plight.

He started #BringBackOurGirls on Twitter, a hashtag that has since caught the attention of people, especially celebrities, from around the world.

Michelle Obama recently lent her support to the campaign, joining the ranks of Hillary Clinton, Malala Yousafzai, Angelina Jolie, Amy Poehler and Jada Pinkett Smith.

Here’s how celebrities are lending support on social media: