tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9053807722223784752024-03-05T09:30:52.550-08:00From thoughts into wordsR Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.comBlogger93125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-14135196849685222362022-04-08T06:57:00.001-07:002022-11-16T06:58:53.422-08:00Don't look up<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: georgia; font-size: small;">I just got done watching the film <i>Don't Look Up.</i> I remember that I felt distinctly sad watching the earth's last moments... Perhaps it was because I felt that it was only a matter of time before a similar scenario played out in real life.</span></p><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The idea that we and everything that we know will one day come to an end is humbling. I can't help thinking, if we can all cease to exist in a flash, then what does that say about our significance and about the meaning that we have attached to so many things? We think we are so important that some of us actually have an anthropocentric view of the entire universe. That is to say, we believe that we are the raison d'etre for all that exists. The idea that a comet strike could obliterate everything and make it seem as if we never existed makes me realize how ridiculous that idea is.</span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto" style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Does the fact that we possess this state of mind called intelligence that allows us to take note of our surroundings and to study them and attempt to master them make us a somewhat different and more noteworthy species? Are we really different in that sense? Do other species possess the same traits but simply have a less observable impact than we do (from our perspective)? Alternatively, do whatever unique traits we have and our unfortunate tendency to increasingly view ourselves as being separate from our surroundings mean that we pose a threat to the greater good?</span></div>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-41114898272247356792018-10-15T02:45:00.000-07:002018-10-15T03:03:03.621-07:00"Not up to Par"<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #1d2129; display: block; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 6px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
I remember being in high school in Kenya and, on two separate occasions, having a male schoolmate walk up to me and either tell me he didn't like my hairstyle or it was not up too par. The key word in that sentence: male. Did I mention that the schoolmates in question were both black?</div>
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My sin: my hair was unrelaxed. Whether it was neat and tied back or in neat braids/lines, it was apparently a problem. Hair was not hair unless chemicals or extreme heat had been used to straighten it. There were "app<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif;">roved hairstyles" for the middle class. And they were so well-known that even the boys knew what was acceptable and what wasn't. I remember some others asking me if I was saved because, apparently, that was the only rational explanation for not relaxing one's hair: a religious injunction.</span></div>
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Imagine I was just okay with my hair as it was. In the same way that I was okay with my skin as it was. There was no compelling reason to change them radically, no conviction on my part that if I used relaxer (or bleach), a new Jerusalem would descend to earth. I also wondered why people felt that girls and women had to straighten their hair (or lighten their skin) when boys and men of the same species, with the same genetic heritage, didn't seem to have the same rule hanging over their heads.</div>
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-54093501211448823972017-11-22T01:57:00.003-08:002017-11-22T02:27:33.379-08:00Other People Exist and Their Voices Matter<div data-block="true" data-editor="5fv24" data-offset-key="4gbvj-0-0" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<span data-offset-key="4gbvj-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">A brief conversation I had this morning has me thinking about one of the things that is wrong with a significant number of the people who belong to our upper classes and our political elites. A decent number of the folks who rule us and their relatives and friends seem to believe that nothing exists but their experiences and perspectives. So, to them, the fact that there is plenty of misery in Kenya at this precise moment is something that can be elided over, dismissed as a minor inconvenience. It's not them who have been experiencing the misery, so they don't want to talk about it. Some of these folks actually seem to think that Kenyans have been enjoying five golden years, if we are to believe their words. And when they encounter criticism of the regime or their favorite politicians, they experience a meltdown.</span></span><br />
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<span data-offset-key="4emoo-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">They remind me of all those people who come out guns blazing when people criticize a recently deceased politician who caused untold misery to thousands or millions when he lived. They say, "Think about his relatives. Imagine how they would feel if they read these words." And that's a valid point, of course. Their relatives and friends are human beings whose experiences and feelings matter in the scheme of things. They have lost a parent, a sibling, a child, a friend. They are experiencing grief. I respect that and their right to mourn. But, having said that, don't the feelings of the relatives and friends of their victims matter too? If your father was illegally gunned down by a shooting squad because he was an inconvenience to the regime, don't you have a right to express anger about the man/woman who okayed that execution or the man/woman who helped cover it up and protect the killers after the fact? Don't you have a right to be angry when people describe that man or woman as some saintly figure who brought prosperity to the nation?</span></span><br />
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<span data-offset-key="7b27r-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Now, by the same token, if you are living in a country where injustice prevails and brutalizing poverty hobbles the majority of the population, do you not have a right to be angry about the status quo? Do you not have a right to criticize the men and women responsible for that, whether or not they are good fathers/mothers, donate to the church, or cry when they're sad?</span></span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="2u5vl-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">Do people really understand that power is a huge responsibility and that when you gain political power and/or economic power, your capacity to influence society negatively or positively increases exponentially? Do they understand that the actions or words of a man or woman with power can make the difference between life and death for a miserably poor man or woman who has never met him/her? Do they understand that when you pay someone a salary to serve you as an elected leader or as a government employee, he/she is actually accountable to you? If you paid a mechanic to fix your car, you wouldn't make excuses for him if he brought it back to you with the original problem unfixed. If your children's school hired an alcoholic with a suspended license to drive the school bus, you wouldn't calmly accept it. So why is it that people expect others to be accommodating of those who do the equivalent to thousands or millions of citizens?</span></span></div>
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<span data-offset-key="5cd00-0-0" style="font-family: inherit;"><span data-text="true" style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">These are the questions that I ask of my Kenyan brothers and sisters who think that their comfort in their tribal cocoons and upper class haunts absolves them of the responsibility to acknowledge that other people exist and their voices matter.</span></span></div>
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R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-19600724016932997512017-06-09T04:09:00.000-07:002017-09-17T04:11:21.329-07:00"African men do not talk about kitchen issues in public."<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: white; color: #1d2129; display: block; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; margin: 0px 0px 6px; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">
Someone wrote a comment to this effect in response to a post by a man about the elevated prices of maize meal (a Kenyan staple): "African men do not talk about kitchen issues in public."</div>
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Now, under normal circumstances, I would have dismissed the comment as the silly opinion of one person. But these were not normal circumstances. To see what I mean, check out this article, which was published the other day:<span> </span><a data-ft="{"tn":"-U"}" data-lynx-mode="async" href="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nation.co.ke%2Flifestyle%2FDN2%2FHey-were-men-we-dont-discuss-the-cost-of-food%2F957860-3958554-10bg3e5%2Findex.html&h=ATNtAPstnvyyIf5_I0-x61Pot4L_DDSy76ZkFDnOQRsUK_Dmfvyclyr14WnMu5Mjir6PgNHzdVk19zwwEaptYF4Ey4EtezGjuPDXWQM3cP1V05D6C7BMMwIaz9TfuxfuumgW7onHMFk_LjyEsa3v3ZMzIQNGS0xCUFjqpMobwv0kl1ze4WB0oZw8FnbqCs4nNJHAVJ1nWbOLxv2_DRL4Vo9SBCOiSs_06iqhAgV8hYueyfuZY1UHw3xIuWXL1vBqj5vaI70e7bK3sKCiqMI_I-qHwUAJnQkUmEY" rel="noopener" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://www.nation.co.ke/…/Hey-were-men-we-dont-discuss-the-…</a></div>
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As hard<span> </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline; font-family: inherit;">as it is to believe, it appears that a noteworthy proportion of Kenyan men actually subscribe to this way of thinking. The sentiment was obviously designed to silence those who would criticize the government of the day. But it points to a larger problem in our society: People are actually conditioning themselves to be stupid in the name of preserving "African culture/masculinity."</span></div>
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What kind of society tries to censor people who want to express concern about the accessibility of food, one of our most basic needs? We're talking about food, not an afternoon of golf in a country club. Without sufficient access to affordable food, people experience malnutrition and some die. These people include the most vulnerable among us: children. Yet some among us are actually telling men to shut up as some of our people face starvation or struggle with malnutrition because it is the "manly" thing to do.</div>
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You know, there's only so much we can blame our politicians for. At some point, we have to accept that we, the people, are the worst kind of idiots.</div>
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<b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-12760954999906600392015-09-27T05:48:00.000-07:002015-09-27T05:55:12.374-07:00BEING "PERFECT" AIN'T EASY<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The world
is a messed up place. There’s no shortage of flawed people and things to point
fingers at and express dismay about. Once in a while, doing so is worthwhile.
By identifying problems and talking about them, we can sometimes fix them and
make the world a little bit better. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The
problem is that we often get caught up fixing other people and things and
forget that we are just as flawed. And so we end up with the theologian who
claims to be morally opposed to violence but is able to rationalize the
particular forms of violence he is involved in perpetrating. Then there’s the uber-arrogant
woman who gives her colleague a lengthy, public dressing down “for being
arrogant” and somehow manages to convince herself that she is the epitome of humility.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">It is easy
to marvel at the stupidity/immorality/incompetence/corruption/laziness
of “that person” or “those people.” The really hard bit comes when one has to
put oneself under the microscope, magnify all the
idiosyncrasies/failings/limitations, and endure an uncomfortable amount of
scrutiny. It is difficult but it has to be done. Because, honestly, if we don’t
hold ourselves accountable or seek to improve ourselves, who will? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-50174106888887498122014-10-12T05:20:00.000-07:002014-10-12T05:20:52.858-07:00Sexual Assault and Gendered Stereotypes<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2014/10/sexual-assault-and-gendered-stereotypes.html">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2014/10/sexual-assault-and-gendered-stereotypes.html</a><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">Lately, I’ve been coming across articles that address cases of gendered violence where the victims are men. The most recent piece I’ve read is </span><a href="http://www.psmag.com/navigation/politics-and-law/women-sexually-assault-men-92099/" style="color: #888888; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px; text-decoration: none;">“When Women Sexually Assault Men,”</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">by Livia Gershon. The thing that strikes me most about the article is its emphasis that we often dismiss the idea that a man has been sexually assaulted because of the stereotypes that we subscribe to. Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that the same holds true for our dismissal of the idea that a woman has been sexually assaulted:</span><br />
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THE NOTION THAT SEXUAL assault of a man by a woman is impossible, and even laughable, rests on the same gendered assumptions that are also used to downplay assaults on women by men. Even after decades of feminist activism, many discussions of sexual violence still center on telling women to stay sober and be cautious around men. The ideas behind that advice—the image of men’s sexual desires as constant and all-consuming and of women as the gatekeepers to sex—also makes it impossible for many people to imagine men as victims. If men are always seeking sex, and frequently shot down by disinterested women, then they should be grateful—or at least not traumatized—by any kind of sexual attention from a woman. Taking sexual coercion against men seriously gives us even more reason to fight against those stereotypes.</blockquote>
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These stereotypes have an impact on male victims of sexual assault and on their likeliness to report their experiences:</div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">
Men who experience sexual assault or other violence by intimate partners are less likely than women to report the incidents to the police. They frequently think no one will believe a woman sexually assaulted them, are embarrassed at not being able to fend off an attack by a woman, or harbor fears of being perceived as “gay” or not masculine for not wanting to have sex, Struckman-Johnson suggests.</blockquote>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">For me, this particular article is valuable because it touches on something I’ve been thinking about: the idea that men and women are radically different, enshrined in the title of a popular book, “Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus.” I haven’t read the book, but I have noticed how quick people are to grab on to the idea that men and women are so dramatically different that we have to learn each other’s “languages” and ways of thinking in order to better understand each other.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">Of course there are differences between men and women, based on biology and on the ways we have been socialized (and it follows that there are further variations based on culture, class, and other factors). But I think that, in our eagerness to emphasize these differences, we’ve been too quick to sweep our similarities under the carpet. By denying our similarities, we make it more difficult to recognize that other people have the capacity to feel disempowerment, pain, and shame, as we do. So we allow ourselves to diminish their experiences of discrimination and trauma, claiming that they can’t be as bad for “those people” as they are for us.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">I’m also starting to think that the tendency to emphasize our stereotyped differences is a way to avoid seeing ourselves and others as individuals. If we can put everything down to the rationale that “men are this way” or “women are that way,”, then we don’t have to recognize that people are individuals who subscribe to philosophies/belief systems and have personalities and the right to choose what kinds of situations to get into. Ultimately, this makes it easy to avoid examining our own behavior and motivations and taking responsibility for them. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">
<br /></div>
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Quoted in the article by Livia Gershon, Struckman-Johnson puts it well. She points out that stereotypes about women’s and men’s sexuality make it possible for female perpetrators to rationalize their sexual aggression and minimize the traumatic experiences of their victims:</div>
<br style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;" />
<blockquote class="tr_bq" style="background-color: white; color: #292929; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.4799995422363px;">
“Because of the idea that men are sexually oriented and wanting it all the time, it kind of lets them off the hook,” she says. “They get to assume they’ve got a ready and willing partner here who would just love to have sex with them. That is not the case, that’s denying individuality, it’s denying personality, it’s denying people’s rights to choose their sexual situations.”</blockquote>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-50839918873881875842013-07-21T07:13:00.000-07:002013-07-21T07:36:22.282-07:00Questions Folks are Asking in the Wake of Obama's Recent Trip to Sub-Saharan Africa<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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A blog post with the title, <a href="http://cknjuguna.blogspot.com/2013/07/3-ways-in-which-homosexuality-is-kind.html?spref=fb" target="_blank">"3 Ways In Which Homosexuality Is Kind Of Creepy,"</a>
pretty much summarizes some of the arguments that many have made
against homosexuality in the wake of Barrack Obama's recent trip to
sub-Saharan Africa and his statement on the need to uphold the human
rights of gays and lesbians. Below are my responses to a few of these
arguments:<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“But what I
don’t get is how a man could possibly find another man sexually attractive. Honestly,
that’s like the Six Million Dollar question I’ve had to grapple with all my
life, and by that I mean since I discovered that girls were kind of nice to
look at and to touch and to kiss and to…”</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">I’m
not sure why you’re grappling with this particular
question. It is a fact of life that some people feel same-sex
attraction. I imagine it has always been that way. You may disagree with
it,
but I’m sure nobody’s expecting you to take responsibility for other
people’s
sexuality. You don’t have to agree with it or understand it to recognize
that
others will enjoy consensual sex with other adults as they choose.
It seems to me that the issue here is failure to recognize your own
individuality and others’
individuality. We are not all one person. Live and let live. </span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“This formed
the background on the call by Hussein to African nations to decriminalize
homosexuality, and grant gay people the same basic human rights accorded to
non-gays. This has predictably opened a whole new can of worms, with many
Africans telling him to restrict his gay loving agenda within the United
States, of which he is the president.”</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">I
think there’s a huge difference between asking
people to decriminalize homosexuality between consenting adults and
asking them
to recognize gay marriage. The U.S. is not about to pressure anybody
into recognizing
gay marriage. If they tried to do that, they would open themselves up to
outside
pressure to recognize polygamy. I’m also willing to bet that, right now,
most
LGBT people on the African continent place a greater priority on
assuring their
physical safety than on walking down the aisle to exchange vows. Now, I
am
curious about where you stand on the fact that gays and lesbians are
subjected
to unprovoked violence and discrimination in our nation and other
African nations
on a daily basis. Because that is the real issue that Obama was
addressing. Many African politicians and religious leaders conveniently
avoid addressing the violence. And too many ordinary citizens allow them
to do that.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“For example, I
have no qualms about mob justice. In my book, if a thief is caught in the act,
kill him dead. No apologies.” </span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">So let me get this straight, you’re basically
saying that if a poor, four-year-old kid who has not had anything to eat for days steals a
tomato from a greengrocer’s, he should be stoned or burned to death? Also, what if somebody lied about
catching somebody else in the act of stealing (something that happens pretty
frequently in Nairobi)? How would you know who was lying? Do you honestly
believe this is a progressive position?</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“Now, when you
have two men doing it with each other (please note that I shall not be
referring to lesbian sex for aforementioned reasons), no little babies are
expected due to the serious lack of a womb, ovaries and other baby making
equipment necessary for a successful conception.”</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Even
if you acknowledge unfertile couples, you’re still arguing that they
should not have sex because “it takes procreation out of the
equation.” You’re also arguing against family planning, the use of
condoms, and the very conservative idea that sex strengthens the
emotional bond between a loving, married couple. The
argument that all sexual behavior must have procreation as its ultimate
goal is
not reflective of reality.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">Mind you, it is not desirable for every human
to have children. We have limited resources in our respective communities and
have already damaged the natural environment to accommodate the burgeoning
human population (case in point, Mau Forest). There may, theoretically, still be room for more people on
earth, but it won’t last forever. Very highly populated nations like China and
Egypt are already grappling with that.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“Now, picture
this: if everyone were to suddenly find their inner gay, how long do you think
it would take for the human race to be extinct?”</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">I don’t think this is an effective argument
against homosexuality. It’s parallel to arguing that some kids should not be
allowed to have white collar aspirations because, if we were all white collar
workers, nobody would be a farmer and we would all starve to death. Now please
be honest, is Barrack Obama or anybody else really arguing that heterosexuality
should completely be replaced by homosexuality?</span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">“Please excuse
my ignorance, but how exactly does this work? Doesn’t this make for some pretty
messed up kids who have no concept of the distinction between male and female?”
</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">The
only way to find the answer is to look for
it. Look for articles and videos about the subject. There are plenty
online, some narrated by people who were raised by gay couples. And
don’t just limit yourself to reading or watching people who share
perspectives
similar to yours. </span></li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;">By
the way, you come across as very sheltered
if you honestly believe the only legitimately recognized form of
marriage
globally is one woman + one man. There is such a thing as polygamy,
which can take
the form of one man and several women. And, in some parts of Asia, there
are
communities that encourage women to marry more than one man (all of them
brothers to each other). According to your argument, all kids from such
families are totally messed up and there's little hope for them.</span></li>
</ul>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"> </span><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><br /></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-86690005707253853132013-06-24T11:51:00.002-07:002013-06-24T11:51:44.869-07:00Violence and Accountability<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
Lately, there have been many media reports about rape incidents and the
public’s responses to them. So discussions of victim-blaming, what it constitutes,
and why it is wrong have been making a regular appearance in various electronic
magazines and on discussion forums. The discussions that have made the most sense
to me have been those that have emphasized that rape is an act of violence and
domination.<br />
<br />
As many have already pointed out, there is too much of a tendency to think
of rape as a sexual act, and to therefore explain it away as a “normal”
response to a victim who was “asking for it.” I have often heard the argument
that, if we were talking about any other form of violence, or if the rape
victim was male, people would not be so quick to resort to victim-blaming. I
don’t agree with that, though. In fact, based on what I have seen and heard
over the years, I think that more and more people are inclined to view vulnerability
as something to be detested and dominance and power as ideals. It is very much
evident, not just in the way they talk about rape victims, but also in the way
they talk about other individuals or groups of people who have been subjected
to violence, systemic or otherwise.<br />
<br />
These are learned attitudes. They’re not just pulled out of the thin air. That’s
why I absolutely agree with those who say that we have to educate youth and
adults to regard rape as unacceptable and to hold rapists responsible for their
actions. But I think the education has to be broader than that. It really
should address our attitudes towards violence and victims of violence as a
whole. <br />
<br />
<a href="http://rhrealitycheck.org/article/2013/06/24/who-is-to-blame-for-rape-hazing-and-bullying-its-simple-rapists-and-bullies-not-victims/">An
article on RHRealityCheck</a> discusses precisely this issue, referring, at
some length, to the violent sexual assault of a 13-year-old boy, the use of
euphemisms to disguise the violence that was done to him, and the subsequent
scapegoating of the boy and his family by residents of their town. The boy’s story
is told in greater detail <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/frontpage/ci_23505991/sodomy-hazing-leaves-13-year-old-victim-outcast?source=rss">here</a>.
<br />
<br />
I find it very troubling that the town turned away from the boy when it
seemed evident that the violence he was subjected to was part of a ‘tradition.’
This form of sexual violence is likely to have been done to other boys, and
probably will be done to yet others – the town residents’ sons, brothers,
cousins, nephews, grandsons. So why isn’t the first instinct of these people to
protect the boy? Also, where on earth did the boy’s attackers learn how to rape
a younger boy? This is not the behavior that anyone in their right mind expects
of teenage boys. Were they themselves victims of similar attacks in the name of
“hazing”? The article raises very troubling questions about the types of
communities we’re living in and about our safety and the safety of those we
love. It makes it pretty evident that violence and victim-blaming are problems
that we need to address now.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span> </span><br />
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-45550208636956928352013-02-10T05:46:00.001-08:002013-02-10T07:15:32.087-08:00On Partington's "War on Kwani?"<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Yesterday’s <i>Nation</i> features
an article by Stephen Derwent Partington, “<a href="http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/1688734/-/item/0/-/73602o/-/index.html">War
on Kwani? marks the death of literary engagement and rise of spite.”</a> The
article spotlights Kenya’s ‘literary wars,’ and highlights the regular cycle of
criticism that some Kenyan academics direct against the journal <i>Kwani?</i> and those associated with
it. However, the article does more than that: It can also be read as commentary
on inter-generational conflict in contemporary Kenya.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Like many, I have read a good amount
of the literary criticism in Kenyan newspapers over the past few years. And,
like them, I have noticed that a disproportionate number of the articles consist
primarily of academics taking pot shots at people who dare to create,
particularly those in the <i>Kwani?</i> camp. Little is constructive about much
of this criticism. In fact, as far as I can tell, most of it goes along the
lines of: "Unlike us, the younger generation has failed to create anything
worth acknowledging."<br />
<br />
This is noteworthy in a nation that has preserved political power in the hands
of one generation in its 50 years of independence. In every walk of life, older
Kenyans cast doubt on the ability of those younger than them to carry on old
traditions or build functional new ones. Interestingly, they never seem to realize
that, if the younger ones are really as mediocre as they claim, then that
reflects on them as mentors: <i>They can't have done a good job teaching and
mentoring if, as they claim, there is no talent in the younger generation.</i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I think it is definitely worth our
while to ask ourselves why our elites (cultural, political and otherwise) have
such a hard time handing over the baton to those who come after them. Why are
they reluctant to nurture and support budding talent? Fortunately for us, Stephen
D. Partington has taken it upon himself to attempt to broach this subject.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My favorite excerpts from the
article follow:</span></div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“How quickly we forget? How quickly
we return to valorise the theories of the very colonisers whose culture worked
to oppress us many decades ago? And how spitefully we do it, relishing our role
as the New Imperialists? The lazy complaints are all the same: our Kwani?-types
are ‘young’, they don’t consider literature’s ‘grand themes’, they are
‘urban-not-rural’ — yes, the right-winger, Leavis, loved his organicism — they
do not write according to the classic Aristotelian structure of ‘beginning,
middle and end’, they are ‘popular’, they fail to submit to the censoriousness
of gate-keeping ‘university experts’, they care about ‘minorities’, they are
‘vulgar’, they don’t use ‘pure linguistic forms’, they do not promote
‘traditional morality’.”</span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“In short, our ‘new moral formalism’
is a new conservative cowardice, an anti-reform return to the snobberies of the
past when and where we could as a middle-aged middle-class mix with our own and
choose not to see the slums, the young, the poor, women, and all those others
whose vulgarity offends us. And while we might, in the best of worlds, hope
that our academics might rise above the simplistic, petty awfulness of elitism
and go ‘public’ as intellectuals, it is clear that we cannot rely upon them —
or, at least, we can no longer rely upon many of our so-called ‘literary
intellectuals’ to show the solidarity with us that their forebears did. Instead,
we can expect the silence, in effect a turning away, that we saw from them in
2007-2008. They have not only thrown us to the wolves; to them, we are the
wolves, the disgusting young who would bite and rip at the mythical glory of
the world they believe we should inhabit. But we do not inhabit that world.
Yet. And the Kwani?-ites know it.” </span></div>
</blockquote>
<br />
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Two things stand out to me here.
First is the fact that our contemporary elites have adopted the language of our
one-time colonial elites. Second is their silence when faced with harsh Kenyan realities
that they have surely had a hand in creating or perpetuating. You know what all
of this tells me? It tells me that our cultural, political and other elites
have two favorite pastimes: criticizing those who came before them, and
criticizing those who follow in their footsteps. <i>But</i> they will not even acknowledge
their own part in creating the status quo; and it doesn’t seem to occur to them
that they should put themselves under the microscope.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If somebody were to ask me what our
biggest challenge as Kenyans was, I would say that this was it: the inability
of those at the helm to subject themselves to the same level of scrutiny they
subject others to. Predictably, most of us follow suit. It is no wonder that we
continue to perpetuate the injustices and inequalities that were set in place
during the colonial era.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span> </span></div>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-87443330689060037412013-02-03T01:16:00.000-08:002013-02-10T07:09:44.377-08:00The little things do matter.<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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Every time I hear the words “Kenya Vision 2030”, the cynic
in me bursts into life. <a href="http://www.vision2030.go.ke/">Kenya Vision
2030</a> is a development program envisioned to take the country to
middle-income status by the year 2030. The details of the blueprint are lovely
to read. Who wouldn’t want to see all the great projects come to fruition? But,
the voice in the back of my mind keeps telling me to set the grand images aside
and look at the little things.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
THE LITTLE THINGS</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think it’s great to dream of being bigger and better, but
to turn the dream into reality, one must address the little details. For
instance, industrialization and an improved transportation sector (presumably
including commuter trains) are highly dependent on a reliable electrical
supply. But what reliable electrical supply is there to speak of if, every time
it drizzles, neighborhoods experience power blackouts for hours? How can one
even start to make improved overall health and healthcare a realistic goal when
safe drinking water is not available in our taps? Mind you, many do not even
have access to tap water. Instead, they are reliant on boreholes, springs, rivers,
and other water sources which may very well be contaminated. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While we’re on the subject, what hope is there for a nation
whose various branches of government are not able to coordinate with each other
to make a decision as simple as choosing an election date that won’t set
students, their parents, and teachers back in significant ways? It is this last
point that I want to focus on in today’s blog entry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
An article in today’s edition of the Standard online makes
the <a href="http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000076454&pageNo=3&story_title=Kenya--The-Sh15b-cost-of-closing-schools-over-elections">alarming
announcement</a> that the national elections, which are due to take place
during the first term of the school year, will cost the Kenyan taxpayer at
least KSh15 billion. Rather than holding the elections during the school
holidays as has been the norm, the decision makers decided to hold them at the
beginning of March. Because schools will be used as polling centers, students
will have to pack their bags and return home before the term is through. They
will miss hours of coursework, and may not be able to make up for this lost
time over the subsequent years. Furthermore, according to Juma Kwayera, the
author of the article, “the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission
(IEBC) is expected to hire teachers, who will have to withdraw services to be
trained in time to handle the polls as returning officers, presiding officers
or clerks.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Now, heed these words carefully: “whenever there is
disruption in the education calendar, the country never appreciates the hidden
costs that are never receipted such as bus-fare, pocket money and service
delivery. According to the Ministry of Education, enrolment in secondary
schools stands at 3.6 million students, out of which more than three-quarters
are in boarding schools, hence will need contingency money, besides bus-fare to
travel back to their homes during elections. Parents with children in primary
boarding schools will have to cough up more funds as a result of the interruption
by elections.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The article goes into further detail: “A conservative
estimate puts the minimum average each student in secondary school will require
at Sh500 for a round-trip ticket. This translates to more than 2.7 million
students in secondary school alone incurring over Sh1.5 billion in total while
primary school pupils Sh2 billion, which cost is passed to parents.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We are not a nation of tycoons. We’re talking about
out-of-pocket expenses that are not going to be compensated for by any
government program. Those most likely to be affected are students who attend
public schools and their parents. In other words, Kenyans from most walks of
life and at almost all income levels will be affected. Keep in mind that the
cost to the nation quoted above does not take into account the loss of
productivity/ man hours for parents, students, and teachers alike.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The same article points out that the teachers’ strike late
last year, which disrupted the academic calendar, had a noticeable effect on
student performance in the national KCPE performance. Primary school students
at public schools did not perform as well as they should have in the national
exam. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An expert cited in the article, Kenya
Institute of Public Policy and Research Analysis CEO, Eric Aligula, asserts
optimistically that the effect of the election dates on education is not likely
to be major unless it “becomes persistent.” In my opinion, he is a tad too
optimistic. Any disruption of this nature is bound to have unforeseen effects,
and many of them will only become apparent in the long-term. A ‘little’
problem, such as two weeks of absence due to illness when foundational
coursework is being covered, can change a child’s academic trajectory
dramatically. How much more damage are the larger-scale disruptions due to the
elections likely to cause?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
All I can see is the tremendous amount of waste that is sure
to result from some terrible decision making at the level of government. And I
can’t help thinking that the same kinds of bad decisions are being replicated
in different sectors nationwide. Surely, as long as such factors are in play,
how likely are we to reach our long-term goals for development? We must first
learn to crawl, walk, then run, before we can think of signing up for a
marathon.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><br />
</div>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-85379087312928772772012-11-07T19:21:00.000-08:002012-11-15T19:54:33.915-08:00What way forward for Americans?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Today everybody seems to have an
opinion on the Republican loss in the Presidential elections. So I’m going to
jump onto the bandwagon: First of all, I don’t think the loss came as a
surprise. The Obama campaign worked long and hard, and they had a long-term
strategy. They were also largely consistent in maintaining that strategy, even
when faced with criticism from pundits on the left. The result: they did their
swing-state math just right and were able to get enough support to win the
electoral votes in the most crucial states. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The team behind Obama plays
politics like a game of chess. Almost every move they make fits into a larger
strategy and anticipates the likely Republican responses. And they have studied
their quarry pretty well: their predictions are usually right. The mistake that
the folks on the Republican side make is to consistently ignore this fact. They
have always portrayed Obama, a true centrist if there ever was one, as a
liberal on the far left, acting to fulfill some ungodly agenda. So many of the
attacks they have directed at his initiatives and positions have been strawman
fallacies. In other words, the Republicans have often had to first distort his
policies in order to oppose them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This strategy would have made
sense in a world where the Republican and Democratic parties were drastically
different. In the real world, however, all it does is make rubbish of the
Republican’s own policies. You see, under Obama, the Democrats have adopted several
ideas that were developed by conservative thinktanks or proposed by Republican
politicians, and they have made them work. And if all that the Republican Party
can do in response is to oppose these ideas, then they are effectively
rejecting conservative principles. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">As a consequence of their actions,
the Republicans have maligned various conservative policies and initiatives and
declared them communist or un-American (by virtue of their having been
implemented by a Democratic president). So what conservative alternatives exist
for them to promote or adopt? None, really: not pragmatic ones, anyway. Obviously,
the Republicans can’t reach to the far left for alternatives. Doing so would
require them to embrace socialism (which is apparently anathema to them). So in
the end, they are left without a definite direction. In name, they are a
conservative party with conservative values. In reality, they have somehow
managed to separate themselves from compassionate and pragmatic conservatism.
They can no longer claim the brand of politics that used to unite the disparate
entities within the Republican Party. So a leadership vacuum has arisen within
the party. In response, the different voices within the party are clamoring for
dominance. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Within the Republican party, you
have the Religious Right, the Tea Party, and the Libertarians, just to name a
few of the more prominent tendencies. So the Republicans don’t have a unified
political agenda. That is precisely why they ended up selecting Romney to
represent them. He was really the only sane guy left standing when all was said
and done. But, at the same time, they hated the things he stood for as a
“Northeastern liberal.” The party had to perform some creative acrobatics in
order to embrace him as their presidential candidate.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The phrase “only in America” comes
to mind here: Where else in the world would a party go through the long,
drawn-out process of selecting a presidential candidate then spend the entire
campaign pushing back when he tried to speak positively of his own record
(presumably the record that inspired them to select him)? Where else would that
presidential candidate select an “authentically conservative” vice-presidential
candidate and prevent him from talking about his actual record (the one for
which he was chosen)? This was the problem throughout the campaign period.
Whenever Romney tried to be honest, he was shot down by the more extremist
voices in his party. Whenever he tried to toe the line and sing the accepted
conservative tune, he ended up looking like he was willing to buy into whatever
was expedient at any given moment. And then there was Ryan- the poor guy. He was
supposed to be a conservative genius, a policy wonk, but he was reduced to
repeating meaningless platitudes.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">And what about the other folks in
the party? Well, they worked day and night to recreate a platform around which
their people could unite. That was why outrageous statements and legislation
surrounding female reproductive health and rape kept on popping up all over the
place. Race and religion were also deployed because, when there is nothing else
to unite a group of people with opposing agendas, you can always rely on the ethnic
clarion call to bring them together. The result of these efforts was to disenchant
a large number of potential pro-Republican voters. The party was left with a predominantly older, white, Christian, male base. The funny thing is that many
Republicans are walking around in the aftermath of the loss, holding on to the
belief that they lost votes because 50% of Americans “want free things.”
Honestly, that is the most intellectually lazy conclusion I have ever
heard. I understand why the Bill O’Reillys of the world sing that
tune. But I can’t help but marvel at the hundreds of thousands of ordinary people
who have taken it as the gospel truth. It is as if they were on an entirely
different planet during the entire campaign process (one during which their party undermined its own candidate).</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Of course, the result of all of
this is that the Republicans cannot offer a true political critique of many of Obama’s
policies. For a genuine critique of the Obama administration, one has to look
beyond the dominant two-party system to some of the other parties: The
Libertarian Party, the Green Party of the USA, the Socialist Party, and others.
These are legitimate American political parties. Some of them even fielded
presidential candidates, a number of whom were included on the ballots of
various states. But these parties get next to zero mainstream media coverage.
So it’s not a surprise that most Americans believe there are only two
legitimate lenses through which to view American politics: the Democratic lens,
and the Republican lens. This presents a bunch of problems: As the two
mainstream parties have tended to shift rightwards over the decades, there has been
no dominant party on the left proper to present a balance. So the
overzealousness with which the Obama administration has used drones to perform
so-called surgical strikes in other nations, for example, has been largely
unremarked upon. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Americans have a tendency to live
too much in the present moment. For instance, there’s not too much along the
lines of long-term thinking going on where the national economy and the
environment are concerned. It is widely recognized that the American deficit
must be addressed, but the American public does not seem ready to scale down
its largest expenditure: its overseas military efforts. I often ask myself when the American nation as a whole will finally realize that it is more important to ensure that its people can afford to meet their basic needs (food, clothing, shelter and healthcare) at home than to </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">dominate brown folks in their own countries. </span><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In addition, there is
little public dialogue on issues such as climate change and its impact on
communities nationwide. The political parties that have actually put these issues on their agendas
have been locked out by the media, presumably because they would “steal away”
some of the Democratic or Republican votes. Ultimately, it is the American
public that has lost from the exclusion of these voices.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I really don’t think the
Republican loss is the most relevant news item of the day. The party was bound
to lose. They set themselves up to lose by failing to develop a
coherent agenda, and they essentially helped to energize voters on the other
side by voicing support of misogynist and racist policies and actions. The most
relevant issue of the day should be the question of what lies ahead in the
long-term. When are we going to start addressing the concerns that have been
raised by America’s marginalized parties?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span></div>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-15221906176084607752012-10-18T16:24:00.000-07:002012-10-18T16:29:29.217-07:00Entitlement and the presidency<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">During an interview on a North Carolina radio show
yesterday, the interviewer asked Mitt Romney’s son, Tagg, how he felt when he
heard “the president of the United States call your dad a liar.” </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Tagg’s response was vivid: <i>Jump out of your seat and you
want to rush down to the stage and take a swing at him. But you know you can't
do that because, well, first because there's a lot of Secret Service between
you and him, but also because that's the nature of the process.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">He was being honest. It must be unbelievably hard to watch
someone you love on the stage taking the figurative punches. Presidential
campaigns are brutal and thankless. And, for those who are fortunate enough to
win the seat, the ultimate job involves more of the same. To be frank, I
cannot for the life of me understand why anyone in their right mind would want
to be president of a nation, let alone a powerful nation. I know for a fact that I would not have the capacity
to run for such a seat, or to support a loved one through the process. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Power alienates. The poor fellow who becomes head of state
is raised onto a pedestal so high that people either expect him or her to be
godlike or they demonize him or her. And the demonization is relentless. I’m
thinking about all the racist drivel I’ve seen being directed at President
Obama, the First Lady, and their family. I’m also thinking about all the attacks that Bill,
Hillary, and Chelsea Clinton have put up with from the likes of Rush Limbaugh. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">So, I do understand when people like Ann Romney or Tagg
Romney get frustrated and say something they really shouldn’t say to an
interviewer. They’re being human, and their human actions give us a peek at the
pain they experience behind the curtains. It is evident from what they tell us that running for president is not all glamor. In fact, if you don't have the right personality type, it can be the greatest punishment imaginable.
</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">At the same time, their words reveal something else to me: “privilege”
and “entitlement.” David Sirota has written </span><a href="http://www.salon.com/2012/10/18/tagg_romney_mr_white_privilege/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">a piece
on the very subject, describing it as an instance of “White privilege</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.” It’s
an interesting piece, but I’m not making quite the same argument he is. To me,
the privilege lies in the apparent presumption on the part of the candidate’s
family that he has already won the seat. I’m sure there is a case to be made
about race playing a part in all of this. But I think other people, like Sirota, are better
qualified to make that particular argument than I am.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">The idea that a candidate deserves to win a seat and is
doing the whole nation a service by running is something I’ve heard more times than
I care to remember. Frankly speaking, I think it’s a self-serving statement. It’s
the sort of thing I have always expected a politician to say. But I did not
actually expect him or her to believe it. And I did not expect his or her family
to buy into it either. So you can understand that I was surprised to learn that
these people actually start to believe this stuff after a while. And when they
start to believe it, they start identifying too much with the coveted seat and thinking
that it is theirs. That, my friends, is where the sense of entitlement comes
in.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">In the real world, people do not run for president so that
they can devote their life to <i>service</i>. They run because they are
ambitious and very much like the idea of being in power. Their motivations are
selfish. Objectively speaking, there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just a fact of life. We <i>need</i>
leaders, so we must have people self-centered and ambitious enough to want to
step into that mantle. By contrast, nuns and monks devote their lives to
serving others. Their efforts are directed at diminishing the ego and elevating the common good. This
distinction is very important: We speak of <i>winning</i> the presidency, but I
have never heard of anybody speak of <i>winning</i> the vow of poverty or the
chance to serve in an orphanage or hospice. So we really need to stop
pretending that presidential candidates are martyrs for the greatest cause.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Perhaps some presidential candidates and their families have
to believe that they deserve the seat and that they are running for the sake of
the country. Maybe convincing themselves that these are unshakeable truths helps
to compensate for all the psychological trauma and exhaustion that they
endure during the race. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Whatever the case, winning the seat is a privilege. It is
not a foregone conclusion for any candidate. So it would probably be in the
best interest of presidential campaigns to take their candidates and their
families through counseling throughout the campaign and afterwards. Running for president takes too much out of the candidate and his or
her family: it would be ideal if these people went into the
experience with realistic expectations and with the understanding that they
could lose, but that life would still go on. Party sycophants are unlikely to
give this kind of guidance. So it falls on counselors to play this role.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span></div>
R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-82148178842229378462012-08-31T14:27:00.000-07:002012-08-31T14:32:24.884-07:00On the controversy surrounding the image of Michelle ObamaThose of you who are following the news online will notice that there's an debate raging about a picture that depicts a semi-nude Michelle Obama on the cover of a Spanish magazine. You can read about it on the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/28/michelle-obama-pictured-a_n_1836570.html?show_comment_id=182600597#comment_182600597" target="_blank">Huffington Post</a>.<br />
<br />
As you will notice, there are two issues being addressed. One is the decision of the magazine editors to feature the portrait on the magazine cover. The second is the decision of the original artist, Karine Percheron Daniels, to create the image in the first place.<br />
<br />
With respect to the former, I have no idea what the motivation of the magazine editors was in the first place or how the image is related to the featured articles of the issue. So I can't speak authoritatively about it.<br />
<br />
With respect to the latter, it is indicated that the picture of Michelle Obama is part of Daniels' "Famous Nudes" series. Other personalities depicted in the series include Queen Elizabeth II, Michael Jackson, Eva Peron, Prince William, his wife Catherine, Che Guevara, and Princess Diana. You can take a look at all of these images on Daniels' <a href="http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/karine-percherondaniels.html" target="_blank">FineArt America portfolio</a>.<br />
<br />
The thing that strikes me is the fact that many are rushing to label Karine Percheron Daniels a racist for depicting Michelle Obama in the nude. Many of the articles written in this vein mention, as an aside, that the image is part of a larger series of famous personalities in the nude. However, they conveniently avoid further discussion of that series. <br />
<br />
Well, I don't want to avoid that series. I think that any genuine discussion of the original artist's intentions should address at length the fact that other powerful men and women of our era are depicted in the nude in her other paintings: and these men and women are not all black. Some of them are Latino/a and some are white. <br />
<br />
If creating the image of Michelle Obama makes Daniels a racist, then what does it mean that she portrays Queen Elizabeth in the nude? Is that also a racist act? Perhaps a misogynistic act? What about the depiction of Prince William? It seems to me that fitting the image of Michelle Obama into a larger story about white racism requires one to ignore the context in which that image was produced.<br />
<br />
I don't think there's only one legitimate way to respond to art. It is perfectly fine for people to hate a piece of art if it violates their ideals. But, along the same lines, just because this particular image offends a particular group of people, it does not follow that their opinions are the only legitimate ones.<br />
<br />
It's actually unusual that I'm writing this piece. I'm not a fan of nude paintings: I've never been interested enough in them to even remember their titles or the identities of the artists who created them. I can certainly see why Americans and particularly African Americans are offended at the depiction of Michelle Obama. From their perspective, it fits into a history of dehumanizing depictions of black people. I can also see why the choices made by the artist in creating that single picture could be interpreted as racist. If I didn't know that the artist had depicted other personalities in the nude, I would probably have thought it was a racist image too. But (and this is what I want to emphasize) I would want to know what the context was before rushing to condemn the artist.<br />
<br />
The reason why I sat down to write this piece is because I think there's too much of a tendency to jump to the worst possible interpretation of events in this day and age, even when there is clear evidence challenging our assumptions. I've watched as one controversy or another has made it into the headlines and people have expressed outrage and brushed aside any nuances. I've also read strongly worded opinion pieces that suggest that there's only one way to interpret certain events, and that anyone who dares to suggest otherwise is racist/ sexist/ unpatriotic/ a self-hating member of some ethnicity or another. Frankly, I am tired.<br />
<br />
There's a part of me that's wondering how many people realize that their perspectives are not universal perspectives. For instance, even the idea of what constitutes nudity is not set in stone. What people may consider to be evil in one context or sexual in another is simply a fact of every day life in a third. Think about this: in some cultures it is considered immodest to leave one's hair uncovered; in others, it is perfectly decent to wear little more than a wrap and to breastfeed in public. In some contexts, <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201208110613.html" target="_blank">wearing knee-length skirts can almost precipitate a national crisis</a>. In other contexts, for instance in art or in anatomy classes, the human body or form is natural: nothing to blush about. There is something to be said about that diversity of views, whether or not we agree with every single one of them.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span> R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-45192627503732135182012-08-10T17:20:00.000-07:002012-09-10T17:22:26.218-07:00Turn the TV off<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/08/turn-tv-off.html">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/08/turn-tv-off.html</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I’ve been thinking about </span><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012/05/30/more-tv-less-self-esteem-except-for-white-boys/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">the impact that the media
has</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> on our self-perception as
women, minorities, etc, because it’s something that interests me. Much of what
I’ve encountered is negative. For instance, the scarcity of positive black role
models in the TV and print media leaves children feeling that there is not much
for them to aspire to. As for black females, they take away from the media the
idea that dark tones of skin and frizzy hair are to be detested, as are curvy
figures.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">This is heart-breaking, of course. But I also read
something that got me wondering. It was an article about </span><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2001098/Black-minority-children-watch-50-cent-TV-day-whites-90-sets-bedrooms--study-finds.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">media consumption patterns among
different racial and ethnic groups</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">. According to the piece, black children spent
significantly more time watching television programming than kids of any other
ethnic group. That made me think about the roles we played as consumers, whether
active or passive. And I did wonder whether there was something more we could be
doing as individuals to make a difference in our children’s
lives.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Are we all really as helpless as we make ourselves
sound when we talk about the negative effects of the media on our kids? Do our
kids have to be plugged in to Hollywood’s version of the world? What would it be
like if we stopped being such avid consumers of empty, soulless programming and
shallow magazine articles? What if we stopped feeding our children images of
materialism, mediocrity and dysfunction?</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">I realize that many people turn to the TV and other
forms of media to keep their kids occupied because they have limited options.
Perhaps they’re working two or three jobs to put food on the table and can’t sit
down to supervise their kids. Perhaps a sitter is beyond their budget. Perhaps
having the kids go outside and play is not an option because the streets are
unsafe. They likely recognize that plonking the kids in front of the TV is not
the best option, but are trying to make do with what they have.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">But is it really true that there are no options or
alternatives? I would like to believe that people have some degree of agency,
even in very difficult situations. Maybe they can’t reform the media, but they
can certainly be more selective about their children’s consumption of it. Kids
don’t have to watch or hear everything, even if it has been rated suitable for
their age group. That applies to both TV and radio. Video games should also be
included in this discussion. While some video games can be remarkably
educational, others can be disturbingly realistic in their portrayal and
glorification of violence and sexism.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">Books are the most ideal form of information and
entertainment that come to mind. When I was growing up, electronics and video
games were out of reach. Our only consistent way to amuse ourselves, outside of
playing or doing our chores, was to read. And that we did with gusto. All the
kids I knew, whether poor, middle class, well-off, rural, or urban appreciated a
good book. We made a habit of borrowing books from each other and buying second
hand books. Brand new books would have been beyond our budgets, and functional
libraries were like some rare species that you caught sight of once in a while.
</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">That is why I wonder why it is easy for many
Americans to identify books with elitism, and TV with the average guy’s
experience. In my experience, books are actually cheaper to acquire in the first
place, and to continue to use, while anything electrical or electronic is on the
pricier side. Mind you, I’m not talking about heading to expensive bookstores or
buying an e-reader. I’m talking about joining a local library, and getting
access to thousands of books at no cost to yourself, or buying secondhand books.
It amazes me that getting kids to appreciate books over cable TV, electronics,
and video games can be a challenge in the American context. In an ideal world,
books would be valued more highly, and </span><a href="http://www.hoover.org/news/daily-report/25153"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">literacy would have a higher
priority</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> than chest-thumping about
being the greatest nation in the world.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">It must be said, though, that even books have to be
vetted. It’s not enough to grant one’s children access to books. One must also know
what they are reading. Wherever possible, parents and guardians of
impressionable kids have to play a more proactive role in determining what kinds
of images they are being exposed to.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is licensed to
Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span> R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-83759364632618780242012-08-03T18:31:00.000-07:002012-08-31T14:34:37.712-07:00On HIV/AIDS, religion, and public health <a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-hivaids-religion-and-public-health.html" target="_blank"><span class="messagebody">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/08/on-hivaids-religion-and-public-health.html</span></a><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">Over the years I have lost many to HIV/AIDS: family
and friends. I can’t tell you how many, though. I stopped counting a while back.
However, I can tell you that, because of the impact of HIV/AIDS on my life, I
know what stigma is. I know what it is like to watch people sink into
depression, lose hope and die because those who matter most to them have
rejected them. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">HIV/AIDS as we have experienced it in the East
African context has struck the family as a whole: men and women in their prime
and young children have been the typical victims. Our AIDS story has had much
to do with heterosexuality. So one can’t simply label HIV/ AIDS a “gay disease”
as has tended to happen in the US. Our governments have had to address AIDS as a
national crisis because it has stricken the mainstream. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">In nations such as the US, where the tendency has
been to associate the disease with sexual and ethnic minorities, I get the
distinct sense that little mainstream urgency has been attached to the fight
against AIDS. There are certainly men, women, and youth who have devoted their
lives to fighting this apathy. But, unfortunately, there are also others who
tend to view HIV/AIDS as a form of punishment for “breaking God’s laws” on sex
and sexuality. Of course, this is not a uniquely American view. I have also encountered
it among some people of faith in the East African context.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">My interactions with those who have expressed these
troubling views have led me to think about just how limited this particular religious
approach to human problems is. I’m talking about a specific interpretation of
the Christian teachings on sex and sexuality. The idea is that, if everybody
limits themselves to following these teachings and only engages in sex within
the context of heterosexual marriage then sexually transmitted infections
(STIs) such as HIV/AIDS will cease to be a problem. In other words, the only
way to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS is to be a “true” Christian.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">That is all well and good, except that never in the
history of humankind have all members of a given community adhered strictly to
its religious teachings: A “true” Christian can get infected with HIV/AIDS even
if he or she is firmly heterosexual, married, and faithful. For one, there is
such a thing as a cheating spouse. Secondly, infection can be transmitted
through rape. Yet another situation that facilitates the spread of infection is
transfusion with infected blood and blood products. Yet another is the use of
unsterilized medical equipment. The list goes on and on. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">Those who persist in seeing HIV/AIDS as a form of
divine punishment conveniently forget how closely interconnected we all are. As
a result of these interconnections, HIV/AIDS does not discriminate. When you
are exposed to the HIV virus, it does not ask whether you are “saved,” pray
regularly, give alms to the poor, fast, or obey God’s law. If your defenses are
weak, it penetrates them and infects your body whether you are rich or poor,
young or old, “innocent” or not, devout or otherwise. </span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">Keeping all of this in mind, how useful is it that a
significant number of religious leaders have a simplistic approach to dealing
with HIV/AIDS? How useful is it that they condemn it as a sinners’ disease, oppose
the use of condoms under all circumstances, and oppose most forms of sex
education? Simply put, their actions are not useful. In fact, to the extent
that they influence public policy, they end up endangering everybody in the community.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">Knowing this, I think that those of us living and
working in communities stricken by HIV/AIDS should persist in emphasizing that
it is treated by government and health organizations as a public health issue,
not a moral issue. From a public health standpoint, we can speak about HIV/AIDS
in its complexity. We can also talk about risks, prevention, and treatment. Importantly,
we can make an effort to protect everybody.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody">What is the place of religion in all of this? Well, I
honestly think people are entitled to believe whatever their religions teach
them. However, I also think their beliefs should be directed towards governing
their personal lives and setting moral standards for their religious communities.
They should not be imposed on the broader national population as public health
policy.</span><br />
<br />
<span class="messagebody"><b>Further reading</b></span><br />
<span class="messagebody">"Education, honest dialogue key to halting spread of
AIDS," by Chris Carlin and Debra Stanley, 1/17/07, </span><a href="http://articles.southbendtribune.com/2007-01-17/news/26826941_1_hiv-prevention-hiv-testing-new-aids-cases">http://articles.southbendtribune.com/2007-01-17/news/26826941_1_hiv-prevention-hiv-testing-new-aids-cases</a><br />
"HIV and AIDS stigma and discrimination," <a href="http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-stigma.htm">http://www.avert.org/hiv-aids-stigma.htm</a> <br />
"Public health approach to combating HIV/AIDS," <a href="http://www.searo.who.int/LinkFiles/RC61_12-pa_Item-14.pdf">http://www.searo.who.int/LinkFiles/RC61_12-pa_Item-14.pdf</a><br />
"HIV/AIDS stigma: an impediment to public health," by Ronald O. Valdiserri, MD, MPH, March 2002, <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1447072/pdf/0920341.pdf">http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1447072/pdf/0920341.pdf</a> <br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-601165204942773232012-07-27T14:24:00.002-07:002012-07-27T14:24:55.119-07:00Problem-solving: a skill we desperately need<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/07/problem-solving-is-skill-that-we.html">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/07/problem-solving-is-skill-that-we.html</a><br />
<br />
I've had the good fortune to live and work with people who have devoted themselves to solving problems. They are really the unsung heroes of our communities. They are the ones who fix the things that are broken in our systems or carve out new paths to bypass the old, dysfunctional ones. These people work in a variety of fields. I'm not just talking about those who work in healthcare, law, social work, or pastoral care. I'm talking about people in almost any field out there. Heck, I could even be talking about you.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>MUCH ADO OVER NOTHING</strong> </div>
I've come to realize over time that people in general spend a lot of time and energy making much ado over nothing. We invest so much capital in symbolic battles against those whom we perceive as our enemies, and we do this in big ways and small ways. People who spend much of their free time gossiping about and undermining personal enemies do it. So do political parties and other large entities that thrive on creating controversy and provoking outrage. And these actions come at a cost. What they add up to, at the end of the day, are symbolic victories, but the real foundational problems remain in our communities. <br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>EMPHASIZING SYMBOLIC VICTORIES AT THE EXPENSE OF TRUE SOLUTIONS</strong> </div>
You want some examples? Look at the state of contemporary American politics. More specifically, look at the kinds of legislation that American conservatives have been pushing for all over the nation in the past few years. I'm talking about those laws that focus on issues that conservatives consider to be key to the nation's moral fabric: abortion, contraception, gay marriage and civil unions.<br />
<br />
If you happen to be conservative, you may consider these nationwide legislative victories to be a great accomplishment for your side. But there's one thing you should be worried about vis-à-vis this kind of legislation: It's the fact that the legislators making it happen are doing it as part of a cynical calculation. The idea is this: By achieving these symbolic legislative victories, they signal to the people who voted for them that they have done what they were put in office to do. They subsequently win the loyalty of their constituents, but they have absolutely no incentive to work on legislation that actually solves the biggest problems facing their communities (e.g. unemployment, the failing health care system, malnutrition). <br />
<br />
Today, American communities battling poverty, health crises, and other long-term problems are not actually dealing with these problems. Not in terms of policy, anyway. The problems are not even on the agenda. And the not-so-funny thing is this: When problems are ignored, they do not vanish. In fact, they have this knack of growing bigger and bigger. An apt illustration of this is Mississippi, one of the poorest states in the U.S., where conservative legislative efforts have been focused on making the one abortion clinic in the state next to impossible to operate. In the meantime, the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/magazine/what-can-mississippis-health-care-system-learn-from-iran.html?pagewanted=4&_r=1&hp&pagewanted=all" target="_blank">average Mississippian is struggling to make it from day to day</a>, living in the margins.<br />
<br />
If you're on the ground in these communities, the situation is very frightening. To use a Kenyanism, <em>things are elephant</em> (there's a huge catastrophe impending). You watch as the existing problems are compounded; perhaps you even know what is broken in the system and how to fix it. But you also know that any proposals you make for policy changes will come to nought. Only if your proposal stands to make somebody somewhere a fat load of cash will it see the light of day.<br />
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In Kenya, I see pretty much the same kind of inertia about solving problems. The symbolic battles fought in the media are often flimsily disguised battles about ethnic supremacy. Occasionally, they're about religious supremacy and morality. Many Kenyan politicians and religious leaders alike are highly vocal about these kinds of issues. They know that they are effective in rallying support, and 'consolidating the base.' And they are successful: For some reason, people gain tremendous satisfaction from boisterously supporting or opposing some cause or another, and don't seem to mind that their shouts and rallies do nothing to ease their lives. When all is said and done, the old problems persist in the community: poverty, chronic health issues, food insecurity, environmental degradation, and others.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>LOCAL HEROES</strong> </div>
The people I consider heroes in this anti-pragmatic climate are the ones who live in our communities, recognize our problems, and put in the hard work necessary to solve them <em>in their own small way</em>. If they have private capital, they use it to put their ideas into practice. If they don't, they reach out to others in the community with similar interests and they leverage their resources to craft solutions. When they face obstacles due to political obstructionism, corruption, etc, they don't give up. They simply look for a way to bypass them. Their main aim is to solve the identified problem, not to get fame for it, and not to profit materially from it. So they labor on quietly, achieving little victories and making a big difference in the lives of some. <br />
<br />
Their victories do not lie in reaching large numbers of people. Even if only a few people's lives are improved, the problem-solvers' achievements remain meaningful. They form a template that the rest of us can borrow from. We can learn from them: We can learn about the techniques they used and adopt their attitiudes. Hopefully, by adopting their active approach to life, we can solve some of our larger problems.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>THE INSPIRATION FOR THESE THOUGHTS</strong></div>
These thoughts didn't come to me out of the blue. I've been pondering on them for a long time. Part of my motivation has to do with the work I have done as a volunteer, and my exposure to others who have volunteered in other contexts. Part of my inspiration actually comes from observing those religious and ideological communities that place a high premium on self-sufficiency (sometimes due to a history of persecution). Even in those cases where I disagree with their core teachings, I find that they have valuable attitudes and practices that have helped them to thrive. Some of the groups (broadly-defined) that come to mind include the American nucleus of the Church of Latter Day Saints and the survivalist movement in the United States.<br />
<br />
One of my more recent inspirations was Dylan Ratigan, who until recently hosted a show that was part of MSNBC's daily line-up. It seemed to me that he placed a high premium on getting beyond partisan squabbles to discuss real problems and solutions. I don't know how successful a recipe that was for TV. Addressing real issues is hardly ever sensational enough to attract consistently high ratings. But I did take away from his show the urgency of pulling our heads out of the ground and getting to work. In the last installment of his show, he emphasized this philosophy and described his intention to continue working with those who were committed to developing solutions to the problems in their communities. He also wrote briefly about the same in <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dylan-ratigan/meet-my-best-teachers_b_1619580.html" target="_blank">one of his Huffington Post articles</a>.<br />
<br />
Another huge inspiration comes from Iran, via Mississippi: A description of a community health project that is intended to reach the rural poor. I've already linked to the relevant article above, but here it is again: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/magazine/what-can-mississippis-health-care-system-learn-from-iran.html?pagewanted=4&_r=1&hp&pagewanted=all" target="_blank">These folks</a> are working with very little institutional support, but their ideas are clearly solid. I can't help wishing that they could rally the support of local communities, especially churches, and mobilize the public to raise funds for their endeavors. <br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em>HARAMBEE</em>: PULLING TOGETHER- A LEARNED SKILL</strong></div>
Working together to build the community is a learned skill. Some people are fortunate enough to be born in communities where this skill is taught. Others are born in communities where it is underemphasized. For those living in communities of the latter type, learning how to organize to solve practical problems is a godsend.<br />
<br />
Reading about these kinds of communities makes me realize just how important effective community organizing is. We tend to think of community organizing as facilitating civic protest. But it can help communities achieve much more than that. Surely, it can help communities develop solutions to their healthcare problems. It can also help them educate families about healthy nutritional practices and sustainable living.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>HOMEGROWN SOLUTIONS ARE BEST</strong></div>
One of the fundamental lessons I have learnt from my experiences and from others is that one's capacity to be an effective problem solver is drastically diminished if he/ she is an outsider to the community. How can one propose practical long-term solutions when he/ she hasn't lived in a community and doesn't know in precise detail what kinds of complications govern the community members' lives? This seems obvious. It also explains why the best solutions for community problems are homegrown solutions. One can't simply translate solutions wholesale from another community. They have to be tried out locally and modified to suit local circumstances. And for them to gain any currency in the community, they have to be seen to work for locals.<br />
<br />
This is why I'm increasingly inclined to support the idea of people everywhere being more proactive in crafting solutions for their unique local problems using whatever resources they have at their disposal. Governments may help in some ways, but they can't do everything. In some cases, they don't do anything, not even the bare minimum that we have come to expect from them. As I write these words, I'm thinking about the annual floods and droughts in certain parts of Kenya (for example), and wondering at the fact that, even when these catastrophic events happen predictably, we still get caught unprepared. What can we realistically do in local communities to be better prepared for these kinds of crises? <br />
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To answer these kinds of questions, we need to take a close look at the social infrastructure we have. We need to look at the ways in which our communities are structured, see what kinds of social nets we have for people in times of crisis, and determine how to strengthen them. If the social net is the extended family, what can we (as individuals and families) do? If it is a local religious community, then let's work with that: what can we do? I'm interested in seeing religious activists spending less time burning boxes of condoms at rallies and more time building structures to support teen mothers who choose to keep their children, or to help AIDS patients who are stigmatized by their communities. <br />
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I'm also interested in seeing so-called tribal organizations investing their energy in mentoring young unemployed men and women and giving them internship opportunities, not indoctrinating them to hate others. How about villages? There's so much we can do, especially those of us whose communities have lost their most productive men and women to diseases such as HIV/ AIDS, TB, cancer etc. There is much more we can do to support the struggling families among us. We come equipped with active minds and bodies, so let's not wait for help from on high.<br />
<br />
In the spirit of practicing what I preach, I intend to continue blogging about this subject. It strikes me that problem-solving is undermined when one has little or no access to information. So I'm going to make it a point to share any information I come across that has the capacity to inspire and empower others. Feel free to communicate with us if you have any ideas that you'd like to share.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><span lang="SW"> </span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-23764591912541983432012-07-20T14:01:00.000-07:002012-07-22T14:09:45.956-07:00Some lessons about writing and criticismI've learnt a few important things about writing over the years. They follow below:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Writing anything of good quality, whether a short story, novel, poem, academic paper, or web copy is hard work.</li>
<li>Writing constructive criticism about another person's work is challenging.</li>
<li>Writing destructive criticism about another person's work is easy.</li>
<li>Keeping an open mind as others critique your work is difficult.</li>
</ol>
My point of entry into this subject is my cumulative experience as a teacher, a student, an editor, and a writer. So I have had occasion to experience both sides of the coin: I have been the writer, and I have also been the critic. <br />
<br />
I know how challenging it is to gather one's thoughts into one coherent stream and to set them down in black and white. I do it every single week on this blog and elsewhere. The final product is rarely what I envisioned when I first set out to write. On a good day, that is fine, because I am still satisfied with what I've written. On a not-so-good day, the flaws in my writing are apparent to me, and it takes numerous rereads and drafts to finally get it right. By the time such a piece is done, I have invested my heart and soul into it. I may have spent a significant amount of time on research, and may have considered and discarded countless possible angles.<br />
<br />
Then come the second pair of eyes and the criticism. Sometimes I am fortunate: The person who is critiquing my writing may send it back to me all marked up in red, but the comments make it evident that he or she actually read my piece, took my ideas seriously, and engaged with them as I had presented them. This is the biggest compliment that anybody can pay a writer.<br />
<br />
When a critic reads my writing and takes it on its own terms, he or she is respecting me as a writer. The critic may ultimately disagree with my major premises and present me with the reasons for this disagreement in detail. But that is fine. It gives me a taste of what my potential audience may perceive when they read my writing, and may help me identify and fix the flaws in my poem, story, or article. <br />
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On the other hand, I may disagree with what the critic says. Perhaps he or she misunderstood something fundamental in my writing. Even in this situation, reading his or her critique will help me determine whether I need to rewrite some of my work so that its meaning is more apparent to readers. The criticism is still constructive: Something good will come out of it.<br />
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For the critic, writing this kind of critique takes effort. First of all, he or she actually has to read the text. The critic has to immerse himself or herself in the world conjured up by the text to decide whether the narrative is true to the rules of that particular world. If there are problems within the narrative, then it is only by reading it closely and pointing to these specific problems that the critic can write a proper critique. <br />
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For criticism to be constructive it should also be true to the original intent of the writing. In other words, it should seek to improve the writing to the point that it achieves what the original writer set out to do. Destructive criticism does the exact opposite. It seeks to impose an alien purpose on the narrative: typically the purpose that the critic subscribes to in his or her own writing.<br />
<br />
So, for instance, a destructive critique would fault a text for not being politically engaged, even if the writer had made it evident that he was not interested in writing overtly political texts. Such a critique would typically express the critic's sentiment that "This is what I would have done if I were the one writing this piece." Critiques of this form are never about the text or the writer of the text. They are more about the critic. And that is a problem. The critic's job is to engage with the writer's work, not with his or her own literary legacy. <br />
<br />
This brings me to the question of the writer's reception of criticism: How should the writer respond to destructive critiques of his or her work? Well, the answer to that question really depends on the context. In an academic context, for instance, it may be in a scholar's best interest to defend his or her article if a fellow scholar misrepresents it in a review or analysis. <br />
<br />
Another situation comes to mind: one where a writer is commissioned to write an article by somebody else. If the article doesn't meet the person's expectations, the writer will not get paid. So the writer has an incentive to respond positively to the criticism, even when it is not constructive. <br />
<br />
A colleague recently found himself in that situation. He was hired to write a seemingly straightforward article. His client gave him instructions about the length, content, and tone of the article. For the amount of pay she was offering for the final product, the terms seemed reasonable. <br />
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Once he started to work on the article, however, he realized that there was some ambiguity in the subject she had asked him to write about. It turned out that the subject could be addressed in two drastically different ways, and she had not been clear about which one she preferred.<br />
<br />
The writer sought clarification from his client. In her response, his client cleared the confusion up. Later, when the writer had completed the article and sent it to her for review, it turned out that there were other unspoken expectations she wanted him to meet. She outlined them at length, asking him to rewrite the piece accordingly.<br />
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The irony of the situation was not lost on the writer. He recognized that if his client had presented all this information clearly in her original request, he would have written a good piece the first time. He would also have asked for more money, because, as it turned out, the article she wanted was more complicated than the one she had initially described to him.<br />
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It was not the writer's fault that his client had initially failed to give him sufficiently detailed instructions. However, if he wanted to get paid, he would have to take her criticism to heart and rewrite the piece to meet her new specifications. In truth, her criticism was not constructive. Rather than giving him tips for improving his first piece, which was consistent with her initial request, she was essentially asking him to write a completely different piece.<br />
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In the business context, the customer is always right, even when she is wrong. So while her criticism of his article was unfair, there was little he could do about it. If he wanted to be paid, he would have to rewrite the piece and face the possibility that she would request yet another rewrite, and another one, and another one, ad infinitum. Not surprisingly, he chose not to rewrite the piece and ended up foregoing the payment.<br />
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My colleague's description of his experience struck a chord with me. It got me thinking about how separating a piece of writing from the context of its production and from its intended meaning is the easiest way to rubbish it. It also brought home to me the fact that some critics (whether they are literary critics or clients) have no idea how much work goes into writing. I happen to think it is fairly easy to be dismissive of somebody's work if one has never walked in that person's shoes and faced similar challenges.<br />
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I like to believe that my cumulative experiences as a writer and critic have helped me bring a balanced approach to these roles. Because I have worked as a teacher and editor, I am learning to take a step back from my own writing and to recognize the flaws within. This makes it easier to be receptive to other people's critiques and to see the merit in them. <br />
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At the same time, my experiences as a writer and student, subject to other people's judgments, help me to be more sympathetic when I am reviewing others' writing. Because I know how much barbed critiques can hurt a writer and undermine his or her courageous attempts to be creative, I try to keep my critiques constructive. Of course, this is a work in progress: Each new day brings new experiences and encourages me to grow as a writer, a teacher, and an editor.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><span lang="SW"> </span><br />
<br />R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-81422743199308808552012-07-09T12:23:00.001-07:002012-07-09T12:23:27.926-07:00Can one discuss responsibility without being labelled a victim blamer?I just read <a href="http://msmagazine.com/blog/blog/2012/07/09/we-heart-men-against-rape/" target="_blank">this article about victim blaming</a>. I like the fact that young men are stepping out and condemning rape in unambiguous terms. But there is one thing about the article that I find troubling. It's the second paragraph:<br />
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<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
Women staying out late in foreign places dressed in tight, skimpy clothes with some alcohol in their systems are often warned to be smart and aware of their surroundings. These type of warnings stem from the idea that if women look or act a certain way, they must be asking for it … right?<br />
</blockquote>
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Really? Telling a woman to be smart and aware of her surroundings in a foreign country, to pay attention to her alcohol consumption and her clothing is victim blaming? What exactly is the suggested alternative? If you're in charge of a bunch of kids studying abroad in a conservative nation, are you actually going to tell them to dress in a fashion calculated to rile the locals? Are you going to tell them to go out and drink to their heart's content?<br />
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Realistically, drinking until one is out of control is a stupid idea, whatever the circumstances, and whoever is doing it. In an ideal world, people wouldn't do it. But we don't live in an ideal world. Many people drink excessively, to the point that their capacity to make wise decisions is impaired. A responsible adult should be concerned about this, and should be able to advice them about the risks that come with irresponsible drinking.<br />
<br />
As for clothing, whether or not we like it, what we wear tells a story about us. It may be an inaccurate story: People's assumptions about us on the basis of our clothing may be completely wrong. But it is important to know what assumptions they have in order to interpret their behavior and to be better prepared to respond to it.<br />
<br />
Let me give you an example. Wearing pants (as Americans call them) or trousers (as Kenyans call them) in some rural communities is considered to violate some unwritten principle about the proper place of women. Apparently, women who wear trousers in such communities are perceived to be rebelling against the social order. It doesn't matter how modest the pants/ trousers actually are. People judge first and ask questions later. <br />
<br />
A woman going into such a community without prior knowledge of these conventions would likely encounter some resentment or hostility without understanding why. A woman with some understanding of these conventions would be in a position to decide whether or not to wear pants/ trousers while living in the said community. If she chose to wear them, she would understand where the hostility was coming from and have the capacity to respond to it effectively.<br />
<br />
Mind you, this is not just about women. It is about men too. Communities all over the world have dress codes for men and women, depending on their age and station in society. The dress codes may or may not be set down in the legislation, but they exist all the same. If you're planning on living and working in such a community and want to build good will among the people, then you should show some respect for their conventions. That typically includes dressing in ways that they will find acceptable. <br />
<br />
While we're on the subject, we should expand the discussion to include political awareness. If one is planning to go to a foreign country, then he or she should have some idea of what is going on in that country. Otherwise, he or she may waltz right into the heart of some political upheaval. <br />
<br />
In this light, sending young men and women out into the world with the idea that they can and should do whatever they want, whenever they want without any regard for context is not responsible. There are actually places right here in the United States where <a href="http://www.kolotv.com/caravan/headlines/Police_Non-Gang_Member_Killed_For_Wearing_Red_114249049.html" target="_blank">wearing clothing of the "wrong" color will get you shot</a>.<br />
<br />
I think that it is important to recognize that a rape victim does not ask to be raped. Nobody asks to be attacked and subjected to violence by another. When violence like this occurs, the sole responsible party is the perpetrator. But recognizing that does not mean that we should send our young men and women out into the world with a naive sense about how human society works.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><span lang="SW"> </span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-13199074993404274242012-07-06T12:02:00.000-07:002012-07-06T12:28:30.343-07:00On Miri Regev and racism and xenophobia in Israel<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i><span lang="SW">I wrote this
piece one month ago, in early June. It has since been overtaken by events
such as the deportation of a group of Africans living in Israel.</span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">The </span><a href="http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/israeli-mk-i-didn-t-mean-to-shame-holocaust-by-calling-african-migrants-a-cancer-1.432809"><span lang="SW">recent racist comments by Israeli MK, Miri
Regev</span></a><span lang="SW">, about Africans
living in Israel have spawned much passionate debate online and offline. They have
certainly got me thinking about the unique place of the state of Israel in
modern history, and about racism and xenophonia in broader terms.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">To me, racism,
xenophobia, and other forms of hatred directed at those who are different must
be condemned. At the same time, I think it is important to understand why
exactly it is that people hate others. Hatred, like all other things human,
does not just spring into existence fully-formed. It develops over time, and is
reinforced by certain ways of thinking and of remembering the past. I am not
naive enough to think that we will someday be able to eliminate all forms of
hatred. But I do think that understanding the motivations that prod us to hate
and to hurt others will go a long way towards defusing the violent potential of
our actions.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">I
want to clarify that, to me, Israel is a modern state, not the ancient kingdom whose
glorious past has been chronicled in the Bible. I don’t subscribe to the notion
that the Jewish people were chosen by God to fulfill a unique part of His plan
for the earth. Regardless, I was raised in a Christian context, so I am very
much aware of this mythology surrounding Jewish people, and the hold that it
has on Christians worldwide. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">A chosen
people</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">To me, the belief
that the Jewish people are a “chosen people” contradicts the very idea that the
God of Christianity is a universal God. Furthermore, it reminds me of the
history lessons I sat through during my primary school years, when I learnt
about the myths of origin of various Kenyan ethnic groups. The one constant in
every group’s beliefs about its origins was the idea that it was a special
group, God’s favored.</span><br />
<br />
<span lang="SW">The Maasai believed that they had a special place in
their God’s plan that made them superior to members of other ethnic groups, as
did the Kikuyu, the Luo and others. In other words, it was the norm for any
people’s religion to claim that that particular ethnic group was superior to other
groups. The ancient teachings that came down to us in the Bible have never been unique in this. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">A universal
God or a tribal God?</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">The rise and spread
of Christianity rearranged things. Over time, Judaism was no longer just the
religion of Jewish people. A version of Judaism expanded to become the religion
of Jews and non-Jews alike. That version of Judaism was the precursor for what
we call Christianity today. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span lang="SW">The development
of Christianity involved the wholesale adoption of certain chunks of Jewish
thought and philosophy by an ethnically heterogeneous audience, and a simultaneous
failure to historicize them. Thus, Christians through the ages have had to
wrestle with the uncomfortable thought that their God, in whose eyes all humans
are supposed to be equal, has put Jewish people on a pedestal. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">The 2 extremes
in Christian thought</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">The efforts of some Christian thinkers to
fight the inherent contradiction between a universal God and a tribal God has
given rise to some of the extremes within Christian thought. On the one hand, there are
anti-Semitic ideals, developed to undermine the special place granted to Jewish
people in the Christian worldview. These have been adopted in different times
and places to justify the violence directed at Jews living in Europe over the
centuries: the Spanish Inquisition, pogroms, the Holocaust. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">On the other
hand, there is the tendency to elevate Jewish people to some superhuman status:
The idea is that they can do no wrong because every action on their part is consistent
with God’s plan for the universe. This is the tendency that has informed many
Christians’ blind idealism on all matters concerning modern Zionism and the
actions of the state of Israel. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">Systemic
racism</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">Earlier this
week, as I read the controversial remarks made by Miri Regev, I couldn’t help
thinking about these historical complications and the role they had played in
shaping the national Israeli psyche. To me, it was heartbreaking, but not
surprising, that systemic racism was part and parcel of the Israeli experience.
The rationale for the creation of modern Israel was largely based on the
systematic violence that Jewish people were subjected to in Europe by their
fellow Europeans, violence that began even before Hitler appeared on the
horizon. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">The Jewish
individuals who first popularized the idea of modern Zionism had in mind a
secular nation, based on Communist or Socialist ideals. They had no intention
of recreating the ancient kingdoms of Israel and Judah, or of fulfilling some
apocalyptic prophecy. On the other hand, the European Christians (nominal or
devout) who, in one way or another, facilitated the formation of Israel were,
to some extent, inspired by perceptions of Jews as superhuman beings or
sub-human beings who had been shaped by religion.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">Drawing parallels</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">Jewish people
have been granted a special place in modern history and geopolitics thanks in
large part to Christianity. However, this does not change the fact that Jewish
experiences are human experiences. We can learn some valuable lessons about
trauma, racism, and xenophobia by
thinking of Israelis and Jewish people, more broadly speaking, as human beings. This means we need to stop adopting different standards from the ones we generally use to discuss our own societies </span><span lang="SW">when we speak of Israel. Israel is a modern state, peopled by human beings. To even begin to understand it, we have to be able to see parallels between the Israeli context and other contexts globally.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">A cursory glance
at history makes it clear that any group of people that has endured systematic,
large-scale violence does not just "get over" that violence in a matter of
decades. In fact, perhaps they never do.
Think about all the peoples who have been victimized by states and
empires in recent centuries. Australian aborigines, Native Americans, Native
Hawaiians, First Nations people, African Americans, indigenous South Africans, Palestinians,
and European Jews are among these groups. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">Every single one of
these groups has struggled with historical and contemporary trauma. In some
cases, this struggle has resulted in generations of poverty,
disenfranchisement, addiction, and epidemic levels of intra-communal violence. In those cases where political autonomy and certain degrees of enfranchisement
have resulted, hatred and violence towards inside groups and outside groups alike
are present. Cases in point include
South Africa and Israel, where various forms of hatred remain alive in the
forms of racism and xenophobia. </span><br />
<br />
<span lang="SW">A lot more must be said about South Africa, Israel and the other societies I've named above to do the subject justice. However, it is not possible to do so
within one article. So I intend to write more on the subject in the future. This piece is meant to simply get the ball rolling.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">Before I sign off, I want to return to the thoughts with which I opened this article: I think it is
important to think about racist and xenophobic policies and actions within context. It allows us to
condemn the violence and dehumanization that result from them and, hopefully, to develop strategies for keeping them in check. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><span lang="SW"> </span></div>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-37725058118026482892012-06-26T18:30:00.002-07:002012-06-26T23:46:02.910-07:00"You have a right to be scared... but they have a right to live"<br />
It must have been two and a half weeks ago that I read <a href="http://www.clutchmagonline.com/2012/06/facing-the-zimmermans-in-our-own-communities/" target="_blank">this very interesting article by Britney Wilson</a> about how members of minority groups are sometimes guilty of practicing racial profiling when dealing with members of the same ethnicity. Wilson was writing specifically about the negative stereotypes that some black people have about young, black men. Her conclusion was a powerful one:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
People are people. We cannot stigmatize and judge them on one hand,
while campaigning against it on the other. As we work to get society to
stop stereotyping, judging, and fearing our sons, we cannot continue to
perpetuate these attitudes ourselves.</blockquote>
I thought it was a wonderful piece of writing. You see, I believe that, in order to make a genuine difference in society, we have to admit to our own culpability as individuals and as communities. It is easy to talk about the racial or ethnic biases of others, but much more challenging to talk about our own biases towards others and towards our own. "Real talk," some of my friends would say in agreement.<br />
<br />
But then, I went on to read the comments that came after the article. There, I encountered the opinions of readers, presumably black, who did not quite agree with Britney Wilson. For your convenience, here are a few of their remarks:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Profiling the members of ‘our community’ becomes second nature when you face a lot of intraracial street harassment."<br />
<br />
"Amen. I racial profile and I don’t make any apologies about it. A Black
man is more likely to rob, rape, steal from me than any white man. I see
one that looks stereotypical not only am I reaching for my purse but
I’m walking in the opposite direction."<br />
<br />
"Exactyly. From the time I hit puberty “our sons” made it clear that just
because I shared the same skin color didn’t mean that I’d be given any
respect."</blockquote>
<br />
These comments are, of course, problematic. One would be quick, and correct, to point out that any white person speaking similar words would be accused of racism. So how is one to wrap his or her mind around the fact that these words were written by black women who have, undoubtedly, been victims of racial profiling or stereotyping? Are they actually saying that profiling is justified, knowing full well that it would be used to victimize them and their own?<br />
<br />
The simple answer is yes. So the circumstances that would make these women adopt that position must be gruesome. They are essentially arguing that they and other women would be justified in profiling black men: their sons, brothers, husbands, and fathers. No sane black woman would make that argument lightly. So it is safe to assume that there is a story behind it.<br />
<br />
The key to understanding where these women might be coming from lies in articles such as the ones listed below. Note that these articles are graphic and emotionally wrenching. If in-depth discussions of sexual assault and harassment make you uncomfortable, you may be better off setting them aside:<br />
1. <a href="http://www.rippdemup.com/2011/12/street-meet-black-women-black-men-everyday-sexual-harassment/" target="_blank">Street Meet: Black Women, Black Men, & Everyday Sexual Harassment</a>.<br />
2. <a href="http://blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com/blog/sexual-assault-sexual-harassment-weight-gain-facing-facts/" target="_blank">Sexual Assault, Sexual Harassment & Weight Gain: Facing Facts</a> (make sure to also read the comments that follow this article).<br />
<br />
At this point, I want to emphasize that intra-communal violence is not unusual in communities that have historically been subjected to systemic violence. If black communities are characterized by the disproportionately high prevalence of gendered violence, then the same is true for First Nations and Australian Aboriginal communities. These communities' experiences of historical violence have resulted in the normalization of the said violence. Over the years, this and other forms of dysfunction have become accepted forms of behavior among a significant number within the communities. Unfortunately, those who bear the brunt of such violence are often the communities' most vulnerable members: children, women and the elderly.<br />
<br />
<br />
Many have written or spoken about intracommunal violence, and even given it such labels as "black-on-black violence." Often, the underlying assumption held by those who speak out against it is that it is unusual for people to visit violence upon members of their own community. But I have to wonder about that. The notion that racial or ethnic solidarity would confer immunity from violence upon members of a community strikes me as a naive one. Many, perhaps most, violent crimes are visited by criminals upon people that they know and communities that they are familiar with. The same is also true of sexual harassment, assault, and abuse. They are all often perpetrated by people known to the victims.<br />
<br />
When people survive such crimes or violence they, understandably, become hypervigilant. They are likely to be suspicious or scared of people who remind them of their aggressors. When that happens, and they respond to that fear by avoiding the said people, are they simply trying to protect themselves, or are they showing unjustifiable bias? This is the question addressed by many of the comments that follow <a href="http://www.clutchmagonline.com/2012/06/facing-the-zimmermans-in-our-own-communities/2/" target="_blank">Britney Wilson's article</a>.<br />
<br />
I think that some of the women who responded to the article recognized the complexity of the situation. They wrote nuanced responses, acknowledging what was at stake for women who had previously been victimized. At the same time, they recognized the inherent dangers that came with profiling. Their perspectives were nuanced and balanced. One of these comments follows below. The italics are mine:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"<i>What we think, how we feel are all justified and no one should have to
apologize for it. What is wrong is when anyone (including law
enforcement) kill someone unnecessarily.</i> Law enforcement have policies
and guidelines by which they are ‘supposed’ to follow. The problem is
that people are deciding to be judge, juror, and executioner instead of
concerned citizen. " </blockquote>
<br />
Another woman, writing from the UK, spoke more specifically about her context and her own tendency to profile young white men. She also had a nuanced approach to the subject, and one that I ultimately sympathized with. So I will bring this piece to a close with her words:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"Im a black woman that lives in a predominately white town. I profile
young white men who aren't wearing polo shirts and cargo shorts. I hold
my bag closer when I come accorss a group of “chavs.” The signs of drug
abuse can be visiable on someone’s face so I am careful as I approach
someone that looks like they may abuse drugs.<br />
<br />
"HOWEVER, (and I cant emphasize this enough) I have no legal right to
harm or kill due to my suspcion alone. <i>Its a red herring to even discuss
whether we should or should be afraid of young black men. If you feel
fear, you are entitled to your fear. You may even be justified. You
arent, however, justified in depriving them of their life because of
your fear. You have a right to be scared if you want but they have a
right to live.</i>"</blockquote>
Thoughtful words, indeed. But I think it's important to point out that there are more subtle ways in which profiling can cause harm or damage. Even as we argue that a woman is entitled to feel fear if she thinks she is unsafe, it is crucial to acknowledge that seeing that fear on her face has a psychological impact on the young, black man whose intentions she might have misinterpreted.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-45987418813471944112012-06-20T14:59:00.001-07:002012-06-21T18:34:33.986-07:00Of political partisanship and tantrum-throwing three-year-olds<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="SW">Imagine a
situation where two groups of construction workers are ostensibly working
together to build one house, but insist on following entirely different
blueprints. They spend the whole day working on the site, with their interactions
frequently exploding into arguments over which plan is better. And, whenever
they can, they sabotage each other’s previous efforts. It would be laughable to
imagine that, together, these two groups would actually be able to put up a
stable structure. And yet that is what polarized partisan politics is all
about.</span><br />
<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span lang="SW">RED VS. BLUE</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">In case you're wondering what brought these thoughts to my mind, I am following
<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/21/opinion/shane-holder-contempt/index.html" target="_blank">Darrell Issa’s latest crusade</a>, which seems to be geared at humiliating Eric Holder into resigning. For the record, I think the "Fast and Furious" probe is absolutely necessary. The operation was deeply flawed, and the onus is on any responsible government to find out what went wrong and why. In my opinion, however, the direction in which Darrell Issa is steering the questioning is unlikely to shed light on the factors that led to the "Fast and Furious" debacle. </span><br />
<br />
<span lang="SW">I think that fixating solely on the actions of the Department of Justice after the crisis conveniently</span><span lang="SW"> allows one to ignore the fact that the operation was launched during a Republican administration. Clearly, Republicans and Democrats alike have made missteps. In an ideal world, any well-meaning, civic-minded legislator would be inclined to set aside the labels "Republican" or "Democrat" and to look into the actual non-partisan facts on the ground. He or she would cast a larger net and call a larger number of people to testify. He or she would certainly make sure to question all of those who were involved in implementing the minute and not-so-minute aspects of the operation. He or she would also be inclined to look into the problem of gun-control, and its implications for gun-walking.</span><br />
<span lang="SW"><br /></span><br />
<span lang="SW">The "Fast and Furious" probe is not the only thing on my mind. I am also pondering on the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/robert-draper-anti-obama-campaign_n_1452899.html">inauguration
night meeting</a> at which top Republican lawmakers made the commitment to challenge
Obama’s attempts to govern by raising roadblocks in the path of his administration and of Democratic legislators whenever possible. Essentially, this was</span><span lang="SW"> a conscious decision by mature, intelligent,
highly-educated, and privileged adults to oppose, oppose, oppose everything their
political opponents said or did, even when doing so would violate their own ideals and contradict their previous policy positions. Their aim: to make a Democratic presidency
so dysfunctional that it would become untenable in the minds of American voters. Strategically, it has been an effective
plan: It is bound to succeed. If we were talking about a chess game, I would say
it was an ingenious strategy. But we are talking about a nation here. At what cost
will this potential political victory come? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<b><span lang="SW">TANTRUMS IN
THE SUPERMARKET AISLE</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">Unfortunately, the
destructive my-way-or-the-highway approach to politics has been so normalized over
time that people think it’s the natural way to do things. And yet it is not. Such
a polarized approach to life is consistent with the behavior of a 3-year old
throwing a tantrum in a supermarket aisle. It may succeed in getting the child
a candy bar or a toy car, but turns a simple shopping trip into a nightmare for
everybody else. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">The thing about
tantrum-throwing three year olds is that they are infuriating, but they are
children: innocent children. We keep our anger in check as we deal with them
because they are wired to believe they are the center of the world, and too
young to know better. But as they grow and learn, we start to expect more of
them. What about politicians? Do we expect more of them, or do we simply give
them free rein to play Machiavellian games?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<b><span lang="SW">THE
INTERNATIONAL TANTRUM-THROWING FRATERNITY </span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">It may seem like
I am talking about a uniquely American situation, but I am not. Partisanship
seems to be the bread-and-butter of many politicians globally. It has certainly
found a home in Kenyan politics, and I am sure other people can point to
parallels in their respective nations.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">I can’t help
reflecting on the historical turns taken by Kenyan politics over the decades,
beginning with Kenya’s 1963 independence from the United Kingdom. Almost from
the moment of its birth, independent Kenya has been divided along ethnopolitical
lines. Today, the ethnic and political alliances and rivalries of old remain
intact to a significant extent. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<b><span lang="SW">POVERTY IS NO
BARRIER</span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">Kenya is a
polarized nation. It is also a poor nation. However much people point to economic
growth figures and improved GDPs, that wealth is simply not trickling down to
the average person. So we remain poor. Despite our poverty and our great need
for collaborative interventions by our legislators, they still manage to find
joy in partisanship. And, like fools, we dance to the tunes they play. Sometimes I wonder about this. Are we marionettes being manipulated by cynical politicians, or are we part of the problem? Do our politicians simply represent everything that we are deep down inside?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">I remember many
Kenyan journalists remarking cynically some
years ago that the only thing our parliamentarians had ever voted unanimously
on was the decision to increase their incomes and the benefits that came with
their jobs. It’s still a running joke today, and makes good fodder for
political cartoons and satire. <a href="http://www.the-star.co.ke/opinions/mugambi-kiai/76474-increasing-mps-perks-is-illegal">Only,
the average Kenyan is not laughing</a>. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">Thanks to the
perks that come with their jobs, Kenyan Members of Parliament are insulated
from the most basic problems that come with daily life in the nation. So they
really have no incentive to work together on substantive issues. The average
citizen, however, cannot escape the neglected infrastructure, the
ill-equipped hospitals, the land tenure issues, the escalating prices of food
and fuel, the depressed job market, and the ill-regulated financial sector. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<span lang="SW">Is America there
yet? I leave it to you to answer this question, my dear reader. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span><span lang="SW"> </span></div>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-28212839622492647472012-06-12T19:38:00.000-07:002012-06-12T19:49:58.673-07:00When "beauty" is a scam<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/06/beauty-is-scam.html">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/06/beauty-is-scam.html</a><br />
<br />
Thanks to "<a href="http://blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com/body-image/victorias-secret-models-runway-walking-and-booty-paint/#comment-809673" target="_blank"><span style="color: #bc6622;">Victoria's Secret Models, Runway Walking and Booty Paint</span></a>," an
article by Erika Nicole Kendall, I got the opportunity to discover a <a href="http://articles.nydailynews.com/2009-12-01/entertainment/17942659_1_runway-bras-new-yorkers" target="_blank"><span style="color: #bc6622;">December 2009 article</span></a> by Leah Chernikoff that touches on some
of the behind-the-scenes goings-on in the fashion industry. <br />
<br />
Apparently,
"countless hours" go "into making the most beautiful women in the world look so
ethereally sexy." Pay close attention to <a href="http://articles.nydailynews.com/2009-12-01/entertainment/17942659_1_runway-bras-new-yorkers" target="_blank"><span style="color: #bc6622;">the words of Selita Ebanks</span></a> in "Victoria's Secret Angels strut
runway in $3 million bras, 100 pounds of glitter," the second article. Ebanks,
one of the models in the Victoria Secret Angels show, shared an open fashion
secret: "People don't realize that there are about 20 layers of makeup on my
butt alone." <br />
<br />
The article goes on to describe the labor-intensive
processes that go into making that perfect shot: <br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
In addition to body makeup, which Ebanks estimates takes
well over an hour to apply, the Angels prep in hair and makeup for three to five
hours before hitting the runway, with an average of five people - hair stylists,
makeup artists and manicurists, working on each of the 38
models.</blockquote>
<br />
That's three to five hours, people. With
five professionals working on one woman's skin and hair. And please don't forget
the chuckleworthy 20 layers of booty makeup. Does any ordinary woman honestly
think she can reproduce those conditions during her morning makeup routine? Does
anybody actually want to reproduce those conditions?<br />
<br />
I cannot lie. The
article in its entirety cracked me up. I just find the lengths to which the
media and the fasion industry will go to preserve the illusion of perfect bodies
ridiculous. When you really think about it, it is nutty. None of us would
hesitate to label a woman neurotic if she applied 20 layers of makeup to
her lower body before stepping out in her swimsuit. But, somehow, it is okay
when the fashion industry does it. Maybe we have managed to convince ourselves
that the fashion industry is doing it to achieve artistic ends. However, we
should be honest with ourselves. This "art" is being created for a receptive
audience: us. <br />
<br />
So what is this madness? Why do we allow the media to sell
us such unrealistic images of female beauty? And why do we subsequently give
ourselves the impossible task of living up to the associated standards? The
answer is <strong>not</strong> that we are too naive to realize that the images
are unrealistic. Every single woman looking at those images recognizes, at some
level, that "alterations" have been made. The photos may have been edited, or
makeup may have been lavishly smothered on the women's skin. Whatever the case,
we know that those women do not actually look like that.<br />
<br />
I'm one of those
people who happens to think that audiences are not passive bystanders. We
actually make choices about what forms of media to be exposed to. So we
consciously choose to buy the fashion and style magazines, and we choose to
watch those runway shows. I think that it is too easy to speak of the nuttiness
of the fashion industry when we know only too well that their actions meet a
neurotic need on our part. <br />
<br />
What is to
stop us from being more judicious in our choice of reading materials? What is to
stop us from being more selective about the TV channels we watch? The answer is
simple, but sad: Many women do not want to see images of "flawed" bodies on
their TVs or in their magazines. They want to see "perfect" bodies. Any female
celebrity who makes the "abominable" mistake of being caught on camera after
venturing out without makeup or putting on a few pounds learns this very
quickly.<br />
<br />
It is apt that one of the commenters on <a href="http://blackgirlsguidetoweightloss.com/body-image/victorias-secret-models-runway-walking-and-booty-paint/#comment-809673" target="_blank"><span style="color: #bc6622;">Erika Nicole Kendall's article</span></a> makes this precise observation
(in comment number 1.1). The commenter, Mac, points out that "when someone
actually posts a picture of a woman with flaws, the other women in the crowd
usually pick her apart every way possible. Someone posts a lady in a swimsuit
and all you hear is, 'what’s that on her forehead,' 'her stomach doesn’t look
right,' 'her arms need a little bit more work, she needs to go back to the gym,'
and it goes on and on no matter how beautiful the woman is or what the
commenters look like." <br />
<br />
Mac hits the nail on the head. But it wouldn't be
honest to claim that all women were guilty of responding negatively to
portrayals of "real" bodies. Plenty of women see beauty and character in
idiosyncracies. Freckles, moles, and birthmarks are among the so-called
imperfections that make faces more interesting, and people more memorable.
Excessive makeup and airbrushing tend to have the effect of making all models
look alike. They all have the same look, the same bodily proportions, the same
hair textures and styles. Frankly speaking, they become boring to look at, part
of the monotonous background that we peer at as we flip through magazines,
suppressing the urge to yawn. <br />
<br />
Personally, I prefer to see images of
"real" women because they are more interesting. I think that there is beauty in
our idiosyncracies (which photo editors and makeup artists would likely call
flaws) and in our diversity. It is truly sad that we allow people with limited
imaginations to set the limits for the images we are allowed to see on screen
and in print.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is licensed to
Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-78152988492123398862012-06-07T13:29:00.003-07:002012-06-07T13:37:18.954-07:00On "Schrodinger's rapist" and the construction of healthy boundaries<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/06/on-schrodingers-rapist-and-construction.html" target="_blank">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/06/on-schrodingers-rapist-and-construction.html </a><br />
<br />
An online search for the term "Schrodinger's rapist" led me to some very interesting articles, including the two listed below:<br />
<br />
1. <a href="http://kateharding.net/2009/10/08/guest-blogger-starling-schrodinger%E2%80%99s-rapist-or-a-guy%E2%80%99s-guide-to-approaching-strange-women-without-being-maced/" target="_blank">Schrodinger's rapist: or a guy's guide to approaching women without being maced</a><br />
2. <a href="http://freethoughtblogs.com/camelswithhammers/2012/01/16/schrodingers-rapist-and-schrodingers-racist/" target="_blank">Schrodinger's rapist and Schrodinger's racist</a> <br />
<br />
<u>THE SITUATION </u><br />
I strongly recommend that you read these articles, because they bring into focus the all-important issue of setting boundaries and respecting them. Both articles address, to some extent, interactions between a man and a woman who are relative strangers to each other. They point out the degree to which the average woman has to be extra cautious when interacting with a man, because she has no way of knowing whether or not he poses a threat to her. He might turn out to be a rapist; he might turn out not to be one. But because rapists don't wear neon signs on their foreheads declaring that they are rapists, and because they do not have horns growing out of their heads or visibly forked tongues, she simply has to be cautious.<br />
<br />
Now the thing is that there are many well-intentioned men in the world. They bear no ill-will towards women. When they set out to interact with a woman, perhaps they are just being friendly: Maybe they're trying to help a woman in a bad situation. But then the woman responds to their friendliness with coldness, suspicion or fear. The immediate response of many of these men is to take offense at the very idea that they could be thought of as potential rapists or thugs. It is a perfectly natural response and one that I understand. I imagine that I might be similarly miffed if, in a parallel situation, somebody misunderstood my intentions.<br />
<br />
<u>THE REACTION </u><br />
<br />
It is what happens next that is particularly interesting to me: The man could realize that, for whatever reason, the woman feels threatened by his attention. He could then adopt a less threatening stance and step back, ultimately leaving her alone. Alternatively, he could choose to give her a piece of his mind and express his displeasure or anger at her assumptions. Now I suspect that some may think that the latter approach is the way to go. But the two articles are adamant that it is not, and I am bound to agree with them. It is better to recognize that the other person has set boundaries and that, whether or not one likes them, one must respect them. When a man is unwilling to recognize that a woman's previous experiences are shaping her perceptions of his actions, and when he refuses to acknowledge that he might, in fact, be intruding in her space, and that she has the right to determine for herself what situation she is uncomfortable with, he is trying to intimidate her into 'trusting' or 'liking' him. That is bullying, plain and simple.<br />
<br />
<u>THE BIGGER PICTURE</u><br />
Now, I recognize that the situation described thus far is gender-specific, but this analysis could be more broadly applied to other contexts. I'm sure we can all think of gender-neutral instances where relatives, friends, coreligionists, workmates, etc. have taken offense when an individual has expressed discomfort with a situation, subsequently claimed that this person's assertion has <b>offended them</b> and tried to intimidate the individual into going along with their agenda <br />
<br />
<u>SAFE SEX</u><br />
I am familiar with one particular situation because of my interest in HIV/AIDS awareness efforts. One of the things that has long been evident to me is that many people in sexual relationships have a hard time discussing sexual health and protection frankly with their partners. Ideally, this is something that needs to be discussed before they became sexually intimate and then revisited afterwards. But their partners often shut down the discussion by invoking "trust." Any inquiry about the partner's history of STD infection or any request that they should use condoms is almost invariably met with the response, "Don't you trust me?" <b>even when the offended party knows that he or she is being unfaithful or has previously been infected</b>. Thus, the individual's attempts to take reasonable precautions and to draw boundaries within which he or she will feel comfortable are turned into a <b>personal attack</b> on his or her partner's trustworthiness. Not surprisingly, many are essentially bullied into having unprotected sex, into infection with HIV/AIDS or other STDs and, in the case of some women, into unwanted pregnancies.<br />
<br />
<u>LEAVING A RELIGION</u><br />
Yet another situation involves the man or woman who decides to leave the religion within which he or she was raised. Perhaps something about the religion violates his or her conscience. Perhaps he or she has never really believed and is tired of keeping up the facade. Thus, he or she decides to set up new boundaries by no longer worshiping, attending services, or reading the scriptures of that religion. Perhaps he or she chooses an alternative religion, one that sits better with his or her personal moral code. The coreligionists who respond to such a decision by framing it as a <b>rejection of them</b> and fight against it on that basis are essentially refusing to recognize his or her individuality and freedom of conscience.<br />
<u><br /></u><br />
<u>CONSENSUS VS INDIVIDUALITY </u><br />
The above situations illustrate the problems that can follow when people are unable to appreciate and respect the fact that an individual holds a different viewpoint. When the appearance of consensus is prioritized above all else, the truth ends up being sacrificed. People feel pressured to suffer their discomfort, or fear in silence, because they have been led to believe that expressing what they actually feel will hurt others' feelings. The process by which the other person's feelings end up being prioritized over their own emotional well-being is hardly examined. It just proceeds smoothly, taken for granted as the normal course of events.<br />
<br />
This subject is one that I have thought long and hard about because I have come to recognize that this kind of coerced consensus is maintained, not just in interpersonal relationships, but also at the communal level. The community can bully an individual into agreeing with the status quo, or it could stand by in silent approval while an individual does the bullying. This is an ethical problem of immense proportions. It whittles away at one's individuality and crushes his or her will. Furthermore, it creates an environment where abuse can thrive unchallenged for years. Ironically, this is the status quo in many communities that claim to hold free will, honesty, and integrity as ideals, most notably, intensely devout religious communities.<br />
<br />
<u>A SOLUTION?</u><br />
<br />
The question is, "What is the best way to address this problem?" Returning to the original example, is it incumbent on the man who is perceived as "Schrodinger's rapist" to respect the boundaries set by the woman, or is it incumbent on the woman to hold on to continue to assert herself, even in the face of resistance or intimidation by the man? The obvious solution is that both approaches are necessary. But I have a special interest in asserting the importance of the would-be victim's actions in this situation. I think it is especially empowering for individuals to gain the tools that allow them to set up and maintain their boundaries even when being pressured to give in by others.<br />
<br />
The beginnings of victory lie in recognizing the moment when one's self-assertion is made to seem like an attack on the other person's feelings and resisting that interpretation of events.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-37926566112389945182012-05-29T10:43:00.001-07:002012-05-29T10:43:03.064-07:00Emotional Wellness<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/05/emotional-wellness.html">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/05/emotional-wellness.html</a><br />
<br />
There's a good piece on the <i>Huffington Post</i> called "<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sheenie-ambardar-md/emotional-health_b_1542521.html" target="_blank">10 Ways to Improve Depression and Anxiety without Meds</a>."
It's written by a psychiatrist, Dr Sheenie Ambardar, and I believe it
is directed at an audience of people living with mood disorders. But I
think it makes great advice for a general audience.<br />
<br />
The first item on the list, "Limit Your Time on Facebook," cracked me
up, but it is true. I think spending time on Facebook is okay if you're
strategic about it, and do it for networking or professional purposes.
Using your Facebook account as an extension of your personal life is
another story.<br />
<br />
I think the seventh item on the list, "Pick a Goal, Any Goal," is not
specific enough. I can imagine somebody picking a huge task as a goal,
and then getting anxious or depressed about not being able to achieve
it. That would contradict the intentions of Dr Ambardar in writing the
article.<br />R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-905380772222378475.post-52152438579742558412012-05-28T11:55:00.001-07:002012-05-28T11:55:30.187-07:00Setting your own limits<a href="http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/05/setting-your-own-limits.html" target="_blank">http://nutritionafrica.blogspot.com/2012/05/setting-your-own-limits.html </a><br />
<br />
I have just come across a great blog post by the writer, Donald Miller.
It touches on decisions that we can actively make to improve our
emotional well-being. The post, <a href="http://donmilleris.com/2012/05/25/need-to-manage-your-relationships-consider-friendly-fridays/comment-page-1/#comment-71164" target="_blank">Need to Manage Your Relationships? </a>touches
on the challenges Miller has faced managing his time and relationships
in such a way that he can meet his professional and social
responsibilities without exhausting himself.<br />
<br />
You really should read this piece. It articulates what so many of us go
through daily, trying to be supermen or superwomen in our jobs and lives
in general. We are under so much pressure to perform well at work, to
be supportive friends, and to meet whatever personal goals we have set
for ourselves, that we forget that we can't do it all. Many of us go
overboard, committing ourselves to too much, and then subsequently
wonder why we are so burnt out and resentful in the middle of the week.<br />
<br />
I'm glad to say I checked out of that particular hotel a long time ago.
But the article resonates with me because it parallels my own process of
coming to the realization that I had to set my own limits and stick to
them. I was the person best placed to do this because I knew when I was
at my most productive, when I was most exhausted, what was really
important in the scheme of things, and what wasn't.<br />
<br />
From his brief post, it is apparent that Miller learned what his daily
work and life rhythm was and structured everything else around it.
Fortunately, I too learned to do something similar a few years ago, and
it simplified my life tremendously.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><i>This work is
licensed to Rose Kahendi under a </i><a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/" rel="license"><span style="color: #f05e00;"><i>Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0
Unported License</i></span></a><i>.</i></span>R Kahendihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01008362139942169758noreply@blogger.com0