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Kenya is so toxic because we tell Eurocentric stories about ourselves. In tourism, in education, everyone from civil servants to parents to lovers repeats degrading stories about ourselves. And we even fact check and provide data to support our abuse.
For example, we repeat the story of job market yet it was a colonial settler one. We assume that teaching home science in schools is about skill and yet it's about teaching the European home lifestyle. We talk about "quality" when it was a neoliberal destruction of our education.
We accept manufacturing and industrial revolution as the gospel truth, not realizing that AFRICAN raw materials, produced through our oppression, were used in British industry. So if you want an Industrial revolution, exactly whom do you want to be exploited, if it's not you?
The stories we tell about gender and ethnicity are the worst. We portray Roman cannibalism as "African patriarchy," we call the stories missionaries told about rescuing African women "feminism," and we talk about our ethnic groups the way the Romans talked about barbarians.
That's why few of us noticed that Caroline Mutoko's bashing of men was supported by Robert Alai. Toxic feminism and #boychild belong to the same whatsapp group, but we Kenyans go skinny dipping in that toxic conversation.
Elitist women say "you men are trash," and the #boychild guys basically agree, except that they explain "it's your fault; you neglected the boy child." Then the women reply, "yes, but your privilege..." Then #boychild activists reply, yet again, "well, it's your fault because..."
What kind of elitist, cross gender poison is this?
Both stories are rooted in Western ones. #Boychild is an uthamakistan story yet iuthamakistan doesn't give a hoot about its biggest advocates.
Both stories are rooted in Western ones. #Boychild is an uthamakistan story yet iuthamakistan doesn't give a hoot about its biggest advocates.
So those of you Kenyans who want to take sides on this poison, do it at your own risk. As for me and my house, we will affirm both men and women, and explain the roots of the oppression that humiliates both and turns us against each other, the same way tribe is used.
And yes, you can quote this thread in an academic journal article about how I am an unapologetic patriarchal princess, or in a blog post about Kenyan toxic feminists. Take your best shot. I survived Cambridge Analytica.
Those of us who are for love and freedom, let's go for it.
Those of us who are for love and freedom, let's go for it.
