Colonial Apartheid

Ngũgĩ’s memoir, written about his high school years 1955 – 1959, serves as a historical document bearing witness to the existence and effects of colonial apartheid on Kenyan natives. It contains historical facts, such as the hanging of the Mau Mau guerilla leader Kimathi in February 1957, or the relocation of Ngũgĩ’s village as part of the Britain’s villagization program begun in 1955. The historical facts presented within the memoir give credence to the events and provide awareness of colonial apartheid in Kenya. Because Kenya became a British colony in 1920, the memoir takes place after British rule has existed for over 30 years. As hostility heightens over the years, it peaks with the Emergency Act of 1952 to repress the Mau Mau guerillas. Ngũgĩ finds himself at a critical transformative time in his life as the political background unfolds beside him.

The degradation of native Kenyans by powerful...