Mini-Me?
in 2016, specifically towards the end of 2016, i remember having a moment of somewhat clarity..
all this time my thoughts, observations and what was being said about Kenya was still kinda scattered - a little bit of this here, a little bit there and sometimes on their own..
but that end of the year period, for whatever reason, things started to come together, slowly, bit by bit, in such a way that a picture began to form, i didn't have the complete picture but yeah, it was not looking good at all..
a bit of a detour:
so, there's this old man who apparently goes by the name Jomo Kenyatta, but i think Uncle Ruckus is more apt, a story for another day.. 😄
he's son, Uhuru, was president in 2016, and it started becoming clear to me that he was looting the country for his and his family's interests, absolutely destroying the systems in place and opening the gates to the Kenya that is today - as do all colonial puppets, oh, and his deputy was William Ruto.. #CrimesAgainstHumanity
also, we need to call out the Kenyattas way more than we do..
it's really interesting that there is always a trail to how things get to where they are, and even we, the people, have to take responsibility for being apart of it as well..
absolutely nothing exists in a vacuum
so..
as education, healthcare and social structures continued to gradually breakdown, that moment of clarity came to me like a gentle breeze, and it was abundantly clear that Kenya, was in no way designed, built nor socially prepared for children - and that it will be a very long time before it ever will be..
looking back, having children was never really on my mind, i guess it was more like "yeah, having kids sounds nice" but not something i was particularly focused on, however once the year 2016 rolled over, that thought was now replaced with "umm, i don't know man, it's looking rough out here for kids"..
thinking on it, it's been rough for children in Kenya for a very long time..
and fast forward almost 10 years later and the reality for children right now is one full of uncertainty, social neglect and a revolving cascade of chaotic events as they desperately try and navigate this country's fuckery, which is attacking them from every which angle and with no respite in sight, resulting in a number of them dying as a result..
being a child in Kenya, comes with a lot of unnecessary pain and suffering and it's heartbreaking, seeing it unfold at such a scale..
~ 🐨
come along with me and the butterflies and bees - Ashley Eriksson