LAGOS, Nigeria –The Makoko slum floats on the murky lagoon that separates mainland Nigeria from the island that gave birth to its largest city, a permanent haze of smoke rising from homes built on timber stilts.

For some, Makoko provides an escape from the overcrowded neighborhoods of Lagos, a city of millions where families crowd into one-room apartments or sleep soundly in unfinished buildings. Others view the slum as an eyesore where the 100,000 residents dump trash, excrement and everything else into the brackish waters.

A government-led eviction last week that saw men in speedboats destroy homes with machetes there left about 3,000 people homeless and raised new fears among activists that authorities may try to wipe the community out entirely. While the government has pulled back from its demolishing effort, its own notice suggests it wants the entire community gone.