Browsing by Author "Murathi, Antony Kimani"

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    Beer and World War: Reflections on Consumption by Troops in Nairobi, Kenya:1939-1945
    (International Journal of History and Philosophical Research, 2025-01) Murathi, Antony Kimani; Kakai, Pius; Kinyanjui, Felistus
    This article examines the question of beer consumption by second world war troops in Nairobi, Kenya between 1939 and 1945. World War II was one of the most destructive conflicts in African history with regard to the human costs, the numbers of people mobilized, the scale of violence and destruction experienced. Archival sources indicate that recruitment of manpower for combat and war related labour was the most important contribution of Kenya colony to the Allied cause. In this regard, 98,240 Kenyans were recruited as askaris (soldiers) into the King’s African Rifles, representing 30% of the unit’s total strength during the war. Substantial debate surrounded the question of access to beer by servicemen in Africa and Europe. Some historians claim that alcohol consumption was ubiquitous during the war among servicemen of all races and ranks. The article demonstrates that beer was a vital part of the experience for the soldiers. The article examines Kenya’s central role as the home of the East African force, the Eastern Fleet, and also as a war front with Italy and seeks to unravel how this impacted beer consumption in Nairobi. An equally important theme in the article is access to beer by white military men in Kenya during the turbulent war years. Analyzing the archival data and existing research on the role of Africans in the world war, this article reveals important points about war, military recruitment, beer consumption and alcoholism among combatants in the second world war. The study made extensive use of archival materials and oral interviews as primary sources. Secondary sources used to fill gaps in primary sources were books, unpublished thesis and relevant articles in journals.
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    Ethnicity and Politics in Nairobi County C. 1907 - 2002
    (Kenyatta University, 2018) Murathi, Antony Kimani
    Various studies have captured different aspects of politics in colonial and post-independent Kenya. While these studies have contributed to our understanding of political processes and democratic transitions in Kenya, there are still some issues in Kenya’s politics that have not been given adequate scholarly attention and therefore require further investigation. In order to have a comprehensive analysis of Kenya’s political processes, there’s a need to investigate how ethnicity has influenced politics at the grassroots level. This study sought to examine the role of ethnicity in shaping politics in Kenya. The study focused on how the use of ethnicity as a tool for political mobilization influenced and shaped the character of politics in Nairobi County. It was premised on the assumption that ethnicity largely crystallized as the rallying point for organizing politics in Nairobi County. The study also sought to demonstrate that the ethnic allegiance of Kenya’s politics is rooted in the colonial legacy. The assumption was that the colonial experience worked in diverse ways to cement ethnic identification in Kenya. Ethnicity was thus profoundly influenced in form, scope and content by the social, economic, cultural and political forces of colonialism. After independence, political parties in Kenya continued to gravitate around the ethnic pole and to expound ethnic cleavage. Kenya’s parties have increasingly incorporated diverse communities, but they have consistently failed to bridge the country’s dominant ethnic cleavages. Consequently, all of Kenya’s significant parties have continued to represent ethnic coalitions of convenience and commitment and are thus, ethnic parties. Allegiance to political parties in Kenya strongly correlates with ethnic loyalties. The study employed an integrated theoretical approach, adopting views from a variety of theoretical paradigms such as the Marxism, the Primordial and the Instrumental perspectives. The concept of Neo-Patrimonialism with its appendage, ‘clientelism’ school of thought, was also useful in this study and helped us to analyze post-independence politics in Nairobi County with regard to ethnicity and political mobilization. The study analyzed data from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data came from field research, carried out in the three administrative districts of Nairobi County. Informants were selected on the basis of their knowledge of political affairs in Nairobi County and Kenya in general. Secondary data from various sources was subjected to historical criticism in order to verify its validity. Ultimately, data from primary and secondary sources was corroborated for authenticity and reliability. The study found that politics in Nairobi County revolved around ethnicity during the period under study, and that the elite was the main factor in galvanizing ethnicity as a political mobilizing tool. Political parties play a critical role in political mobilization in Nairobi County. It recommends that Political parties should be reformed to reflect the diversity of the people of Kenya, and should be run in a democratic manner. One way of solving the problem of ethnicity and division among Kenyan communities is to address historical injustices related to access to resources. There should be fair distribution of resources to reduce inter- community suspicion and cement peace and stability through co-existence of Kenyan communities.
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    Women, Indigenous Beer and Brewing for the Market: A Cottage ‘Industry’ in Colonial Nairobi: 1920 - 1939
    (African Journal of History and Geography, 2025-02) Murathi, Antony Kimani; Kakai, Pius; Kinyanjui, Felistus
    Existing studies on women entrepreneurship in colonial Nairobi largely focused on women in prostitution, hawking and itinerant trade. Women in indigenous beer enterprise remained unstudied. This leaves a dearth in scholarship which this study sought to address. The objective of the study was to examine the development of entrepreneurial brewing of indigenous beer in Nairobi City from 1920 to 1939. The study discussed the factors that led to the rise of women’s indigenous beer enterprise and the reasons for its resilience in colonial Nairobi despite a raft of measures instituted by the colonial government to suppress it. It focused on continuities and changes that took place in indigenous beer production, marketing and consumption following the commoditization of traditional beer in Nairobi city in the early colonial period. The study employed a qualitative design based on a historical approach. Data was obtained from both primary and secondary sources. Collected data was verified for authenticity, consistency and reliability. It was then analyzed qualitatively and presented in line with the objective of the study. The study revealed that indigenous beer emerged as a factor in commercial life in African locations in Nairobi and was produced and sold by women. Measures adopted by the colonial government to control indigenous beer entrepreneurial activity of women largely failed to curtail it. This is because it provided inexpensive alcohol for the urban low-income earner, particularly during the Depression years. New techniques and tools replaced the traditional brewing tools and mechanisms. The traditional brewing tools and mechanisms were replaced by new techniques and tools. The study is significant because it provides important data on women’s domination of specific incomeearning niches in the urban milieu in colonial Kenya.