Nigeria has a long history of festivals that restrict women in the name of culture. The Oro Festival in Yoruba communities requires women and non-initiates to stay indoors while men conduct sacred rites publicly. The Agemo Festival in Ijebuland limits women from following masked processions.

Igbo masquerade festivals like Omabe and Mmanwu have historically barred women from key rituals entirely. None of these were necessarily violent in their original form, but they all reflect the same underlying pattern - women’s presence and movement being controlled under the cover of tradition. These practices have faced growing criticism over the years, with many Nigerians arguing that culture should never be used as a shield for inequality. The Ozoro incident did not come from nowhere. Viral videos from the Ozoro Festival in Delta State showed women being harassed and sexually assaulted during the event. The footage caused immediate national outrage. The Delta State Government responded by condemning the attacks as barbaric and making clear that no cultural practice can justify violence against women.

The Nigeria Police Force in Delta State moved quickly, arresting multiple suspects connected to the assaults - including community organisers. Those arrests are significant. It is also worth noting that not all Nigerian festivals treat women this way. The Gèlèdé Festival, for example, specifically celebrates women’s spiritual power and social contributions - proof that tradition can uplift rather than suppress. The Ozoro situation is not inevitable. Culture is worth preserving. Heritage matters. But culture that harms people - especially women - is not culture worth defending. The arrests in Delta State are a step in the right direction, but arrests alone do not fix the deeper problem. So, where do we draw the line between preserving tradition and protecting people? The conversation Nigeria needs to have about culture and women’s safety is long overdue. Ozoro just made it impossible to avoid.