Multiculturalism as Exclusion: Religious Identity and Displacement Urbanization in Lagos

Abstract

Executive Summary

This paper examines the experiences of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from northern Nigeria who have resettled in Lagos, introducing the concept of displacement urbanization to describe how protracted displacement reshapes the city. Drawing on multi-sited ethnography, surveys, and life-history interviews, the study shows that religious identity is the central determinant of land access, legitimacy, and protection. Christian IDPs, whose displacement is widely recognized as a consequence of Islamist violence, benefit from church networks and favorable public perception, while Muslim IDPs face layered exclusion, stigmatized both by host communities and Lagos-based Islamic institutions.

The findings reveal that multiculturalism in Lagos functions less as a framework of inclusion than as a sorting mechanism that legitimizes inequality. Rather than dismantling divisions, it embeds ethno-religious mistrust and securitized framings into urban governance, leaving IDPs structurally invisible in planning and humanitarian frameworks.

Policy must shift from denial to inclusion. Federal and state authorities should reform land governance to embed informal tenure within protective frameworks, while Lagos must integrate IDP communities into planning and service delivery. Humanitarian and religious actors should develop faith-equitable systems that counteract mistrust and strengthen social cohesion. Recognizing displacement urbanization as part of Lagos’s urban future is critical for building inclusive and durable solutions.