2008 Woodie Awards
Professor Wainaina remains in Kenya to help solve political crisis
Erika Schnitzer
Issue date: 1/17/08 Section: News
Writer-in-residence Binyavanga Wainaina will not be returning to Union this term, as originally planned, due to the civil unrest following the presidential election in his home country of Kenya.
Recently, the Atlantic Journal-Constitution named Wainaina "one to watch in 2008," alongside France's President, Nicolas Sarkozy; Russia's Prime Minister, Dmitri Medvedev; Pakistan's President, Pervez Musharraf; and Cuba leaders Fidel and Raul Castro, among others.
The Atlantic Journal-Constitution notes that Wainaina "is the most famous of a batch of young Kenyan writers who are unafraid to challenge both foreign and home-grown perceptions of their country."
This is certainly demonstrated in his efforts to educate his students at Union and the world. In a piece written for the literary magazine, Granta, "How to Write about Africa," Wainaina writes, "Africa is to be pitied, worshiped or dominated. Whichever angle you take, be sure to leave the strong impression that without your intervention and your important book, Africa is doomed."
Certainly Wainaina follows his own advice, taking it a step further. He currently "is involved with efforts to solve Kenya's human and political crisis and simply can't be away from his country at this time," Harry Marten, the English Department Chair, stated in a note addressed to the students who had signed up for Wainaina's Fiction Writing Workshop and Contemporary African Fiction courses.
"For me, as a writer, there is no more urgent task than to use what we have to change minds, and to introduce new possibilities for people in confusion," Wainaina explained in a letter to his students.
Wainaina is certainly no stranger to such efforts. He has published many works about Africa, including his award-winning story, "Discovering Home." This past summer, he was featured in Vanity Fair's special Africa issue.
Most recently, The New York Times published an Op-ed by Wainaina on January 6 in which he discusses the recent elections in Kenya and its violent consequences.
"On the day we cast our vote, we thought that our optimism and desire for an inclusive and broad government would prevail. Instead, three days later…Kenya exploded," Wainaina writes.
Despite this, however, Wainaina remains optimistic: "all is not lost," he continues. "Nations are built on crises like this. If there is such a thing as Kenya, it should be gathering energy right now…A Constitution that names and recognizes the tribal nations within our nation, that decentralizes some power and that includes us all in the process is possible. For 40 years we have been dancing around each other, a gaseous nation circling and tightening. The moment is now to make a solid thing called Kenya."
Recently, the Atlantic Journal-Constitution named Wainaina "one to watch in 2008," alongside France's President, Nicolas Sarkozy; Russia's Prime Minister, Dmitri Medvedev; Pakistan's President, Pervez Musharraf; and Cuba leaders Fidel and Raul Castro, among others.
The Atlantic Journal-Constitution notes that Wainaina "is the most famous of a batch of young Kenyan writers who are unafraid to challenge both foreign and home-grown perceptions of their country."
This is certainly demonstrated in his efforts to educate his students at Union and the world. In a piece written for the literary magazine, Granta, "How to Write about Africa," Wainaina writes, "Africa is to be pitied, worshiped or dominated. Whichever angle you take, be sure to leave the strong impression that without your intervention and your important book, Africa is doomed."
Certainly Wainaina follows his own advice, taking it a step further. He currently "is involved with efforts to solve Kenya's human and political crisis and simply can't be away from his country at this time," Harry Marten, the English Department Chair, stated in a note addressed to the students who had signed up for Wainaina's Fiction Writing Workshop and Contemporary African Fiction courses.
"For me, as a writer, there is no more urgent task than to use what we have to change minds, and to introduce new possibilities for people in confusion," Wainaina explained in a letter to his students.
Wainaina is certainly no stranger to such efforts. He has published many works about Africa, including his award-winning story, "Discovering Home." This past summer, he was featured in Vanity Fair's special Africa issue.
Most recently, The New York Times published an Op-ed by Wainaina on January 6 in which he discusses the recent elections in Kenya and its violent consequences.
"On the day we cast our vote, we thought that our optimism and desire for an inclusive and broad government would prevail. Instead, three days later…Kenya exploded," Wainaina writes.
Despite this, however, Wainaina remains optimistic: "all is not lost," he continues. "Nations are built on crises like this. If there is such a thing as Kenya, it should be gathering energy right now…A Constitution that names and recognizes the tribal nations within our nation, that decentralizes some power and that includes us all in the process is possible. For 40 years we have been dancing around each other, a gaseous nation circling and tightening. The moment is now to make a solid thing called Kenya."
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Dave Lucas
posted 1/23/08 @ 11:31 AM EST
This week I interviewed Bin via telephone:
http://dave-lucas.blogspot.com/2008/01/nairobi-now.html
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