In Mau Mau from Within Karari Njama, a school-teacher who took part in the rebellion, tells his story, to which an anthropologist, Donald L. Barnett, attaches some useful comments, situating the rebellion against its general background.

The book is an extraordinary story of courage, passion, heroism, combined with recounting of colonial terror, brutality and betrayal. It is a story of how the very idea of being ‘Kenyan’ was intimately linked to the idea of freedom, a connection that was destroyed not only by the firepower of the British, but also by those who collaborated and established themselves as the beneficiaries of neo-colonial rule. Disconnecting notions of freedom from identity left only a caricature that rapidly descended into tribalism and ethnicity. This momentous story of the struggle for freedom described here is relevant not only for a new generation of Kenyans but also for all those engaged in emancipatory struggles internationally. For so long as the experiences arising from the struggles described in this book are perceived as merely ‘African’ or ‘Kenyan’, it is not possible to fully grasp the contributions they have made to the struggle for a universalist humanity.

Authors: Karari Njama, Donald L. Barnett. Foreword by Ngugi Wa Thiong’o

ISBN: 9781988832593

Publisher: Daraja Press