In 1989, I was about to get married and I was searching for a good house to rent. I met my landlord, an elderly lawyer who obviously did more real estate than legal practice.
He let me know that there were 3 categories of people he would not rent the property in his care to – Ijebus, Igbos and Lawyers. I was disqualified on two accounts. He then said to me, pointing behind him in a few shrivelled-up books on a small bookshelf, that he had the arsenal to destroy any tenant in court if I gave him any trouble.
He later, to his embarrassment, discovered that I was a Law teacher and adviser to the then Attorney General of the Federation and that of course, I am also Ijebu.
I share this to illustrate the point that prejudice and bias are natural aspects of human nature. Everyone has prejudices and preferences that are reinforced by stories and narratives.
