Nicki Minaj Becomes First Female Rapper To Address United Nations

American rapper, Onika Maraj-Petty, popularly known as Nicki Minaj, has become the first female rapper to address a United Nations (UN) forum.

Minaj spoke on Tuesday at an event organised in New York by the United States Mission to the United Nations.

In her address, aired on the official YouTube channel of the US Mission to the UN, Minaj said, “Back in way too many places… in Nigeria, Christians are being targeted, driven from their homes and killed. Churches have been burned, families have been torn apart, and entire communities live in fear constantly simply because of how they pray.”

She added that the crisis required immediate global attention, saying, “Sadly, this problem is not only a growing problem in Nigeria but also in so many other countries across the world and it demands urgent action.”

Minaj stressed that her call for Christian protection should not be misinterpreted as taking sides.

She said, “Protecting Christians in Nigeria is not about taking sides or dividing people. It is about uniting humanity. Nigeria is a beautiful nation with deep faith traditions and lots of beautiful Barbz that I can’t wait to see.”

Speaking on repeated attacks on places of worship, she noted, “When one’s church, mosque, or place of worship is destroyed, everyone’s heart should break just a little bit. And the foundation of the United Nations, with its core mandate to ensure peace and security, should shake.”

She also praised interfaith and peace advocates at the event. Minaj said, “I am inspired by their work to build interfaith ties, to see the humanity across the lines which might divide us, and to fight for security and liberty for all those who pray. I hope it will encourage deepened solidarity for us to urgently work together to ensure every person can enjoy the right to believe, to worship, and to live in peace… Barbz.”

Minaj’s comments came weeks after United States President Donald Trump threatened military action against terrorists in Nigeria if the killing of Christians continued.

Trump had recently listed Nigeria among “Countries of Particular Concern”.

On the same Tuesday, the police confirmed that two worshippers were killed during an attack on a church in Kwara State, while 25 schoolgirls were abducted in Kebbi State. Two of the girls later escaped, and a teacher and a security guard, both Muslims, were also killed in the incident.

United States Congressman Mike Waltz, who also spoke at the UN forum, commended Minaj for “leveraging her massive platform to spotlight the atrocities against Christians in Nigeria”.

Meanwhile, President Bola Tinubu said on Wednesday that the abduction of 25 schoolgirls in Kebbi State and the killing of Brigadier General Musa Uba and other soldiers in Borno State had left him depressed.