Shanize Njeri Wanjiko is a young poet who lives in the Mathure area of Nairobi, Kenya. She urges everyone to stop senseless violence.
Shanize’s Poem of Unity
It is very sad what’s happening to our country.
Imagine.
A nation that is known to be safe – no violence – now turned into a nation living in fear.
No security.
Why does it have to come down to this?
Religions. You have grown up together.
The Kikuyu, M’Kamba, Luo, Abalughya and others.
Why do you want to fight each other?
As Kenyans, youth – Christian and Muslim –
we should stand up as one and say no to violence, no to terrorism, no to instability and live as one.Let no one convince you to pick up a panga, a gun, grenades, bombs, and harm one another.
No one has the right to take anyone’s life.
Stand up. Get up. Show up.
And say no to violence, no to terrorism, no to instability, and live as one.
We need to find ways to encourage young ladies such as Shanize in their writing and give them opportunities to develop and share their voices.
Other links of interest:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kibera
http://www.cku.dk/en/spoken-word-artists-bombard-kenya-with-verse-and-words/
The Thornfield Review 