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Disability Rights Activism in Kenya, 1959–1964: History from Below

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 October 2013

Fikru Negash Gebrekidan
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Abstract:

This article examines the early history of disability rights activism in Kenya. The transitional years from colonialism to independence were a period of great expectations. For persons with disabilities in particular, decolonization held additional possibilities and potential. National independence promised not just majority rule but also an all-inclusive citizenship and the commitment to social justice. Among the visually impaired of Kenya, such collective aspirations led to the birth of the Kenya Union of the Blind in 1959. In 1964, after years of futile correspondence with government officials, the Union organized a street march to the prime minister's office to attract attention to its grievances. The result was a government panel, the Mwendwa Committee for the Care and Rehabilitation of the Disabled, whose published report became the blueprint for social and rehabilitation programs. The government possessed limited resources, and the reforms that ensued were long overdue. Yet the sociohistorical dynamics behind the march are of particular significance. From the social historian's point of view, they affirm not only the historical agency of persons with disabilities, but also the need to recast and broaden the scope of African social history.

Résumé:

Résumé:

Cet article examine les origines historiques de l'activisme pour les droits des invalides au Kenya. Les années de transition entre la colonisation et l'indépendance furent en période de grandes attentes. Pour les invalides en particulier, la décolonisation sembla apporter de nouvelles possibilités et opportunités. L'indépendance nationale promit non seulement la règle de la majorité mais aussi la citoyenneté complète et l'engagement à la justice sociale. Parmi les handicapés de la vue au Kenya, ces aspirations collectives aboutirent à la création de L'Union du Kenya pour les Aveugles en 1959. En 1964, après des années de vaine correspondance avec les responsables du gouvernement, l'Union a organisé une manifestation de rue jusqu'au bureau de Premier Ministre pour attirer l'attention sur ses réclamations. A la suite de cette action a été créé un panel gouvernemental, le comité Mwendwa pour la Réinsertion des Invalides, dont le rapport publié est devenu la référence des programmes de réhabilitation et de rééducation. Le gouvernement possédait peu de ressources et les réformes qui ont suivi étaient bien tardives. Cependant, les dynamiques socio-historiques ayant engendré la manifestation sont d'une importance significative. Du point de vue de l'historien sociologique, elles affirment non seulement la représentation historique des invalides, mais aussi le besoin de recadrer et d'élargir le champ d'étude de l'histoire sociale africaine.

Type
Research Article
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 55 , Issue 3 , December 2012 , pp. 103 - 122
Copyright
Copyright © African Studies Association 2012

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