If History is Anything to go by, 2022 is Going to be a Precarious Year for Kenya

Electoral violence therefore, right from the beginning, was a top-bottom collaboration between powerful politicians protecting their political prospects and people in the grassroots seeking redress for historical grievances. Both of these aspects are necessary for massive electoral violence to break out: without the patronage of politicians, perpetrators would lack the funds, training and protection necessary to carry out large-scale attacks. Without grievances to exploit, politicians would lack the basis to convince communities to attack people who have lived among them for decades.

This word “Fundi”

In many Bantu languages this word fundi exists. It usually means a master, a guru of some sort. Someone who has learned the art of whatever it is they are a fundi of (maybe if we had created the education system degrees would be called “fundi of medicine”). The internet is a mess when it comes to finding the etymology of non English words. Urban dictionary guy says that the word fundi comes from the Turkish word funda, which translates to healthier. Other sources (also urban dictionary) on the internet tie it to the Nguni word umfundusi, meaning teacher – I prefer this definition.

Twitter Bans Political Advertising but will that Help?

While Twitter seems to have the idea, as stated earlier, this just moves the incentive to influencers, who will charge top shilling for the platform they now offer. Facebook, on the other hand, seems to have made it clear – top budget wins the day on any of their platforms, again leaving the end user vulnerable.

The Citizens Know Best

“In the colonial countries, the spirit of indulgence is dominant at the core of the bourgeoisie; and this is because the national bourgeoisie identifies itself with the Western bourgeoisie, from whom it has learnt its lessons. It follows the Western bourgeoisie along its path of negation and decadence without ever having emulated it in its

Does the State Even Listen?

On 28th July 2016 the central bank issued a statement on the adverse consequences of capping rates which included consequences like “inefficiencies in the credit market, credit rationing, the promotion of informal lending and undermining the effectiveness of monetary policy.” A few days later, after the rate caps became law, the bank had “nothing to say on the matter.”

Making Kenya Work for Us

“Some of the kids only write about being deaf, others make a joke, other make a mention, some ignore the topic altogether. Not too different from the choices poets make anywhere else with gender or skin colour.” Sign language, Reves If there’s one thing we know about the colonial era is that it did a

When unlearning is an art

The art of unlearning by Chief Nyamweya charts the winding path taken by one Gituma in his bid to cling to his own creative voice while still trying to make something bigger than him. The 112 page, beautifully illustrated graphic novel is packed with vivid imagery and philosophy as his three mysterious teachers hand him the key to unlocking the vault within his own mind.

Build the School at Lenana, then do More

The wake of the tragedy at Precious Talents Academy School in Nairobi was like the wake of any other tragedy in the country. Like the death of Ken Okoth suddenly brought cancer to the forefront of discussions for all of 2 hours (don’t @ me. It might have been 3) so did this tragedy call our attention to the lack of infrastructure in the country. Politicians, as they invariably do, came out with their guns (figuratively) blazing and MP John Kiarie noted that the prestigious schools with over 200 acres of land could easily donated an acre or two to develop a primary school for the area.

I pity the talent

“Life is cheap here, but wisdom is free.” Knaan, What’s Hardcore It was August this year that the Kenya Morans basketball team posted a video online talking about how they haven’t been paid despite being in the quarterfinals of the FIBA AfroBaesket Women Championship. The Kenya 7s team is yet to be paid for last

Nothing to write anywhere about

Despite Macdonald Mariga being cleared to run in the Kibra by-election, Tob Cohen’s thrilling murder, dreadlocks being made legal in schools(thus raising the hijab question) and the various electoral shenanigains, there is nothing to write about in the news this week. There is nothing to write about because there is nothing inherently new about what has happened. And whatever you want to read(or will be written) about any given issue would be an articulation of what you already know and agree/disagree with.

Learning to Share

I’d like to take this argument a step further and ask – how many times do you refuse to see the forest of truth for the trees? We’ve heard the age old advice – avoid fake news. But what seems to be even more urgent is to now avoid news that you agree with too deeply. News that has been tailored to confirm and affirm everything that you believe in. When this happens you must ask yourself “why?” “What am I failing to see? What other perspective exists to this story?”

Bridging Public Trust

Nation building is a dance of sorts. It is impossible for the state to move forward with their plans without some form of permission, or at least complacence, from the citizenry. And, because of the scale of the project, it is impossible for it to be run like a campus group assignment. There must be some order, some selected representatives who are trusted to carry their people’s message for dialogue to occur on a national level, aligning goals, dreams and aspirations

Give us your data – or else

And maybe rather than issuing threats at that big volume this is the work that the government should be focusing on. Building public trust and finding a way to start working in tandem with the Kenyan people rather than working at loggerheads with us. To start from understanding why the lack of public trust exists and communicating from a standpoint that understands this. So far it seems like the government is not particularly concerned in creating a situation where the citizens are ever on its side. Rather citizens are dragged along as unwilling participants on whichever initiative the government decides is valid

Down River Road

Down river road promises to be the bus for the people who are looking to get a taste of arts and literature that is born of the people – of art that occurs rather than is occurred. Like reading about Sir Owi’s rise in the ranks of the music industry or letting M K Angwenyi take you to places where you can no longer see.

Viva la Capitalism!

Like arguing with a christian set on converting you, it is not a two sided conversation. Rather it becomes a class condescension that is quick to categorise and place one’s problems in these “oppression boxes” instead of listen to see what solutions may present themselves – if any. And because the solutions themselves are often messy. It’s often more complicated than a twitter thread.

Betting, the Consumer & the State

Personally, my reasons for restraint in joining the risky business have little to do with economics and more to do with timidity—and, of course, my life-long aversion to sports. In fact, of the many questions I grapple with concerning sports gambling, admittedly few are statistical, some are moral, most are contemplative. Having of a mind unsharpened by the adrenalines common to risk and sport doesn’t incline one much to reportage. I recently quizzed my risk-loving friend on whether he had considered the possibility that the European Premier League, which he follows and punts religiously for, might be a storyline-driven, choreographed sham that is planned and staged by writers like the WWE. “Boss, how sure are you that you won’t lose your money should this whole thing turn out to be a scripted sham?” I asked. He turned to me, eyes squint bewildered by my regretless display of stupidity, and immediately relieved me of my joint.

Do we like the new look?

And, in being forced to bear this burden, we are the labourers that carry the cost. Increasingly I find it important to ask – are we happy with the changes being made? Do we believe that they are good changes in the larger picture? Has the experience of being a Kenyan got better or worse with the changing faces of a nation?

The beatings will continue until morale improves

That 8-4-4 has an overemphasis on a certain type of knowledge and has led to a devaluing of more technical and practical oriented subjects is not necessarily a new thought. And this focus not only has an effect on how people are educated but on what kind of people we create in society. It affects their biases and ambitions.

Ergo, Ego: On the Division of Revenue Bill

Budgeting seems to be an extremely practical question. Moving money from here affects there and moving money from there affects somewhere else – and it’s not like the country has been doing fantastically anyway with Henry Rotich’s latest budget talk showing that about 61% of the country’s 2019-2020 budget going to servicing debt.

Ethics and Perspectives

“And I’m the asshole in the room?” Don Cheadle (as Miles Davis) Miles Ahead, a movie on the life and times of Miles Davis, opens up on a moody Miles Davis locked up in his house, listening to session tapes and nostalgic on what is described as past glory. It is 1964, five years after

Twisted fates: On the Complications of Legacy

Legacy is complicated and its pursuit has been known to bend and break even the strongest of us. When you’ve been pursuing legacy it’s easy to ignore the needs of the few for the larger picture. And, as Thanos showed us, sometimes the larger picture doesn’t justify the immediate action.

To African Excellence and Beyond

Tetu Shani’s Africa Sun is nothing short of brilliant. A testament to African excellence through ambition and hard work, the energy he creates is electrifying. a jam, a bop, a something to play in your headphones all the way on loud as you head to do something challenging. And that’s all there is to say about this.

But there’s some more to say about some other things.

Hashtag Influenced

By using influencers and content creators, the ads feel more innocent and less intrusive but the cyberspace as a whole has been turned into a market where sponsored content gets more visibility and you almost never get to see anything that has no money spent on it.

Creating Better Escapes at the Book Bunk

“We imagine that public libraries can be steered to become more than just repositories, acting as sites of knowledge production, shared experiences, cultural leadership and information exchange. We see them as sites of heritage, public art and memory. Our formation as an entity is inspired by this core belief – that our shared spaces are

A Victory for the Players

And let’s remember, that it is the playing unit that bears the brunt of the public outcry and consequences. We’ve seen quality coaches sacked for political matters with no back up plan in sight, pre-season training schedules have been torn up and key players suspended because they didn’t salute at the right people. The management of rugby 7s seems to be about everything else except what goes on during the 14 minutes in the 100 by 70 grid.

Why can’t we end corruption?

This is the question that Africog tries to go into with their latest report State Capture, Inside Kenya’s Inability to Fight Corruption –(available for download here). The report looks at major corruption scandals that the three presidents have faced, the steps they have taken to counter them, and how these steps have affected the general environment in Kenya.

All for a cup of coffee

In 2016, Nyeri based Gikanda Coffee pursued these Africanisms and bought 30 bags of clean coffee to be processed and packaged for sale locally. A 50KG bag cost the cooperative KES 18,000 making the total investment worth about half a million shillings (before processing, packaging or marketing). As of August 2018 500KG (of 1.5 tonnes) had expired in their stores.

Semenya, Imali and women who run

A lot of people are struggling with how to handle the new information, where to place it in their memory categories and how to properly pronoun people. What I hope, besides that Kenya could stand behind it’s athletes, is that maybe this opens up the conversation a step further – beyond Ze labeled bathrooms.

Reading the Dragonfly Sea

In The Dragonfly Sea, Owuor centers the margin. The Kenya in this story is the Swahili Coast, it is Pate, it is Muhidin when he leaves Pate to “go to Kenya” and, while in Nairobi, is captured and interrogated as a terror suspect for being Muslim, hailing from the north coast, and, really, not being Kenyan enough. Each character, from Teacher Ruolan, Ayaana’s subtly racist Mandarin instructor, to Nioreg, the Congolese widower hired to be the ship’s security detail en route to China, is delicately crafted, a victim of something, their backstories a map of brokenness and the resulting plot simply points where these intersect.

Getting Devolution Right

If there was ever a silver bullet that was supposed to save Kenya from wallowing in whatever the news decides we will wallow in every week it is devolution. Having suffered under the thumb of extreme centralization of resources (one big pot to steal from) we hoped that devolution would ensure two things. First, it

Huduma kwa Wengine

It’s as if Raila’s endorsement of the Huduma number as loudly as it has happened has put the final nail in the coffin as to whether he is trustworthy. Say what you will about it, but the handshake has changed (or perhaps just cast a different light) on the politic in Kenya. With the leader

Debt, Opportunity Cost or Money Lost?

And, given the winds of the global politic, it is only likely that this trend is set to rise as consumers continue to make the link between local shareholding and wealth redistribution.

Invisible to everything but blame

This idea that there’s a certain level of productivity we must achieve to “deserve” certain things is a dangerous and dehumanizing one that steers the conversation away from the one we need to be having.

Why Kenyan Journalists Must Tell Stories of Sexual Abuse Better

by Muturi Njeri I recently read a story in the Daily Nation that infuriated and disappointed me. This is not news though—more like the norm for any reader of the Kenyan newspaper. What was uniquely heart-breaking about this story was the way it was reported. The story by Mohamed Ahmed entitled Girl gives baby away

How Long will Africa be Rising?

But many times it feels like we stubbornly place ourselves in this space of hatuna uwezo and insist that it is the case, falling on more expensive less forward thinking solutions to plug temporary stopgaps. Then, after tiring ourselves out by pursuing temporary solutions, we turn around exhausted and throw our hands in frustration delivering “stern talk” rather than results.

Thinking of Kintu

by Faith Linyonyi “ humanity was cursed anyway. The mind was a curse: its ability to go back in time to regret and to hop into the future to hope and worry was not a blessing” – Jennifer Makumbi, Kintu Kintu by Jeniffer Makumbi is an epic novel that follows a Buganda leader, Kintu Kidda,

Cheza na Nare

“New position, new position, new position every time I come in…” There’s something about this song by Ethic Entertainment that encapsulates everything I like about urban nairobi music. The group – Reckless, Swat, Zilla and Seska – rose to fame with lamba lolo, a term that spread almost as fast as their music. Maybe it’s

Considering the Public in Policy

A friend of mine recently quit their job in policy lamenting that it was a waste of time. Not because policy is a waste of time but because “policies in Kenya are not guided by anything other than the whims of the people in power.” Recently, reading about the idea to have Kenya Airways take

Another Essay on Poverty

There’s a story about three blind men trying to identify an unknown animal. Having no sight for their benefit they had to use touch. One man, touching the animal’s trunk, decided it must be a thick snake. The second man touched the animal’s legs and decided it must be a tree trunk. The third touched

Faith Based Censorship – the cliche. (Or, a case for free expression)

It is not merely the fact that Ezekiel Mutua or anyone else finds the gay existence to be a disgusting one in society—everyone reserves the right to find and express disgust in whatever they wish

Icarus tales: Power and Proximity in Kenya: Part 2

No politician in history used this agency relationship as cunningly and effectively as former President Daniel Arap Moi.

Icarus tales: Power and Proximity in Kenya: Part 1

He might be a man of many firsts but Matiangi is definitely not the first ‘fixer in chief’ we have seen in our history as a country.

Aint nothing but a hair thing

And in our fear, we lash out and in their pain they retaliate. And yesterday becomes today becomes tomorrow – again.

How does it end?

Since 1975 there have been about 350 attacks on Kenyan soil. The Elephant 1998 was the first time knew of a thing called a terror. My mother, my sister, my aunt and I were heading home along Haile Selassie Avenue when there was an explosion behind us. I don’t remember much after that. My aunt

Anything’s Possible. The Millenial Conundrum

“Every generation must recognize and embrace the task it is peculiarly designed by history and by providence to perform.” ― Chinua Achebe, There Was a Country: A Personal History of Biafra It’s hard to be a millennial and not navel-gaze on the state of millenials. Perhaps the proliferation of social media has made us more

Whither Culture?

“Lamu elders are now worried that the county’s cultural heritage and traditions could get extinct if urgent measures are not put in place to preserve them. Lamu Council of Elders Chairman Shariff Kambaa told the Nation on Sunday that there has been continued proliferation of western cultures into Lamu in recent days, a move which

Winging it with Blinky

by April Zhu “Everybody’s Just Winging It And Other Fly Tales” sounds like the title of a picture book for kids in their twenties and thirties. If there’s a moral to this story, it’s to stop feeling like an imposter. Trust the process. Trust your own hard work. “Blinky” Bill Sellanga’s first solo album is an anthem

Let them eat maize

Kenya is headed for a bumper maize harvest even as farmers in the North Rift region struggle to sell their last season’s crop.  Business Daily 14th August 2018 You only need to look up to know that maize is one of the key foods consumed in the country. Those of us who studied GHC (now

Liberty and Demagoguery for all

“People should stop panicking about my traversing the country saying it is 2022 campaigns, I’m yet to start my campaigns because when I start they will be in for a rude shock” William S. Ruto, Vice President “Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka now says he will be Kenya’s next president after Uhuru Kenyatta.” I’ll be the

Government now, questions later

“Kenya’s ban on plastic bags went into effect on August 28, with offenders subject to serious fines or jail time. The ban covers the use, importation, or manufacture of plastic bags. Although it was passed in February, the new ban didn’t go into effect until this month so that Kenyan consumers would have the chance

Foreign Cities, Local Talent

“The European Union, or a body like the World Bank, should build and run cities in Africa in order to boost job creation and development on the continent, Germany’s Minister for Africa, Gunter Nooke, told the BBC in an interview in which he outlined his thinking on how to stem migration to Europe.  This will

Trusting that Kenya will Kenya

“Fresh produce growers are expected to be the main beneficiaries of trade deals that President Uhuru Kenyatta will sign on his visit to China next month.”  Farmers set to reap big from China trade deals  “Juzi mheshimiwa rais ameenda China amefungua soko, sasa tukona mkatgaba maalum ya soko ya kuuza mali yetu China. Na sisis

Immigration and Identity: Comparing the Kenyan and European Mindset

by anonymous As a Kenyan citizen, only two or three generations removed from independence, the memories of colonialism are far deeper than the pages on history books. The stories of heroes, traitors, the heroes who became traitors and the trauma that the colonizers wantonly imposed on a free people are very much alive in what

And we continue to Kenya

“In this room I was born. And I knew I was in the wrong place” Spaces, Arkaye Kierulf  It hit me yesterday that I have been, for a long time, uncomfortable with my identity as a Kikuyu man and what comes with it. Because that identity has been translated to me as an abuser, as

Towards Realising Affordable Housing in Kenya

by Mukami Githagui Housing is a fundamental human need. With the rising cost of inflation and other economic drivers making life very expensive, President Uhuru’s focus in affordable housing is a much welcome reprieve. In 2017 the President launched “The Big Four” agenda for economic development in Kenya, focusing onfood and nutrition security, manufacturing, affordable healthcare

Why private prisons are not the answer

“It establishes the Kenya Prisons Enterprise Corporation, a State Corporation, which is mandated to expand the scope of the prisons work programs with the aim of unlocking the revenue potential of the prisons industry and ultimately turn it into a reformative and financially self-sustaining entity.”  New corporation to unlock revenue potential of Prisons You don’t

Protecting our Labour

At the end of the day a country is build on the backs of labour. Policy and governance are tools towards the creation of a labour enabling environment from which the people can find a way to maximize the fruit of their labour. In this way, the organisation of labour cannot be divorced from organized

Creating hope (or, when rage becomes the norm)

“You will begin to forgive when you understand the many ways in which the world has killed those who try to survive it.” Where it hurts “We’re not evolving emotional filters fast enough to deal with the efficiency with which bad news now reaches us” Teju cole It’s easy to lose hope these days. Especially

Rafiki – A Kenyan Love Story

by Sheena M I arrived about 20 minutes early, and already there was a large gathering waiting to see Rafiki. The moment I walked into the waiting area at Prestige Plaza cinemas, I felt the stares. We were all sizing each other up. Who are you? Do I know you? Are you a threat? Do

Falling Stories

You cannot see it but the jacaranda trees are flowering each blossom an insurgent against the sameness of life Soon the streets will be a revolution of colour suffused with a tangible tenderness Fight, grandma, fight It’s worth the struggle to witness next season’s lilac uprising.   Phyllis Muthoni   It’s September and the Jacarandas

When survival is the only option

Ed’s note: On the eve of publishing this piece the governor of Nairobi found 12 bodies of infants hidden in boxes in Pumwani hospital.  Rationally, I think it’s more profitable for this country if I stay breathing. I was – until recently – gainfully employed. A large chunk of that salary went to various government

Odds on Stocks

“We are doing these things because, if you look at the budget for this year, revenue- in the best scenario is going to be about 1.3 trillion shillings… on your budget, the first claim to budget interest – 400 billion, salaries close to 500 billion, pensions 100 billion – that’s a trillion. You now have

The Devil is in the Data

by Robert Munuku Africa has been the hub of a rich cocktail of resources from potent extractive mineral deposits to diverse tourism-attracting flora and fauna coupled with tropical climate that supports agriculture – the backbone of many Sub-Saharan African economies. Many of these economies are making major gains in growth bolstered by substantial development in

Changing Landscapes

“The thing about saying something is happening is that change comes to everyone in its own time. And so to say that something is happening is to forget the millions that it is yet to happen to. It is to forget those who will die before that thing happens. And if the thing that was

Democracy and Development

The simplest definition of democracy is one given by Abraham Lincoln, a former president of the USA: democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people. It is all about the people. It sounds better than other forms of government, such as monarchy, in which a single family rules from generation

Kenya’s Media Problem

by Robert Munuku When I turn on the television, I am not sure whether I am watching the news or a travesty of the same in the name of a glorified show of beautiful men and women dressed up in dashing tunics and layers of make-up smiling before our screens telling us what we should

Loving in mono – dreaming in stereo

“I surrender this isn’t love it’s torture”  Hold me down Love, or ideas of what love can be, has the ability to bring us to our knees. With our backs against the wall and confronted by the harsh truth that no one is subject to your will – that illusions of control are just that.

Extrajudicial Killings

On 7th July 2018, the Social Justice Centres Working Group, which consists groups from Mathare, Dandora, Kayole, Mukuru, Kibra, Kamukunji and Githurai, held the Saba Saba March for Our Lives. The demand? An end to extrajudicial killings, investigations into the ones that have occurred, and most importantly, justice for those killed. According to the Who

When something has to give (or, towards hope)

“The system adopted in Kenya is African Socialism, but the characteristics of the system and the economic mechanisms it implies have never been spelled out fully in an agreed form.” Sessional Paper No 10 of 1965, Part I, 6 “There are two African traditions which form an essential basis for African Socialism—political democracy and mutual

Are Kenyans Over-represented?

Before we passed the 2010 constitution, we voted for the president, and members of parliament for our respective constituencies. After 2010, a Kenyan voter now has to elect the president and their deputy (on one ticket), the governor and the senator for their county, the woman representative for their county, the Member of Parliament for their

Finding the unsaid

“Things aren’t all so tangible and sayable as people would usually have us believe; most experiences are unsayable, they happen in a space that no word has ever entered, and more unsayable than all other things are works of art, those mysterious existences, whose life endures beside our own small, transitory life” Rainer Maria Rilke,

Blockchain Technology and its Role in Real Estate Transactions

by Jeff Kinuthia A blockchain is a digital database or ledger distributed across a network of computers which is protected by coding the data to prevent editing and removal, and blockchain technology is the underlying application that enables all of this. Importantly, a blockchain records and stores all the transactions that occur within the network,

The Problem With Lifestyle Audits

Uhuru Kenyatta recently announced that all government officials and their families would undergo a lifestyle audit as part of his war on corruption, starting in July 2018. This would include him and his deputy, William Ruto. Those found guilty of corruption would be sent to jail regardless of their status, and he would not intervene,

Social Shifts That Mark the Present State of Kenya

by Wangari Kibanya Conversations around the word millennial make me wonder, why would we need to contextualize our social and economic shifts from a very US American lens yet our nation is only 53 years old and did not undergo some of the shifts that mark the demographic markers on that end? What happens when

The Dynamics of Corruption in Kenya

by Robert Munuku It is expected for governments to be corrupt. This is a reality, not a vindication – of course corruption is wrong. But at the very least no one gets a heart-attack from surprise upon hearing that government is corrupt. The most injurious things are those that are an unexpected, because they go unseen

A Health Agenda in Jeopardy

by Dr. Sakulen A. Hargura Universal health care is a noble idea that is long overdue. For it to bear fruits and build a permanent home in our system, certain fundamental pillars that must be erected. The most important are sound healthcare policies, and adequate expertise to execute the plan contained in those policies. Kenya

Down came the market

“The curio shops near the Sarit Centre in Westlands will be demolished next week.” Curio shops in westlands to be demolished, The Star, Feb 1 2016 It was not until May 10th2018 that the curio shops in Westlands were demolished. On the day of the demolition roads were closed and the internet was abuzz with

Towards a Democratic Internet

The web (and the rest of the internet) has become a space where citizens come to chat, share ideas, critique the government and explore ways in which Kenya can function better for its citizens. It is a space where one is sure to find the most robust discussions about what it means to be a

Situating Ourselves

“By saying, this is how the world sees me. This is what is expected of me” Finding your power “When bodies break it is not a moment but a culmination. Bodies that break tend to have been pulled, stretched twisted and torn. Bodies that break do not just break.” What’s in a name   We

The Kenyan Middle Class

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) recently announced that it would begin licensing cooking gas firms to operate piped gas systems in residential areas. This would mostly make business sense in gated communities and flats, where Kenya’s middle class tends to reside. This led me to think about our middle class. The middle class is the

Finding your Power

“Perhaps now it becomes clearer that when we speak of “reclaiming our power” we are not necessarily talking about moving in opposition to something, rather than moving towards actualization of our own will.” In pursuit of power But power is an intangible thing. To try to see it/touch it/discover it is to watch it dissolve.

Bridging The Gap

Human beings struggle with confirmation bias – we easily accept information that confirms our already existent beliefs while rejecting that which does not. This is why no amount of throwing facts at someone who you think or know is wrong will change their minds. They just tend to reject the information you gave them, give

Writing Sunsets

Suppose I wanted to write about a sunset. How would I do that? Would I begin by describing the colours? The smell? The sounds? I ask because I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how to start this essay and the most apparent way was to write about a sunset. But how would one

Kenya’s Perpetual Drought

We suffer from a range of disasters as a country: flooding, fire tragedies, terrorism, corruption, diseases and epidemics, and drought – these reduce our quality of life, destroy our infrastructure, disrupt our economy, and cause a diversion of resources intended for other things. They also ensure that we remain underdeveloped. Our country is particularly drought

In Pursuit of Power

What is power? I ask because we need to look closely at this thing that we spend a lot of time assuming we all understand. We say that people have power of others and what do we mean? One could say power is the ability to allocate resources (financial, emotional, opportunities). Perhaps it is the

Why Kenyans Should Worry Even More About Facebook

Facebook has recently found itself in hot water after a whistle-blower came out to talk about how Cambridge Analytica, a firm associated with both Uhuru Kenyatta’s and Donald Trump’s elections, mined the data of about 50 million users of the platform and used it to target them with often divisive political messaging. This is far

Why We Should #Repeal162

by Elizabeth Kabari You may have seen the hashtag #Repeal162 on your social media feeds recently. Some of you are sure that it concerns you; others are sure that it doesn’t. However, it should concern everyone because it is a human rights issue, and the denial of rights for one is a denial of rights

The Future is a Handshake Away

Having the perfect handshake is one of those things we are taught to obsess about. How we shake hands reveals who we are. Handshakes are very political. Hands themselves are not. Hands simply carry out the will of the mind, express what has been felt. Perhaps this why handshakes are seen this way – hands,

Let Them Play Golf

While handing the flag to the Kenyan national boys and girls golf team, which was heading to Casablanca for the All Africa Junior Golf Championship, Uhuru Kenyatta said he wanted golf introduced in public schools as a way of developing the sport. He urged the ministries of Sports and Heritage, Education and Interior to finalize

Under the Same Light

And, as the winds of change continue sweeping across the continent, we continue to push ourselves to find more spaces within which we can look at ourselves critically. The more we go into the act of realizing our own freedoms, the more important the question of creating space for each other becomes. And, as this

The Elephant in Kenya’s Room

We, the people of Kenya, claim to recognize the aspirations of all Kenyans for a government based on the essential values of human rights, equality, freedom, democracy, social justice and the rule of law. We also claim to promote the values that underlie an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality, equity and

Remembering Freedom

“We will need writers who can remember freedom.” Ursula le Guin It’s hard to hold today’s Kenya in isolation. As the world continues to shape itself, we seem to continue to grasp towards our place within it. As the winds of decolonization, identity and freedom sweep across, so we find ourselves poised to grow. And

The Makings of a Fascist State

Kenya is now in the unique position of having two “presidents” – Uhuru Kenyatta, the current head of state, and Raila Odinga, the self-declared people’s president. Raila Odinga was sworn in at Uhuru Park on 30th January 2018 in the presence of massive crowds. It was an an oddly peaceful event because the police were

Devolution and The Shisha Ban

by Elizabeth Kabari On 28th December 2017, the Public Health (Control of Shisha Smoking) Rules were gazetted and came into force. These rules effectively banned the manufacture, importation, sale, and use of shisha by criminalising these acts. Anyone found doing any of the above shall, upon conviction, be liable to pay a fine of not

How is This Even a Discussion?

“Disposability is a long word. It speaks about the value of an object within a certain space. Say, for example, the wrapper of the chewing gum that you just had. That is very disposable. Unless  you collect chewing gum wrappers. The idea of disposability of people within a community works the same way. How can

What Next For Nairobi?

On January 12th 2018, just a day after he had spirited battles with Nairobians online, and just after he impounded cows and asked us what to do with them on Twitter, Polycarp Igathe resigned. He had served as Nairobi’s Deputy Governor for less than six months. He said, once again on Twitter, “Dear Nairobians, it

Something is Happening

The thing about saying something is happening is that change comes to everyone in its own time. And so to say that something is happening is to forget the millions that it is yet to happen to. It is to forget those who will die before that thing happens. And if the thing that was

Kenya’s Killer Roads

In December 2017, over 330 Kenyans lost their lives in road accidents while traveling for the holidays. Over 40 people died in road accidents within 24 hours at Sachang’wan and Bungoma. 36 people lost their lives at Migaa on the 31st of December 2017. For purposes of comparison, 148 people died in the Garissa University

The Best of Times, The Worst of Times

As the year ends, I am reminded of the highs and lows we have been through as Kenyans – two presidential elections (one which happened during the 2017 general election), an election annulment, an election boycott. a doctors’ strike, a nurses’ strike, the election of Kenya’s first women governors, the refusal of parliament to pass

Where is Kenya? A Review

“Today we commemorate our 54th Birthday as an independent nation.  On this day, 54 years ago, the Union Jack came down and the Kenyan flag went up.” Uhuru Kenyatta, 12th December 2017 (full speech) With these words, a week ago, the president began his speech to mark our 54th year of independence. It was in

The Master’s House

“Your Excellencies Gov. @MikeSonko & Dep. Gov @IgathePolycarp, when we moved to Karen, we thought we were climbing up Maslow Hierarchy … But what are kiosks, matatus & mitumba clothes doing here? Where is our Masterplan? Kenya is a Capitalist State. Let Karen be Karen.” Donald B. Kipkorir Those words were exhausting to read, mostly

Beyond Chants and Slogans

It’s been less than a week since Uhuru Kenyatta was sworn in as president and already we can see the questions slipping slowly into the past. The NSE has been steadily gaining the shilling growing stronger and the political discussion is shrinking. Even the arrest and release of David Ndii didn’t seem to get as

The Citizen vs The Taxpayer

Every election year, a sentiment arises that goes something like this: “Kenyans don’t know what’s good for them. They always vote for bad “leaders” who then proceed to loot and plunder our country. This is because many Kenyans don’t really have a stake in our economy because they don’t pay tax. They are not well

Breaking Bread in Eastleigh

by Bethuel Muthee Food is a personal thing.  We have individual preferences to what we eat, where we at, and even with whom. The smell of a food we like engages our memory, we can even taste it on tongues, we think of good times, of people we have not seen in years. In most

Kati Kati – Somewhere Between Death and Freedom

Spoiler – they all die in the beginning. Actually, no. By the time the movie starts they’re all dead. We set in on Kaleche, who finds herself in the middle of the wilderness. It is through the eyes of Kaleche that the world of Kati Kati is revealed to us and it is through her

Over a Common Pain

As I write this piece I mourn with the Kenya rugby family the deaths of Mike Okombe and Peter Wekesa. May their families find some form of peace in this trying time. It’s been a sad year for Kenya rugby. This weekend, Mike Okombe was allegedly stabbed to death by his girlfriend during a party.

The Election Boycott Of 2017

On October 10th 2017, Raila Odinga stated that he was withdrawing from the presidential election redo set for October 26th. He cited fears that it would be marred by the same irregularities and illegalities that got the August 8th election result annulled. In doing so, he seemed to grant Uhuru Kenyatta’s wish from the day

Towards Freedom

You know that you carry their history. But you also know you don’t carry their scars. And that, you hope, will make all the difference. Burns   On Thursday the 26th of October – according to the Kenya Gazette – there will be a fresh presidential election. A lot has been said about this election

What Happens Now?

It has been 137 days since Kenyan nurses went on strike demanding better pay and better working conditions. In this time, the Kenyan central government, county governments and the Salaries Commission have engaged in brinkmanship when it comes to resolving their issues, as if to see who can agitate them and endanger Kenyans’ lives the

A Supermarket Fell in the Forest

Somewhere between the rise of Carrefour, the fall of Nakumatt and the scramble for space there is an interesting narrative of politics and resource. This narrative that really sells itself hard given recent reports of racism at Carrefour (they have since promised to look into the matter) – and Naivas seems to understand what is

In The Name Of Freedom

On 1st September 2017, Kenya’s Supreme Court made history by annulling the August 8th presidential election. In a 4-2 decision, they determined that the recently concluded presidential election was not conducted in accordance with the Constitution and was invalid, null and void. The election was not transparent, and could not be said to be free,

Making Room

When we force ourselves to fit within frames as defined by someone else there will always be spaces that we fail to fill. There will always be ways that we aren’t. Ways that we don’t measure up to the defined space – and others that we will be too much. It is with this knowledge.

The F-word: The Place of Feminism In Contemporary Kenya

This is a transcript of a talk I gave at the British Institute in Eastern Africa (BIEA) on the topic “The F-Word”: What is the Place of Feminism in Contemporary Kenya? “Patriarchy, in many ways, is the primary form of oppression. Its victims comprise half of the world (there are 102 men for every 100

Opening Up

If there is a way I have failed my masculinity, it has been by way of omission. I keep returning to this idea of toxic masculinity. I keep returning to the correlation between toxicity and survival – this still remains too complicated a strand for me to begin to understand, let alone write about. But

Kenya’s Ban On Plastic Bags

After three previous unsuccessful attempts to ban the use, sale, manufacture and import of plastic bags in 2005, 2007 and 2011, we finally managed to do it on 28th August 2017 when the ban came into effect. It was gazetted by the Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Professor Judy Wakhungu, on 28th February 2017 and Kenyans

Book Review: Visual Voices, the Work of over 50 contemporary Artists in Kenya

If a painting is worth a thousand words then it would take a novel about the length of Atlas Shrugged to even begin to write a review of Visual Voices. Put together by Footprints press the collection covers over 400 pieces of work from over 57 artists in a variety of contemporary method. I don’t

Understanding this political season’s top musical hits: Tano Tena

In part 2 of this two part series Alexander Ikawah takes us through campaign music and what it says about us, who we are and where we are. Part 1 here.  This is the second part of a series of essays discussing and explaining the songs that have come to dominate this year’s political season. The first

Against Hope: An Electoral Story

A man in Kisumu is wailing. He will have to be my proxy as it’s easier to write about someone else’s tears. He is not wailing because Raila Odinga lost this election. That is what a cynical, narrow view of Kenyan politics would say. He is crying because, along with all the other Kenyans who

Understanding this Political Season’s Top Musical Hits: Tibim Bindu Bichenjaga

  In part 1 of this two part series Alexander Ikawah takes us through campaign music and what it says about us, who we are and where we are. Look out for part 2 next week.  Each political season campaign trucks drive around town blaring music as frenzied youth dressed in campaign merchandise dance in, on,

Now More Than Ever, Your Vote Counts

“On Sunday the 30th July, 2017 a missing person report was made at Embakassi Police Station at 08:00 hours by one Eva Buyu under OB No 15 of 30th July 2017 that her husband Christopher Musando, who was the Deputy Director of ICT at IEBC, had not returned home since Friday, 28th July, 2017. Today

Getting Ours

“How can you lay claim to something that isn’t yours?” the question is posed to me with a whimsical smile. The conversation began with a question about the kiondo, how it ended up with a Japanese patent from 1984. There are many ways that the colonial conquest disrupted already existing ways of living, but perhaps

Why Are Kenyan Elections So Expensive?

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) has placed the cost of the upcoming general election on 8th August 2017 at KES 49,981,666,599 (quoted as KES 49.9 billion in the rest of the essay). We have 19,611,423 registered voters, bringing the average cost per voter to KES 2,396 (USD 23.05). Considering that not all registered

Revolutionary Type Love

“The world is changing and they say it’s time to be free But you live with the fear of just being me Living in the shadow feels like the safe place to be No harm for them, no harm for me But life is short, and it’s time to be free Love who you love,

Why Do You Pay Tax?

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) deadline for filing individual tax returns came and went on the 30th of June 2017, and with it came much whingeing and wringing of hands by Kenyans, both online and on mainstream media. It was understandable, because this time, the penalty for non-compliance was KES 20,000, twenty times what it

Towards Survival

Now this is the Law of the Jungle as old and as true as the sky; And the Wolf that shall keep it may prosper, but the Wolf that shall break it must die. As the creeper that girdles the tree-trunk the Law runneth forward and back For the strength of the Pack is the

What We Learn From Building Collapses in Kenya

On the night of Monday, 12th June 2017, a seven storey building collapsed in Kware Pipeline in Embakasi. This building had been condemned by the National Construction Authority (NCA), and marked with an X on the outside to indicate this. The tenants in the building had been warned of its collapse, and most of them

Why Coal? Why Now?

There’s a story somewhere about about a child who was watching their mum cook. “Mum,” the child asked, “Why do we always throw out the liver?” The mother had not really given it much thought. Only when asked did she realise that she only did it because she had seen her mother do it. Next

An Overview of the 2017 General Election

We have 62 more days before our election on August 8th 2017. We are in the middle of campaign season, which started on 28th May and is set to end on 5th August 2017. It’s a great time to discuss the players in this election. Kenya is always in-between elections. Unless something changes, the next

Unburdening

“Unpacking is heavy. Unpacking is always heavy. And when the things we have carried around lay themselves bare on the ground to be watched one of two things happen. Either we are made by them and begin the path of leaving them behind or, embarrassed, (they might be too big or too small, too fragile,

Kenya and Its Maize Scandals

Kenya may be in the middle of yet another maize scandal. How did we get here? We are still experiencing food inflation, and part of the reason for this is the drought we’ve had since 2016. We have a scarcity of sugar, and a 2kg packet is currently retailing for KES 400, up from KES

Hiding in the Nuance

Humanity exists in the nuance. Perhaps this is what Chimamanda Adichie tries to talk about when she speaks of the danger of a single story. Or what Teju Cole is trying to say when he talks about the problem with first world problems. Simple explanations, while necessary, often erase the people blanketed by the explanation.

The Babylon System

We refuse to be what you wanted us to be We are what we are That’s the way it’s going to be. You don’t know You can’t educate I for no equal opportunity: Talking ’bout my freedom, people freedom and liberty Yeah, we’ve been trodding on the winepress much too long Rebel, rebel! Yes, we’ve been

Waving at Trains

People wave at trains. This is the only form of transportation that people wave at. Not just children, adults as well. People stare at the train as it passes by always scanning as if looking for something, and with a particular curiosity.  Part of it must be the novelty of a train, that a train

On Censorship

Ezekiel Mutua’s recent attempt at seeking relevance involved an attempt at regulating social media. Something that social media sites like Twitter and Facebook themselves struggle with, he believes he can do with ease. The Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) CEO wants to stop people from people from using fake names on social media, saying: To

Do you know how to milk a cow?

In essence, the working assumption with decolonization is the idea of reviving and analyzing lost (or fallen from view) forms of knowledge. In bringing these ideas to the forefront we begin to imagine different worlds, and see different possibilities and ways of being. The threat of course, then lies to those ideas that have already,

Political Party Nominations

2017 is an election year, and right before the election, we have this spectacle called political party nominations. It usually looks (to outsiders like me) like a trainwreck – messy and destructive. I’ve seen pictures of all manner of campaign tactics – there’s an MP aspirant for Bureti called Kibet Komingoi who has his face

See Yourself

At the end of the day othering happens in many invisible ways. And its performance doesn’t necessarily translate to intent. Which is why the intended ‘clarification’ “I wasn’t being racist, I was just trying to say…”becomes a violence. It does not only deny that the act could be racist but leaves no room to see

The Art of the Con

Like many other Kenyans, I find myself constantly wondering about the hold our political class has on us, and why they continue to hoodwink and oppress us with impunity and consistency. We have analyzed our systems, institutions and approach to governance for close to four years on this website – yet somehow I still find

Hearing Questions

When is a question valid? Or, more directly, when are which questions valid? And how do we navigate (in)valid questions? This then turns into a question on community. And because different communities have different assumed forms of knowledge – then some questions become violent in one spaces and welcomed in another. In this way, one

On Resistance

On March 7th, Uhuru Kenyatta pulled his worst bad faith move yet. After the government and the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union (KMPDU) failed to reach an agreement on a return-to-work formula to end the seemingly never-ending doctors’ strike, he took his best offer off the table, stopped negotiations, and instead threatened doctors to

Staying Soft

“In effect, this means that speaking one’s truth becomes an action of laying one bare. An action of putting the self on the line. Putting the self in the line of possible violence.” On truths Something about vulnerability and safe spaces keeps coming back to me. What kind of thinking is produced by and within

First, Do No Harm

Though widely thought to be taken from the Hippocratic Oath, the phrase as we know it does not appear in the historic document. The Oath instead says “I will utterly reject harm and mischief.” However, this phrase remains a key guideline for medical professionals – when faced with a problem, it is better to do

The #LipaKamaTender Movement

by Dr. Judy Karagania Kenyan doctors have been on strike since 5 December 2016. That is 79 days. This strike has historical parallels to what is considered the longest strike by medical practitioners in 1994 that lasted 105 days. Three thousand doctors were sacked fighting for the registration of the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and

What Exactly are you Voting For?

A fortnight ago we talked about apathy – and what it means to be asked to vote. Especially in Kenya now, as doctors are being jailed for asking for better health. And, as Gathara eloquently puts it, that is the least of our problems. Still, the IEBC are holding fast to the fact that, come

Unravelling the African Union Elections

We have been treated to weeks of intrigue following Kenya’s failed campaign for its current foreign affairs cabinet secretary, Amina Mohammed, to become the next chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC). The AUC is the executive arm of the African Union (AU). The election was instead won by Chad’s foreign minister, Moussa Faki Mahamat.

Now What?

State (noun): a nation or territory considered as an organized political community under one government. Kenya is a state. It has geographical territory of 581,309.881 square kilometres and a population of approximately 44 million people. These people are organized under a central government with functions increasingly devolving to the counties. This is particularly important because

On Voting

Every four to five years, we suffer campaigns by people vying to win seats and represent us after the general election, many of whom harp on and on about how it is our civic duty to vote. That if we don’t vote, we must not complain about “poor leadership” and the thieves that will get

This Might be a Problem: A Review

When a journal makes a call for speculative fiction they are rarely expecting a single type of story.  This is to say if you ask minds to wander they are often going to wander in different directions from each other – even when they seem to be on similar paths. In short, a speculative fiction

What About The Children?

I remember sitting my Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams vividly, mostly because it was a period I wanted to be over and done with as fast as possible. My first paper was English (Paper 1), and my exams went on for almost three weeks. I sat my final paper, Business Studies (Paper 2)

Justice On Trial

by Robert Munuku “We were bundled together in military trucks and taken straight to Naivasha Maximum Security Prison. On arrival, I was locked up in solitary confinement for two months without any communication or reason as to why I was locked up,” retired Airforce Captain, Frank Mũnũku, recounting the 1982 attempted coup d’état in Kenya.

The Year of Finding New Paths to our Freedom(s)

We close the year to a doctor’s strike that has no end in sight and a call from the opposition that there will be civil action early in 2017. In many ways, the world seems grim. Our president himself told us this year that there is nothing that can be done about corruption in a kind

Flower Girls, Girlfriends and Sexist Discourse: The Politics of the Two-Thirds Gender Bill

by Wendy Okolo The African Human Development Report indicates that African countries make up four out of the top 10 countries with high levels of women representation in parliament. These four countries are Rwanda, Seychelles, Senegal, and South Africa. It comes as no surprise that Kenya is not part of this progressive narrative (if the

Against Memory

It is the dignity of the patient that underscores all this. Tabu Robert In case you missed it, doctors are on strike. It’s possible you may have missed it because *your* doctor is not on strike – but doctors are on strike. And it’s not the first time they have done it either. They have

To Africanize, Decolonize Or Both?

This conversation on what it means to be African has been happening since the days of the independence struggles in many African countries, and has been a major part of African post-colonial discourse. The conversation has mostly focused on knowledge, since knowledge is the beginning of identity formation, with some commentators saying that we need

Reading Migritude

“It began as a teardrop in Babylon” How Ambi Became Paisley, Migritude, Shailja Patel. Dagoretti corner was the great corner. Tenwek is so named because it took ten weeks to walk there. We know these stories. We have told them to each other many times. What is apparent from them is the way in which

Choosing Ourselves

by Brenda Wakiagi In the year 1989, American professor and civil rights advocate, Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw coined the term intersectionality. Intersectionality has since grown to take center-stage in feminist discourse, laying focus on the fact that the fight to rid the world of structural forms of oppression cannot be undertaken if we do not first recognize the layered ways

The Rise and Rise of Nationalism

Depending on your school of thought, you may believe that globalization has its roots in the modern era due to international commodity trade, which experienced an uptick in the 1750s. Or, like Adam Smith, you may attach huge significance to Vasco Da Gama’s and Christopher Colombus’ campaigns around the world in the 1490s, and even

Open Letter to an African Writer

Dear Friend, I know this letter may come as a surprise to you. And I do not blame you. I have been largely absent. However, I think that I need to talk to you about this thing you call identity, with particular respect to how you insist that it is founded within culture. It is

Dear Uhuru Kenyatta

I hope this finds you in good health. It has been a while since I addressed you directly, but I have been busy with work, and life, you know how these things are. I saw you in the news recently, looking visibly frustrated and complaining about corruption, as you like to do. I must say,

Free Speech vs Hate Speech

by Dr. Sakulen A. Hargura “In a free state, tongues too should be free.” Erasmus Freedom of speech is a fundamental and an inalienable part of all constitutions penned in post-agrarian revolution era. So ingrained is the concept of free speech that to violate it is tantamount to dictatorship. All totalitarian regimes in the past

Commune Again

It’s difficult to be angered anew by the world every day. It’s not that there is nothing that is happening to generate anger. Rather, it’s more that there are things happening constantly. Thus, constantly triggered, we find ourselves in a cycle of rage that eventually numbs us. Eventually all those deaths, those rapes, those thefts

The Northern Collector Tunnel

For lovers of drama, Kenya’s politics never seem to disappoint, and yesterday was no different. On 10th October 2016, Raila Odinga, Kenya’s former Prime Minister, held a press conference to reveal the details of a project he says the current government has been hiding from Kenyans. Mr. Odinga said that just above the Murang’a region,

A Question on Community

There is community everywhere. You have your social media community, work community, school community et cetera. And these communal areas have certain codes. Some rules are spoken, most are unspoken but generally people know what to do (which is, needless to say, also organized by all kinds of problems like race, class and gender). And

My Land, Your Land, Our Land

As far back as our collective memory as a species goes, land has played, and continues to play, an important role as both an economic resource and the basis on which we organize ourselves, be it in ethnic groups, nations, continents and so on. In economics, land comprises all natural occurring resources whose supply is

Do Dreams Adult?

What happens to a dream deferred? Langston Hughes Dare to dream -Overused phrase But surely we have one life and we must go after our dreams. anonymous   In many ways we grew up on a steady diet of dreams. Or, at least, on the availability. That someday we could dream our way out of

A Pound Of Flesh

English literature classes were one of the few things I liked about the Kenyan high school experience. In my year, we studied William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, a play about many things, but central to which was the plot about the Venetian moneylender Shylock (who was Jewish), who lends the Christian shipper Antonio money.

Centering Ourselves

I’d like to begin where we all are. Consider the images of Mark Zuckerberg at Mama Oliech restaurant and how they have travelled. Think of this one in particular. I won’t focus on how his whiteness permeated through how we treated him. We have, for a long time, held white people who do something “African”

Back to Basics: The Value of History

by Robert Munuku Often, while growing up in primary school, we challenged each other to name the capital cities of African countries, and it was a thing of pride to be the child who could name the most. There was one boy called Kieven Yu, of Chinese origin but born and raised in Mombasa town

It Continues not to End, Years Later

Ed: A version of this essay was initially published on The New Inquiry. We republish it here to remember. Editors notes will be interspersed in the essay in italics. by Aaron Bady The ICC Witness Project  is an archive of poems written and posted to the internet starting  March 2013; there are over 151 of

Kenya is Burning

The fight against oppression – in all its manifestations – is especially tricky because the rules of challenging the status quo are set by your oppressor. When fighting racism, sexism, classism and most importantly government, the people who stand to benefit from the maintenance of the prevailing system will state how they want you to

What About the Men?

It feels like somewhere along the creation of metaphors the truth was lost. Which is to say that the truth can be hidden in plain sight. What’s right in front of you may actually be what is happening. Occam, a philisohpist by nature but, I believe, a poet at heart, had a theory: when presented

From the Roof Down

Only once we place human dignity at the centre as opposed to capital can we fight this disease. Why the World is on Fire Previously, on Brainstorm, Brenda Wambui closed her article with a note on human dignity. To place the idea that hall human beings are “worthy of honour and respect” (dignity). It seems

Why the World is on Fire

“When the rate of return on capital exceeds the rate of growth of output and income, as it did in the nineteenth century and seems quite likely to do again in the twenty-first, capitalism automatically generates arbitrary and unsustainable inequalities that radically undermine the meritocratic values on which democratic societies are based.” Thomas Piketty Few

The Silent Forgotten

by Gragory Nyauchi On June 23rd 2016 Josephat Mwenda left a courtroom in Mavoko. He had been in court defending himself against criminal charges . He was with his lawyer Willie Kimani, who dealt in human rights cases. There was a concurrent case, a civil matter in which he had sued a police officer for

Even in the Churches

by Aisha I do not want to write this. I do not want to open myself to criticism, my church to criticism; I am, thankfully, not worried about my God – He can take care of himself. I do not want to write this because I am always so scared of having imagined it, of

Notes from the Shadows

People can only see you as you appear to be. Which, if you think about it, is not really their fault. And you, as a person, can only see people as they appear to be. The outside will always be a projection. So we are really thinking about those who are best at projecting here.

The Dangers of Speech

In the aftermath of the 2007 general election that ended in violence and the death of over 1,000 Kenyans, we decided “never again” and set up the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), to promote ethnic harmony and investigate complaints of ethnic or racial discrimination or any issue affecting ethnic and racial relations. The National

(Class)Room For All

Ed: This essay is part of a series of essays on education policy in the country. Read part one and part two. by Nyambura Mutanyi We have made some progress in making education available to all Kenyan children. In the years since Free Primary Education was instituted in Kenya, we have seen millions of children get to

Masilahi ya Nyasi

It’s been 4 hours. Since all the research was done and I was ready to put this piece together. Four hours of staring at the computer – looking for an angle. Is there a new way to put old truths together so that they hit us with fresh apparence? A new form of relevance? Is

Entrepreneurship is Not for Everyone

by Alan Ong’ang’a Many young Kenyans today yearn to be entrepreneurs. They long to attain financial freedom. They want to influence things and attract fame. They want to make lots of money. With money comes the easy life and social recognition. How we so hate living in obscurity! Yet so, many often have the wrong objectives for wanting

Kenya: The Indigenous Homeland

by Ngala Chome According to my national registration document, I ‘come’ from a sub-location called Murimani, in a location called Kayafungo, in a division called Kaloleni, which is in a district called Kilifi. I have never lived in all these places. However, in Kenya, home is not necessarily where one lives, where one learns how

The Language-in-Education Policy Conundrum

Ed: This essay is part of a series of essays on education policy in the country. Find part one here. by Laila Le Guen The gap between language policy and actual implementation across educational institutions isn’t given the attention it deserves, and children’s learning is taking a toll as a result. If Kenya is committed

The Wrath of the Gods

“You could hear women lamenting, children crying, men shouting. Some were calling for parents, others for children or spouses; they could only recognize them by their voices. Some bemoaned their own lot, others that of their near and dear. There were some so afraid of death that they prayed for death. Many raised their hands

Creating Others: A Two Story Dialogue

This essay was taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata, which is on security in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. Ed: Today we are running two essays. Both of these essays are from the same book and circle around insecurity. In reading these essays I’d like us too

The Blindspots of STEM-Focused Education Reform

by Laila Le Guen Curriculum reform is a hot button topic in any part of the world but the stakes are particularly high in Kenya, where the 8-4-4 system has been so consistently criticised since its implementation. Science, technology, engineering and mathematics – known as STEM subjects – have been identified as a priority and

Divided We Fall

by Gragory Nyauchi The Kenya Sevens team recently won the Singapore Sevens title. In Kenya only 3 sports have ever taken an international stage and as a result captured the national imagination. Cricket, rugby and athletics. Cricket has been slowly creaking off it, in fact the glory days of this sport are so far back

Of Men In Checked Shirts and Little Children

  This essay was taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata, which is on security in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Murugi Kagotho I met him the other day, this man. He was dressed in his characteristic faded yellow checked shirt that now looked overly worn,

Listen to the Students

Imagine a country. This country has an election. During the election it becomes clear to the voters that the processes that are being followed are flawed and that the result might be neither free nor fair. They stay silent. Eventually the electoral body makes an election. The elections, they say, were free and fair and

And Then There Were None

The evolution of man has seen us explore various ways of existing – from hunting and gathering to feudalism, to capitalism as supported by democracy, which is where we currently linger, wondering what comes next, because this no longer seems to be working. According to Thomas Hobbes in Leviathan, we are first and foremost concerned

Voice of Kenya(tta)

“If this can happen to GADO, who can’t they go after?” Patrick Gathara as quoted in No Country for Cartoonists I’m worried. So we’re going to talk about media freedom again. Now, I understand that, given digital media and the many changing ways news travels it is harder to keep track of what is true

What About The Girl Child?

Two weeks ago in Bungoma County, twenty girls from Chelebei Secondary Schoolgirls in Mt Elgon were confirmed pregnant after a routine check by the school when they returned from the December holidays. Their deputy principal, David Emachar, blamed the girls’ parents for not closely monitoring their children’s activities and whereabouts during the holidays, saying “we

Edgelands: A New Reading of the City

by Kahira Ngige “…one such concept is that of “urban metabolism”, which refers to the metabolic processes by which cities transform raw materials, energy and water into the built environment, human biomass and waste. The adoption of this concept has fostered new imaginations of what the city is and how material and immaterial flows –

On the Shoulders of Broken Men

Bothered by my constant crying my aunt shows me a book “real men don’t cry,” I want to be a real man. I stop crying. I don’t understand why real men didn’t cry. I’m just told they don’t. The only thing worse than not being able to be a real man is being a girl.

What is 1.66 Billion?

It has emerged that the amount of money lost in the NYS scandal (according to a report seen by The Nation) could be as much as KES 1.66 billion, up from the previously reported KES 791 million. The extra amount, as much as KES 869,000,000, is thought to have been paid to an additional 15

The Mind of a City

“A city adopts a certain shape, an arrangement that can be seen even in its absence.” Ndinda Kioko, The City as a Photograph I’d like to think with the city as a photograph. In the essay (read it here) Ndinda Kioko talks about Nairobi and the history of Nairobi as a symbol of power, as

Police Brutality in Kenya

Kenyans have long accepted the torrid nature of the police service, with the 2014 Transparency International (Kenya) East Africa Bribery Index Report ranking them as first in Kenya on a composite index (resulting from five different indicators of the survey: likelihood of bribery, prevalence of bribery, average size of bribe, share of national bribe and

Caregiving for Ghosts

My memory is again in the way of your history. Agha Shahid Ali, Farewell. I’ve been wondering about the role of apathy. We read about it and talk about it often. Even as we try and figure out how to best present a story we ask ourselves “why should I care?” This question has been

The Predictable Nature Of Corruption in Kenya

Corruption scandals have become a “fact of life” for many Kenyans, who have come to regard them as just another facet of Kenyan life, alongside high taxes, poor service delivery, our “cult of personality” approach to politics and religion, and the misfortunes occasioned to us by terrorism. These burdens seem to be ours for the

Will Sing For Food

Many musicians would rightfully be millionaires if they got paid what they are worth. They should be getting six figure cheques from MCSK every month. KAZ 2007 “am[sic] one of the pioneers of youth rap music yet I have not even been paid for close to 3 years now” Sokoro, 2010 “Many musicians are not

It’s all in Your Mind

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Kevin Rigathi In Kenya, we want the best for the mentally ill. It’s not a debate. It’s not controversial. We all agree that

The Solutions to Kenya’s Problems Are Right Under Our Noses

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus Christ tells his followers the parable of the Good Samaritan. A man traveling from Jerusalem to Jericho is attacked by robbers who strip him and beat him. Both a priest and a Levite (respected members of society from whom a higher moral standard is expected) pass him by without

Decolonising in Practice: Reviving Knowledge and Traditions in the 21st Century

by Wangui Kamonji Where are those songs my mother and yours always sang fitting rhythms to the whole vast span of life? … What song was it? … What do you remember? ~ Micere Githae Mugo ‘Where are those Songs’ 1972 I just rinsed my nixtamalized maize out in the sink, and as I did

2015: Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, Or Death

“Liberty, equality, fraternity, or death; – the last, much the easiest to bestow, O Guillotine!” Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities This is Dickens’ take on the slogan of the French Revolution, “The Republic One and Indivisible of Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, or Death,” and I do not think there is a better statement to describe

Hand me a Spanner

Feminist discussions with many friends often lead to “so why do you think you’re better than me?” And, no matter how many times I’m asked this I’m always surprised. There’s this idea that, because I’m speaking and thinking around patriarchy and about ways to dismantle a damaging societal structure, I consider myself better. As if

Kenya At 52

On Saturday, 12th December 2015, Kenya celebrated 52 years of being a republic. We had our usual annual celebration where Uhuru Kenyatta addressed the nation and expressed a sense of optimism that is becoming more and more scarce as we continue to awaken to just how badly we are doing as a nation – socially,

Loud Man With An Opinion

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s first e-book, #WhenWomenSpeak – (Re)Defining Kenyan Feminisms, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Muthoni Maingi Sometimes we can speak, and when and where we can we must. I went on a rant sometime back, and you can check out my words and

A Madness Foretold

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Awuor Onyango Part 2 Location: Nairobi, Kenya. April 2013 and beyond Dad picks me up from the airport. I am sure to apologize

My Day at Industrial Area Police Station

by Dennis Ochieng On Friday the 30th of October, in the morning, I was driving through the traffic from Syokimau headed towards Mukuru via Mombasa road and turning to join Enterprise Road. On a normal day, it would have taken 15-20 minutes. On this day, however, it took me 45 minutes to arrive at the

Some Dance to Forget

Last week I found myself in of a conversation where a friend talked about how artists failed the country post the 2002 election (not that everything was perfect before that though). Gidi gidi maji maji had just released their song unbwogable and it had captured the emotion of a nation fighting to put an ugly

I Quit!

by Patrick Gathara Editor’s note: this following piece was first published in 2011. Still, it continues. On my way to work today, I had an epiphany. As I sat in one of the unending traffic jams that have become part of the daily ritual of trying to get to work, fuming as matatus “overlapped” the

The Presence of a Woman is Not Consent

by Aisha Ali A man asks a woman out on a dinner date. She says yes. They meet up and have a pleasant enough evening. The man is a foreigner, in Nairobi for work and they meet at their office building. The evening ends, and the man asks to drop the girl, but she came

Evidence of F*cking: A Case for Better Discourse Around Sex

by Wanjeri Gakuru I must have been seven when I first handled a condom. I’d found the packet in a drawer at home. I didn’t know what it was, but it felt dangerous and important and likely to impress my friends. Instead, it inspired a wild chorus of laughter and scurrying away when I held

Whose Revolution Is It Anyway?

“plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr I wonder if Jean Baptiste knew that these words would later shape themselves into a phrase that would be echoed across the world and be widely relevant almost 200 years later. Although perhaps, the phrase itself would show that it was here to stay,

The Anatomy of a Lootocracy

In light of the ongoing NYS/IFMIS scandal in which amounts ranging from KES 695 million to KES 791 million are said to have been stolen by alleged relatives of top NYS officials hiding behind a few companies, it is important that we as a nation take pause to appreciate the extent of the mess we

Jail? That’s a Feminist Issue Too

by Orem Ochiel In the fifty years following Kenya’s independence, successive governments have managed to entrench what is both a continuation and a perfection of the colonial penal system: The varieties of colonial incarceration – labour camps, torture camps, detention centres, prisons – seem to have been maintained, essentially, as they were. We might also

Listening to Anger

Anger is unsettling. There are ways in which anger moves that upends a space. Further, anger is often unpredictable. You never know what could happen when an angry person isn’t served un-angered. With all this in mind it makes sense that it is often with an urgency or an immediacy that we struggle to un-anger.

What Is The Value Of A Kenyan Life?

Mythology has it that human life is priceless – this sentiment has been reinforced as long as I can remember and is taken as a basic human truth. It is echoed in the Bible when King Solomon had to determine the mother of a child and did so by ordering that the child be split

Not Your Meat

by Marziya Mohammedali   In October 2006, Taj El-Din Hilaly, the Imam (spiritual leader) of the Lakemba Mosque in Sydney, made the following statement in his Ramadan sermon: “If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside on the street, or in the garden or in the park, or in the backyard without a

Meditations On The Kenya Police

These essays were taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata, which is on security in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. Mariamu by Martin Maitha Maybe, it’s 9 p.m. The guys are chilling at “Base” trading random talk and idle chatter to pass time. Maybe, it’s 10 p.m. An

A Note on Disappeared Persons

“For the purposes of this Convention, “enforced disappearance” is considered to be the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of

My Funk

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Maryanne Nderitu The simplicity of my 12 years of age ensures my first suicide attempt does not work. I dare myself, in

Mollis and the Troubling Attitude Towards Sex in Kenya

Two weeks ago, an audio surfaced on WhatsApp, and later on Soundcloud/Twitter/Facebook of a man named Morris (pronounced Mollis by the woman in the clip due to the influence of mother tongue) having sex with a woman despite her repeated pleas for him to stop in two languages, and her saying she was tired and

In Wolves’ Clothing

Notes on Class and Gender Oppression by Nkatha Obungu Watching the Wolf of Wall Street was a chilling experience; not so much for its raunchy quality (or lack thereof) but because of the exultation of greed as something to aspire for. Jordan Belfort is first portrayed as a young Wall Street stock broker, working at

Five Meditations On Movement

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s new e-book, 127.0.0.1 – Thoughts on Home, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Renee Akitelek Mboya You will call home. One. They will read you the poem for the census and the forecast. Aunty so and so is very well though

Colour Me Light

by Mumbi Kanyogo I wonder if before the phrase “You’re pretty for a dark girl”, the words, “You’re pretty for a light girl” existed. There are so many “isms”. Racism, sexism, extremism, tribalism, nationalism vs activism, womanism, feminism, patriotism. A thousand different solutions to a hundred different problems. And so it would seem that we’re

The Unbearably Slippery Nature of Reality

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Aleya Kassam A heart attack is supposed to loudly announce its arrival. Bark orders with a gruff voice. Stomp into the room and

On Building People Up

A lot of the people I find myself in discussions with are often of the “break you down” mentality. They see the value is tracking and actively curbing a perception of the self that sees ability/a certain kind of ability. A lot of this breaking down is often hidden in “truth.” While truth can, and

What Does Feminism Mean to Me?

by Kennedy Kanyali When I spoke to a friend of mine about Brainstorm’s decision to do an issue on “(Re)defining Kenyan Feminisms”, she raised the question (or I raised it, I don’t remember) of what exactly about Kenyan feminism needed to be redefined. Certainly, there is a lot about Kenya’s history of women’s activism –

Kenya’s National Budget 2015/16: An Analysis

Overview Kenya has yet again tabled East Africa’s largest budget statement, targeting revenue collection of KES 1.358 trillion (20.8% of GDP) and overall expenditure and net lending of KES 2.002 trillion (30.7% of GDP), leading to a budget deficit. Of this, 1.28 trillion would be recurrent, while 721 billion would be development expenditure. The government

The Many Faces of Insecurity in Nairobi

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata: Security in Kenya, which is available for free.DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Constance Smith At around 10am on Thursday 28th August 2014, gunfire burst out across Kaloleni, one of Nairobi’s decaying public housing estates in Eastlands. With bullets raining down, residents fled into their

Conversations With Our Mothers

by Wairimu Muriithi “Mr Speaker, if you do not slap a woman, you will note that her behaviours will not appeal to you. Just slap her and she will know you love her. This is when she will you call her darling.” Kitale West MP Wafula Wabuge, July 1976 There are things that are said every day.

Reading Akello

Akello is a book of love poems. That’s the short version. But I’m wondering what it means to say the words “love poems” anymore. To explore the ideas of feeling and being a space that is decidedly against these same ideas. Love slowly moves to being a radical act (still, I hear echoes of ‘the

Did You Mean Beatification?

by Otieno Sumba The newly beatified Sister Irene Nyaatha Stefani may hold a Gikuyu name dearly given to her by the community she lived and worked in, but she is not Gikuyu, Kenyan, African or Black. This holds true for many of the other Catholic saints, blesseds, and venerables that earned their halos by the

This is Kenya

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, (In)Sanity, What Crazy Looks Like: Security in Kenya, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. Editor’s note: I’m thinking about what it is to read this essay and think of the several iterations of violence that have happened since Westgate. What does it

Why #TeamPositivity Is Wrong

There is a belief that has been around in Kenya since the advent of the prosperity gospel and the flood of self-help books in the market: that the key to the change we so desperately require in Kenya, be it solving our flooding problem or ending corruption, is positive thinking. Recently, we have faced successive

Made in Kenya: Forensic Files

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata: Security in Kenya, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Sophie Gitonga I’d never met a murderer before – and it never featured on my to do list. Pete (not his real name) was a guest at the Kamiti

Talking Walls

We make each other angry because it’s the only time we’re alive. Not nearly closer than we can get without asking the questions that we want to ask because we are not quite sure we want to know the answer to them. We make each other angry because we want to see something, we want

What About Nerea?

“Please listen to Sauti Sol’s latest song Nerea. So done with it.” A close friend sent this message to me on Tuesday morning last week. Later in the evening, I watched the video with yet another friend. We were both irritated, and it has taken me a week to decide why. The song is from

Why Kenya’s Real War Is Within Its Borders

by Owaahh As the flowers begin to wilt on the graves of the 147 people who were killed in the Garissa University attack, it is essential for Kenyans to reflect on the journey that brought us here. This journey has been one of many mistakes and very few legitimate successes. The story of how the

Mourning

The road to Garissa gives a detailed history of the things that brought us to this space. This place where a spark ignites a stampede. But focusing on the fear feels selfish. Like ignoring the 147 students who were killed on 2nd April 2015, their families and their friends.   something of the soul is

I Just Wanted To Go Home

On Saturday, the 14th of March, my friends and I had had a great evening catching up over drinks, after which we decided to check out a 50% off offer on burgers at a local coffee chain. They did not have the buns we wanted, though, so we decided to go home. I decided to

Having Given it Little Thought

We do not see things as they are, we see them as we are – Anais Nin. It was 1961 when Anais Nin gave us these words. ‘The Seduction of the Minotaur’ shows a strong sense of psychoanalysis. It talks about how Lillian studies herself and her actions “I don’t think about it, I just

Finding Here

“you can’t live  the songs of people who don’t know your name.” – Yvonne Adhiambo, Dust. (aside: I was more sure about how to spell Yvonne than I was about Adhiambo as I wrote that quote) and even when they know the names of their ancestors they still can’t remember them, On Twitter a while

Fighting the Disease

It is my belief that we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. Our lives are made possible by those who birthed us, and those who fought so that people who look like us can live, and we must always remember this. I was recently asked why I am no longer as

Emails on Depression

I’ve been asked often what depression really feels like. The defiant part of me refuses to answer these questions. To dwell on a violence is sometimes inflicting a violence on the self. To be forced into repeatedly justifying  your humanity can cause you to doubt it. (if everyone says I’m not here, am I?) Another

About That Time I Was Almost Sexually Assaulted

by Anonymous I’ve always been the type of person to claim that “weed does nothing for me, really, which is why I don’t smoke it.” On Saturday, I found myself defending my position again to a friend at his house. We had just left a function, and I needed some downtime before I headed to

Say you saw a painting…

“support local artists” – Anything, anyone, anywhere I remember writing an essay about my experience around the bomb blast in 1998. My teacher then, Mrs Dhanji, made a comment to my mother about my writing. “It’s vivid.” I’m not sure if either my mother or my teacher remember this moment. I do. I remember it now

The Media Which Cried Wolf

No street protests in support of KTN, NTV and Citizen TV, who collectively, have served Kenyans with dedication & passion over 25 years? Saddique Shaban The human mind is capable of amazing things, one of which is selective amnesia. In March 2013, Uhuru Kenyatta was declared Kenya’s fourth president, and barring his supporters, no one

Real Men Don’t Cry

I remember this in isolation, without context. I must have been at that age where time is only counted in a series of nows. Again something had happened. Again I was in tears. My aunt gave me a book titled “Real Men Don’t Cry.” The book was way above my age grade – she didn’t

Please Excuse This Misuse of Licensed Telecommunication Equipment

On 22nd December 2014, Nancy Mbindalah wrote that Ishiara Level Four Hospital had been closed due to lack of water, which had been disconnected over an unpaid bill, and asked what the county government was doing about the issue. This was not the first comment she had made on the government. Before this she had

Watching Our Own Backs

“What’s in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet” – Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet.   It’s something else when we begin to imagine the amount of damage that has been done to humankind in defense of names. Names are an extension of authority. Saying a name

Injustice. Everywhere.

The phrase “new year, new me” cannot be said to apply to the year 2015 – for it appears that it will be a continuation, and perhaps a crescendo, of the gross inhumanity we experienced in 2014. Nigeria has suffered yet another onslaught from the terror group Boko Haram, who have killed an upward of

The River And The Source

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s new e-book, 127.0.0.1 – Thoughts on Home, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Gragory Nyauchi A Greek friend once shared with me the difference between Ancient and Modern Greek; in ancient Greek, words weren’t just words – they carried weight and concepts and

Mum’s New Place

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s new e-book, 127.0.0.1 – Thoughts on Home, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Cornell Ngare I am an IDP. If you’ve lived in Kenya for any reasonable length of time, you don’t need me to define that acronym. My first stop when

The Year In Literature

“and when we speak we are afraid our words will not be heard nor welcomed but when we are silent we are still afraid. So it is better to speak remembering we were never meant to survive” Audre Lorde These are the works that spoke to us the most in 2014. [Click the title, in

This Will, That Will and the Other Will

“They say I’m going crazy, but I’ve been here before” – Kanye West   “…a few hours later it was passed into law.” I write this from a time when the sentence above doesn’t need to be explained. Our government has just fast tracked the Security Bill into law. We are confused. What do the

The Security Laws (Amendment) Bill 2014

In Kenya, we have a knack for knee jerk reactions to our problems and over reliance on legislation whenever things go wrong, especially with regards to our security. We have experienced several terror attacks from Al-Shabaab in the past four years, since our entry into Somalia, which have culminated in terror attacks in Mandera, Wajir,

The More Things Seem to Change

“We asked ten years ago. We was asking with the panthers. We was asking with them – the civil rights movement. We was asking. Those people that were asking, they’re all dead or in jail. So what do you think we’re going to do? Ask?” – Tupac Moments only exist within context. To imagine about

Let’s Talk About Uhuru

I like to think that I learn something from all the reading I choose to indulge in – and in the past five years, I have read/learnt a bit about microexpressions. These are brief facial expressions that occur when a person conceals an emotion, either consciously or unconsciously. Seven of these facial expressions are universal,

But It’s My Body

I return to Saul Williams,   “What is the price of freedom, how is it paid?”   At the protest march for #MyDressMyChoice, we marched past another group of people at Dedan Kimathi’s statue on Kimathi Street, Nairobi. They couldn’t have been more than 10. As we walked, by they watched silently, holding their placards:

Victim On Trial

by Samira Sawlani “To my daughter I will say, when men come, set yourself on fire” -Warsan Shire We are very subjective when it comes to defending human rights – it baffles me. We weep for the police officers on duty killed in Kapedo yet we were indifferent for so long to the death and

The Militarization Of Kenya

On September 5th 2014, Uhuru Kenyatta caused a social media (and traditional media) standstill when he wore army fatigues for the first time in his presidency. All kinds of things were said: he looked “devilishly handsome”, “presidential”, “they fit him much better than his usual suits, he should get this tailor to make his suits”,

Repersoning

“The burden of identity is upon the identified” – Chuma Nwokolo “I say ‘I am a God’ and you go around saying ‘who the hell does that guy think he is?’ I just told you – I am a god” – Kanye West “If I didn’t define myself for myself, I would be crunched into

Why Your Power Bill Will Not Be Reduced By 30% – At Least Not Yet

by Anonymous “My government will be able to cut the cost of power by 30%” President Uhuru Kenyatta The statement above captions the overarching sentiment at the launch of the 140 MW Olkaria IV Geothermal Power Plant in Kenya’s Rift Valley. The event was dubbed as the first tangible step towards the Jubilee government’s ambitious

Fence Culture

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata: Security in Kenya, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Otieno Sumba The first thing I learnt to climb was a fence, a rickety wooden fence. My friends and I would climb up and jump down all day, and

Where Can Women Be At Home?

by Wambui Mwangi Breathe me clear Breathe me safe Breathe me home –Shailja Patel, Screaming I am a political scientist. I have been studying the forms of power in the world for many years. Many very brilliant professors have taught me, but most of what I consider important was taught to me by my mother. She

Did You Report It?

by Aisha Ali Trigger Warning: Sexual assault, rape Two weeks ago, I switched on my phone after having it off all night and a series of text messages immediately came through. One was notification that my friend had tried to call me several times. Then frantic texts. “Are you awake? I need to talk to

Every Death Should Matter

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s third e-book, Ha!Kuna Matata: Security in Kenya, which is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Morris Kiruga In the dead of the night, two groups methodically approached the small serene police station. The outer wall of the station had seen better, cleaner days. Its

The Development Agenda in Africa

by Shillah Memusi For as long as I can remember, there has always been conversation about development on the African continent, where the terms “African Development” and “Development in Africa” were used interchangeably, as though they mean the same thing. I believe that the two are completely different concepts, distinguished mainly by their drivers, and

And Then They Came For Me

by Asha Jaffar “I have been living in Kibera for 34 years. I’m now moved to an 8×8 room with my family.” Victim of the demolition It has always been happening. I can’t remember when it started but it’s been going on for very long and I’m tired of it. It gets tiring having your homes destroyed

How To Be A Kenyan

There comes a time when one is called to great things. One of those things is being Kenyan. How does one become Kenyan, you ask? You have come to the right place. Religion: Praise God? Amen! It does not matter where you are, who you are with, or what their religious beliefs are, discussions about

Misogyny: From The Boardroom To The Bedroom

by Samira Sawlani In every nation, archived away are unaired episodes on subjects which are either conveniently ignored or so internalised by society that they cease to be seen as injustices and thus retain a sense of banality. One such issue is that of misogyny, the negative attitude we hold towards females which men, women,

Asking For Stories

by Wanjiku Mungai This is what terrifies me: one day, we’ll wake up and find that all of the stories are gone. Let me explain. I find myself thinking more about endings as I grow older. Of late, I’ve been thinking specifically about what comes after the end. Not in the sense of what comes

Disappearing Bodies

The man who sharpens knives  in my neighbourhood is a middle aged Kenyan man. He can’t be more than 38 years old, although the wrinkles on his forehead beg to differ. His hands don’t look like they were made for delicate work. They have a large awkwardness that comes with the life of a casual

Women and The Law: A Spotlight On Recent Kenyan Legislation

This past weekend, I was fortunate to attend the second Atieno Project Unconference and learn about how the law affects women, especially bills and acts written with women in mind, such as The Protection against Domestic Violence Bill (2013) and The Reproductive Health Care Bill (2014). The discussion was lively and informative, and there were

That’s So Gay!

“Oh,” the man said. “Oh, yeah— starry-eyed coon with way, way too much money, who thinks there ain’t nothin’ more important than the lives of some crazy black faggots.” He grunted. Though he was surprised, Eric laughed. “If you are one— a black faggot, I mean— that can seem pretty important to you, actually.” Black

24 Hours Of The Day

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Anne Moraa This is true – if creatively so, if only emotively so, if only my truth. I can only write it now,

My Land Is Not Kenya: The Folly Of Patriotism

You only got one mama You only got one pa You only got one life to live No matter who you are You can go the whole world over Every city has its dawn But everybody liveth has one place where he was born And mine is Kenya, so warm and wild and free You’ll

Crunching

Things that are dead make the most noise. I realise this as I try to walk through a garden. It’s the live things that you will step on with no sound, or minimal sounds. Dead things creak, bend, protest, demand to be heard, acknowledged. Perhaps it is because, being dead, there is nothing to fear.

Kenya: A State Of Perpetual Fear And Chaos

From Wednesday 18th June to Friday 20th June 2014, I got to experience life in Kakuma, at the refugee camp. A couple of bloggers and I went there courtesy of UNHCR to commemorate World Refugee Day, and each day, we had opportunities to interact with the host community, the Turkana, and the refugees, who are of

The Makings Of A Sex Addict

This essay is taken from Brainstorm’s second e-book, (In)Sanity: What “Crazy” Looks Like, which is on mental health in Kenya and is available for free. DOWNLOAD IT HERE to read more such essays. by Anonymous What can I tell you about myself?  I’m a single mother of two wonderful children, I’m half Kenyan but grew up

What’s In a Name? Everything

“…Say their names: Kiptoo, Onyango, Achieng’, Nyambura, Cheruiyot Say their names: missing, burned, raped, decapitated, insane Say their names: scared, criminalized, hated, feared, intimidated.” – Witness 95 One can only imagine what Darius Mwanzi was doing that evening. Maybe he had just had a beer with his friends, maybe he didn’t drink, maybe he was with

Outrage Is The New Black: On Vera Sidika and The Campus Diva

This essay was written before the occurrence of the Mpeketoni Attack. We as Brainstorm extend our deepest condolences to all those affected by the attack, and to Kenya as a whole. Outrage Pornography: Memes, news articles, TV segments, email forwards, or other forms of media that are designed to invoke outrage. This is especially true

Here, Have Your Safety.

The President made an infomercial for security. This seems to be something we need to think about. What does it mean when safety is packaged and given to us in a 1 minute 45 seconds long clip? Morgan Bassichis writes: “… we internalize and embody this understanding—“you make me feel unsafe, that’s an unsafe neighborhood,

Corruption and Terror: Somali Community in Kenya Caught in the Crossfire

by Samira Sawlani “The Country chose its prey. Seduced them, made them believe they owned it and then gobbled them down, often in the most tender of ways—like a python.” “Kenya is treacherous.” The above are excerpts from Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor’s novel “Dust”. Though they form part of a fictional story, for many in Kenya,

Architects Of Our Own Despair: Thoughts On Poverty

“Once poverty is gone, we’ll need to build museums to display its horrors to future generations. They’ll wonder why poverty continued so long in human society – how a few people could live in luxury while billions dwelt in misery, deprivation and despair.” Mohammed Yunus It is easy to think of poverty as a thing

The First Thing We Do, Let’s Kill All The Lawyers

– Dick, the Butcher in Shakespeare’s Henry VI by Awuor Anyango On attending the Centre for Intellectual property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT) World Intellectual Property day at the Strathmore Law School, I was a bit shocked at the turn out. Lawyers easily outnumbered the visual artists, despite the session being based on the film

Something Somewhere Didn’t Click

Dear Mr President. It has been 6 months since our performance at Kenya@50! Please pay us our dues. @UKenyatta #kenyaat50 Sauti Sol There is something oddly symbolic about that tweet and, more particularly, the reactions to that tweet. It now comes to light that the Kenya at 50 celebrations were rife with corruption, dodgy bookkeeping

The Rape Issue

[Trigger Warning: This piece may be traumatising to victims of rape or sexual abuse] by K. A. ALI A court sentenced an 80 year old woman to seven years imprisonment for circumcising a young girl without her parent’s consent. The Daily Nation reported that when she was offered mitigation she responded that “the court could

Between Hope and a Hard Place

On many occasions when talking about Brainstorm, the journal, the future and the work that we believe that this journal should do, I’ve been asked about hope. This question comes up again with people who read my blog. And it’s not just me, it’s like the message that is being passed across by many writers,

Sharing The Spoils: The Division Of Revenue Bill 2014

The Division of Revenue Bill (DoRB), 2014 is at the top of the agenda for parliament in their next couple of sittings, and as such, it is in form to explore its implications. This bill is the first step in our annual budgeting cycle, and is particularly important as it should work to ensure the

Kitu Kidogo May Not Be The Problem

A few days ago I saw a tweet. I can’t remember who tweeted it, but what it asked, many Kenyans have been asking  for a long time. “Imagine how much corruption would reduce if we just stopped giving bribes?” This has been the predominant thinking in the country about how to handle corruption for the

My Day With Al Gore

by Kristin Muthui One thing that is becoming very clear, as people continue to argue about climate change and its impact on society, is that if we want to change the situation, we need to address inequality before it threatens our way of life. On a global level, this manifests itself in the strange mechanisms

Even The Streets Aren’t Safe

by Sheila Maingi A few weeks ago, I shared an incident on Twitter that happened to me on my way from work. It was a normal weekday evening and, having wrapped up at the office, I set out for home. I had hardly walked a few metres from the office when I saw three young

Footnotes On Death

In our sometimes unfortunate journey through this planet, we must experience death. We experience the death of loved ones, unloved ones, and ultimately, our own deaths. I rarely meditate on the meaning of many of life’s phenomena – I like to joke that I have the emotional depth of a banana – but this week,

Memory Serves You Wrong

Take back your memories.  – Witness #115 There is something about remembering that is completely anti-establishment. Memories are fragile things, and because we continue to experience things collectively as individuals, they are also very subjective. It’s easy to say “I remember…” and be saying something that is completely false. This has been on my mind as

Discovering Women

I used to be a boys’ girl. The type of girl who said things like “I have more guy pals than girl pals. In fact, over 90% of my pals are guys. I prefer guys to girls cause guys don’t have drama. They don’t waste time discussing non-issues like nail polish, shopping and guys. They

Systemic Begging

by Caroline Maina Since Form 1 placements started, there have been several articles in the Daily Nation featuring students risking illiteracy due to poverty. Were I an outsider reading this paper, I would conclude that Kenyans are poor, their politicians are greedy and that Machakos is the capital city based on its development. These articles

A Shot in the Dark

No one else seems to worry, as I do, that the money demanded by someone whose finger nurses the trigger of an AK – 47 is less a tip than a ransom. – Teju Cole, Every Day is for The Thief Fact: Between March and August 2013 the police in Kenya shot, and killed, at

I Have Seen The Devil

This is what he looks like. At least that is what some people in Kisumu think he looks like. The Sikh community in the area put up the monument, depicting a praying person (I fail to understand art many times, but this time the meaning of this piece failed to escape me), to commemorate 100

I Am Not a Brand

Identity, I have been told, is impossible. And it is increasingly getting harder with the globalization of life. It is interesting to see the language(s) that emerge to define exactly what is going on in this place we call home. I, however, find it hard to accept the personal brand. No matter how impossible identity

The Fallacy of Public Participation

by Shitemi Khamadi Recurrent protests in counties on increased levies and taxes by county governments need to ignite discourses on what public participation entails. At face value, the protesters, including traders and boda boda operators among others, have a genuine concern.However, when one delves deeper, counties have limited sources of revenue and if development is

Dear Africa: Don’t Let Them Take The Internet

By July 2014 or January 2015, the African Union (AU) is expected to ratify the African Union Convention on Confidence and Security in Cyberspace (AUCC). The AU is having its 22nd assembly in Addis Ababa currently, running until 1st February, and the ratification was to take place at this meeting until it was postponed. Such

Lupita Goes To Hollywood

Like Lupita was good in Shuga but up until the United States approves her that’s when we accept that hey she is good Daidey A few years ago, Lupita Nyong’o was the star of a show called Shuga. Twitter then was not what it is now. There were fewer people on it, fewer trending topics

All Animals Are Equal

All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. George Orwell, Animal Farm Animal Farm satirizes human beings and the nations of the world, specifically the Russian Communist state, using animals. The main message of the book comes out clearly by the end: that power cannot be divided equally – that once

The Africas And the Complexity of Our Media Problems

I don’t like this expression ‘First World problems.’ It is false and it is condescending. – Teju Cole An article in Al Jazeera talks about how the Western media is always getting the story wrong. It is, more importantly, asking why we instinctively turn to Western Media outlets – as if the rest of the media

On Important Writing And New Years

It is important to keep talking, keep discussing, keep creating and keep imagining. It is also important that we dwell, that we refuse to move when all around the world insists that we move forward. A perfect time for this sort of reflection is when the year comes to an end. This week, instead of

The EAC Conundrum

The East African Community (EAC), a regional intergovernmental organization, was re-formed in 1999 by the Republic of Kenya, the United Republic of Tanzania and the Republic of Uganda after the collapse of the original EAC in 1977. The Republic of Rwanda and the Republic of Burundi became member states in 2007, and South Sudan has

Cut The Scrap!

by Owaahh Scrap metal is an unattractive topic because its name implies rust and junk. That is its camouflage and strength. Scrap metal in Kenya is actually a multi-billion shilling sector built on theft, vandalism, economic sabotage, and pure avarice. The scrap metal industry in Kenya is unregulated save for a few policies that are

But I’m a Good Homosexual Christian…

by Innocent Gitoho* I am a Kenyan man and I am gay. Yes, to the uninitiated, I am attracted to men, on occasion I have had sex with those men and I have pursued love and intimacy just like any heterosexual man and woman. But this is not the ‘Be all! End all!’ of who

This is a Corruption Free Zone

In order to withstand the weather, we had to become stone –          Audre Lorde Anyone who has been in a government office has, without a doubt, seen this sing “This is a corruption free zone.” Usually it is stuck above a till window, or next to other casual signs like “no smoking” and “please put

Interrogating The Nyumba Kumi Initiative

by Shitemi Khamadi Two weeks ago this essay was published on Brainstorm about the Nyumba Kumi initiative. This is a reply. The ambitious Nyumba Kumi plan in which people should know at least ten of their neighbours underlines how critically the government views security. It brings to the door step of individuals the mandate to

We Have To Live

by Nduta Trigger Warning: This article contains accounts of sexual assault and may be triggering to some people. There is such violence in the demands to be okay, to live. Kweli Gee I wish to return to something for a bit. Just over two weeks ago, a friend of mine shared this video (re: anti-rape

Nyumba Kumi And Institutional Failure In Kenya

After the Westgate attack of September 2013, Kenyans were forced to perform a post-mortem of the situation, and many questions came up. The one thing that was agreed upon was that the number of institutional failures that led up to the attack was jarring. The terrorists were said to have rented a shop in the

Black is the New Black

Last week I went for a protest march. At the Inspector General’s office, everybody was scrambling to hear the response. Eager to listen, I made my way to the front as well. At some point I felt an arm on my shoulder – trying to shove me aside. Amidst standing my ground I turned and

We Don’t Need No Education

There’s no need to attend university. The world is a wondrous place awash with myriad opportunities, all one has to do is seek them. Or is it? Nairobi’s CBD, for example, feels like every second building houses a university campus. The place is veritably colonized by the campuses of far-flung universities. “It’s a brave new

The Revolution Will Be Written In HTML

After the Westgate attack, an American friend who works as a freelance journalist based in Kenya tweeted that he was tired of listening to a government that spouts lies and a nation that was unwilling to question it. To which I responded that several questions were being asked daily, minute by minute even, especially online

Warning, Rape Ahead

This article in the Daily Nation tells the completely heart wrenching story of Liz, a girl in Busia who was brutally raped and then thrown in a pit latrine to die, something she refused to do. Alive now, but with a bad case of fistula and a broken back – she bays for some sort

Lead Us Not To The Test

On a Saturday afternoon, I find a friend’s nephew hard at work tackling fifty KCPE Kiswahili questions. This scene is repeated in a number of homes across the country. Most candidates are studying by doing tests. And often very many at a time. What do they and their parents think about this state of affairs?

Death By VAT

In 2013, the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act passed by parliament increased the number of taxable goods – by reducing the number of exempt and zero rated goods. The government hopes to raise an additional Sh. 10 billion per month in doing so. The standard rate of VAT remains 16%. In theory, this is what

Thought Begets Thought

 Strangers are not simply those who are not known in this dwelling, but those who are, in their very proximity, already recognized as not belonging, as being out of place. –          Sara Ahmed, Strange Encounters (Embodied Others in Post Coloniality) At this time, in this country, many people are looking inwards. Trying to find themselves,

Forget your privileged self for a while

I recently wrote a blog post about my experience using a menstrual cup that spurred interesting conversations. They highlighted myriad cultural, economic, and social matters that rarely come to the fore in conversation. They opened dialogue about women’s bodies, access to sanitary services, and what it means to take these things for granted. The conversations

Abortion in August: When Choice Isn’t the Best Thing

by Kenne Mwikya The August school holiday is a month in which school-going kids can blow off steam after the longest school term of the year. It is a time of heightened apprehension among parents seeking to constantly monitor their children, parents who are suspicious of their kids or suspicious of the world in which

God Will Save Us

I was heading to Ngumo from South B sometime last month, and Route 33 matatus were charging Sh. 50, up from the usual Sh. 30. The makanga said it was because of the traffic jam on the South C route; they were going to have to use Mombasa Road. This is more expensive as they

What Are You Reading?

Thin slicing, contrary to what the word may sound like, is not a way to come out with a crunchier and more fragile piece of bread.  Coined in 1992 by Nalini Amabady it is the ability to find a pattern based on small bits of information. In Blink, the power of thinking without thinking, Malcolm

Why Don’t You Want Me?

One of the few things we can agree on about Kenya is that we are a deeply religious nation. Kenya is listed among the world’s top 10 religious countries, with 88% of its people ascribing to religious teachings. 47% are Protestants while 23.5% are Roman Catholics, meaning that 80% of Kenya’s religious population is Christian.

The Politics of Beauty

by Nkatha Obungu In the innocent space of childhood fantasy, I wanted to be a model when I grew up. This dream was so real and vivid to me that, for a while, I adopted a gait that must have seemed like a strange cross between a catwalk and limp. My idea of a model

Disposable Kenyans

“We must see killability as too high a price to pay for development, for peace” ~Keguro Macharia  Last week there were five suspected gangsters shot down in the Loresho area. The police said that they were suspected of committing several crimes, hence their deaths made things better in the long run, because it brought safety

An Alternative View Of Our Legal System

It’s not often that one finds a system that closely parallels the society one lives in. Every so often, however, an element of one’s environment seems to be a microcosm of something greater. The thing I perceive to be an organic representation of Kenyans and the constitution is this: BebaPay Google and Equity Bank partnered

A Young Bull Mounts From the Head

by Linda Musita An African proverb implies that a young bull does not know the back of a cow from its front.  What the adolescent does when it is horny is try to get itself “in” through the face of its object of desire. I would like to assume it is because the young bull

Don’t “Africa” Me

“Just landed in the beautiful country of Africa..I can tell you that the world is excited for #TheGifted,” tweeted Rick Ross on June 24th 2013. In this era of globalization and the Internet, the man still thinks Africa is a country. We may point at our screens and laugh at him for displaying his ignorance,

Silence is a Good Man

I should probably write this with a qualification. I am a man. I cannot say I understand what women go through every day. I can leave the house at 10pm without thinking of whether or not I will be raped. I can go into a night club, on my own, just because I want to

The State of Kenyan Education

Kenyan children are expectantly waiting for their laptops. Children across the republic sit for dinner and look askance at the parents who voted in a government that promised them laptops. This (looking forward to laptops) is, for me, symptomatic of what ails Kenyan education. An obsession with technology as the be-all and end-all. Show me