SO&U women’s day campaign puts Nigerian parenting style in retrospect 

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Mumu Duster_SOU

Brain Resetter_SOU

Alignment Tool

Head Straightener_SOU

Although several individuals adopt different parenting styles to discipline their children, for many millennials in Nigeria, the international women’s day creative unveiled by SO&U, a marketing communications company based in Lagos, reminisces a parenting style that defies ages.

Focusing on disciplinary measures adopted by Nigerian parents, the creative works include the broom coded as “Mumu Duster” – :introduced when a child is making a mess everywhere and needs to be reminded who the real boss of the house is”, the spatula described as “Alignment tool” –“deployed when a child has brought unforgivable level of disgrace to the family”; or the “Brain Resetter” – konk or knock, “launched immediately a child veered off common sense …guaranteed to make the message appear in 3D”.

A comparison with modern-day disciplinary measures shows that giving children time-outs as a form of punishment for inappropriate behaviour, the Alignment tool and Brain Resetter would have done a faster hardware reset, while the ‘Head Straightener’ may have been replaced by a point system where privileges are based on behaviour.

While modern parenting appears more lenient, making some to have argued that the creative works reinforce child abuse, for those who had a first-hand experience of some of the tools, they were reminders of the premium an African parent places on respect and culture, especially in making sure that children are well-behaved and grow into responsible adults.

Printed on seemingly faded material, thus, bringing back old memories when mothers held sway over the lives of many millennials, the nostalgia leaves a lasting impression on a society that is known for how frequently its trends change.

Nonetheless, the campaign shows a part of Nigerian parenting style that reflects being tough on children and yet ensuring that parents correct their children with love.