Summary
Michael Nyangi arrived in Nairobi, Kenya in 1999 as an 18 year old looking for work. Instead, he ended up living in Kibera, a nearby slum. In 2003, Michael started his own microfinancing business, called Lomoro. This video is about the message that Michael wants to bring to the UN conference that he was chosen to participate in. There, he would have the opportunity to voice his opinion about what needs to be done in Kibera to reduce poverty. Michael describes the people of Kibera as needing support, but not in the form of money or food. Instead, they want to be able to express themselves and bring about change by having their concerns heard. One such concern is the lack of affordable clean drinking water. Although the slum has access to clean water, it costs money, and many are not able to afford it. As a result, they take water from the sewage, which poses numerous health hazards. Another concern is the regular occurrence of rapes at night which go unsolved because, as Michael puts it, the victims are “overlooked”.
Commentary
One of the first things that came to mind when I saw this video, was the possible issue of tokenism in this situation. At the UN conference, Michael represents the people of Kibera, but can he tell all of their stories for them? Evidently, Michael is vastly more educated than the majority of people living in the slum, as he speaks English, and has a college degree in accounting. Perhaps it is for these reasons that he was given the chance to speak at the UN conference. Although one cannot claim Michael’s presence at the UN conference as a step in the wrong direction, his presence could also be a case of tokenism.
“Change cannot be realised if these people cannot be given time to express themselves and talk of the problems they are facing.” – Michael Nyangi
Michael describes poverty as not only lack of money or food, but also as the situation where women and children are unable to express themselves. Michael’s comment about how the people of Kibera do not simply want money or food, also demonstrates that traditional forms of aid is not enough to lift Kibera out of poverty. This is an interesting point, and relates to what we have talked in class about the subaltern’s voice being silenced. I agree with Michael, that not being heard and having your voice be oppressed is a form of poverty. Perhaps it is a form of poverty that is more complicated than that of the lack of food. If people lack food, food can be given to them, or loans given so that they can start a business in order to earn money to buy food. But how do you solve the problem of the subaltern’s voice being silenced? As mentioned in numerous class readings, simply “giving voice” to the subaltern is problematic. “Giving power” to the powerless only reinforces existing power structures and reaffirms the fact that we (the elite) have the power and they (the subaltern) don’t. Furthermore, even if Michael’s presentation at the UN constitutes the voice of the subaltern, will his message be lost in translation? The original stories might have been told to him in another language, and undoubtedly there will be situations in these stories that are difficult to explain to an outsider because of cultural differences.
This video also made me think about today’s class discussion about participatory development, and whether Michael’s trip to New York would be effective in making the subaltern’s voice be heard. In the Mohan reading, one of the critiques of mainstream participatory development practices is that often marginalised people in the community do not have the chance to participate. For example, in this video, no women spoke and all the men who were shown spoke English.
Although Michael’s trip to New York to speak at the UN conference is an opportunity for the subaltern to speak, we need to be critical about whether their voices will actually be heard. I wonder if Michael will be able to do the people of Kibera justice by accurately representing their concerns and speaking for them, or if he will become a token.
Here is the link to Michael’s microfinance business:
http://lomoromicrocredit.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22&Itemid=34