Diary of a Nigerian Nanny: Unveiling Modern-Day Madame LaLauries
Inside The World Of Nigerian Nannies: A Harrowing Tale of Modern-Day Slavery
She shared her experience at the hands of the husband of the housse. He would lash out at her for the smallest reasons, unbuckling his belt to hit her while his wife often standing by, said nothing.
When the wife was away, he would instruct her to lie down and remove her panties while he insert his fingers into her vagina.
Initially, he claimed he was searching for a ring, that the demons have put inside her through her vagina. Later on, while flogging her in the presence of his wife, he would say she is demon-possessed and that flogging her will drive the demon out.
Her 11-year-old brain assumed both the finger insertion and beatings were to cure her. She and his wife were naive to his manipulative tactics — using fake anger and beatings to control his wife’s perception of what was really going on.
Who is Madam Lalaurie?
Madame Delphine LaLaurie was a wealthy socialite and slave owner in the 19th century. She was known for her extreme cruelty and brutal treatment, including torture and mutilation of her slaves.
I heard about her atrocities a few days ago and watched a few YouTube videos to understand her motivation. In this video, you will hear about the weird experiments Madam Lalaurie carried out on her slaves. Some of the things she did, include -
- Whippings: LaLaurie was known to whip her slaves, a common form of punishment during that time. However, it’s reported that she did so excessively, causing severe injuries and often over minor issues.
- Confinement: Slaves were reportedly kept in small, cramped spaces for extended periods, sometimes they were chained or locked in small cages that changed their bone structure to fit in.
- Mutilation: There are accounts of LaLaurie cutting off body parts, including limbs and genitals, of her slaves as a form of punishment or control.
- Medical Experiments: Some reports suggest that LaLaurie conducted medical experiments on her slaves without anesthesia in the name of scientific curiosity. This caused great physical pain and psychological distress.
- Neglect: Slaves in her care were often denied necessities like food, water, and medical care, leading to malnutrition, illness, and even death.
Learning about Madam Lalaurie’s brutal treatment of slaves revealed her sadistic nature. I thought about all my recent learnings about personality disorders and the secret lives people live. The other day I was exploring powerful men and sexual scandals. From sex with the secretary to sex with minors, the list keeps growing in this era of knowledge. Why do these powerful men take advantage of those below them? How did Madam Lalaurie manage to get away with her crimes over the years and still maintain her place as a socialite in society?
What is it that causes a person to take advantage of an already disadvantaged person?
The behaviour of some Nigerian adults towards nannies resembles the motivation of Madame LaLaurie’s cruelty toward her slaves. These people subject their nannies to disrespect, physical abuse, and emotional torment. Sometimes mother and father seem to compete with who can be most cruel to the nanny/domentic help. It depicts the same sadistic nature that drove Madam Lalaurie’s actions.
They don’t have the opportunity to evolve into Madam Lalaurie is the reason many of them haven't become serial killers.
The irony is, that these maltreated nannies are the ones who look after the children of the house.
Diary Of A Nigerian Nanny —Some Nigerian Nanny Stories Are Unbelievable
I asked my nanny if she would write a ‘Diary of a Nigerian Nanny’ book. Her stories were incredible and sometimes deeply troubling. At 11 she already had experiences no child should have. And it continued until she was about 15 when she ran into the streets.
She would work as a nanny for 2 more families with abusive behaviour from husband, wife, and children in some cases, before deciding to give up on nannying and go in a different career direction.
At 25, she was telling me those stories like it happened to someone else.
She is creating a new life for herself and positioning herself to help nannies stuck in abuse they cannot talk about.
One of the reasons people treat nannies brutally is because they have sadistic traits they cannot express in other ways. When I started understanding shadow work, I knew it was important to learn and integrate my dark aspects rather than hide them and present a good-girl persona all the time.
A lot of people do not know about their shadows. They cannot express or accept that they are capable of evil and have displayed this capacity more times than they care to admit.
When the shadow aspects remain suppressed, they show up in other sadistic ways like extreme cruelty toward others, especially those who cannot fight/speak for themselves.
If you are somebody who bullies, belittles, batters and emotionally abuses nannies and helps, consider why you do this. Do you even know?
Modern-Day Slavery By Descendants of Slaves
While we do not have Nanny laws here in Nigeria, I wonder if it would mean anything if we did.
It’s hard to know the African persons who are descendants of slaves and those who aren’t. I have never really considered what it means to be a slave or how my ancestors experienced slavery. It always sounded like a tale, one that my mind could not fathom.
As I continued to expose my mind to more historical material, I realized humans have committed the worst atrocities against fellow humans. It makes sense that some are capable of great torture and even murder of those who work for and make life easier for them.
I don’t know that there is a cure for this hidden-in-plain-sight modern-day slavery. I do know that the mind can go to extremes and it can be deprived. Beating another person until their skin peels or hitting them in the head until they faint, starving them and constantly belittling or cursing them have many negative effects on the nannies.
It’s not hard to imagine that Madam Lalaurie did not see her slaves as human beings. In the 19th century, slavery was legal in many parts of the United States, including Louisiana where Madam Lalaurie lived. Slavery laws generally allowed slave owners control over their slaves, including the right to buy, sell, and punish them as they saw fit.
Madam Lalaurie’s treatment of her slaves was extreme even by the standards of the time.
While we do not have Nanny laws here in Nigeria, I wonder if it would mean anything if we did. These people who maltreat their nannies are modern-day slave owners who do not see these nannies as human beings worthy of dignity and respect.
Conclusion:
This post serves as a reminder of the pervasive nature of modern-day slavery.
If you mistreat nannies, you may be expressing repressed sadistic tendencies, and projecting your shadow onto vulnerable individuals.
By understanding and addressing your shadow, you can work towards a more compassionate way of being.
May the force be with you
E.
