History is history;whether made up of bad or good events.It provides us with a compass where we should go.The dark moments in the Kenyan history can be summarized but not limited to the Wagalla massacre,1982 coup de tat and Bulla Karatasi massacre.
On the flipside,the light moments can be summarized but not limited to Kenya’s day of attaining independence, the second liberation struggle and ushering a new era in 2002 general elections.
Going back to what I had said earlier, history gives a society a direction.But what happens if the same history is not revealed to her people?Does the society fall prone to repeating the mistakes of the past?
A people without the knowledge of their past history ,origin and culture is like a tree without root-Marcus Garvey
This past week,the 17th of August,I attended an event dubbed “Scrutinizing our Kenyan past as youths”The speakers were majorly teachers and professors of history drawn from different universities in Kenya.
We were taken through sessions which enlightened us.But before that most of us were green about our history.Some of us had alittle knowledge of the Kenyan history thanks to the history subject being taught in highschool while others confessed the fact that knowing our history was not that important.
In the middle of the whole event,it came clear that in as much as the youths want know the past,no one was there to discuss it.Putting in mind that at the event we had youths drawn from different parts of the country.
The bigger picture is that it is not only the youths at the event that are victims of not knowing their history,many are out there in the dark while the memories are slowly fading away.
This week the 22nd of August, a day very significant to the people of Kenya when we lost our founding father the late Mzee Jomoo Kenyata was marked and has the norm dictates it is accompanied by laying of the wreath at the museoleum.The place unfortunately is usually a no-go-zone the public,which should not be the case.The younger generation also wants to pay respect to their founding father not just through television sets and radios.
Such kinds of actions are what makes it for the youths to look back and reflect.
Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it-Winston Churchill
Dark moments in our nation;The 2007/2008 Post Election Violence,The Wagalla Massacre and The Bula Karatasi massacre indeed taught us a lesson as country men and women.Many souls were lost.What if the millenials do not even know this history?They cannot learn from it and therefore they can repeat the mistakes commited before them.
Every youth in the forum was challenged to look back and scrutinize their history.This includes them exhausting means that will help them gain knowledge i.e The internet, visiting places like The National Archives in Nairobi.Places like Garissa lack such kinds of monuments and therefore the relevant people should do something about it.
At the end of the day though it all boils down to interest.The interest of looking back.
Adios!
wandera'stelltale 