Serubiri Moses

We’re honoured to broadcast a two-part memorial reading (Monday 30 June & Wednesday 2 July from 6pm) for the writer, educator and revolutionary Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1938-2025) – organised by our longtime comrades Serubiri Moses and Bwesigye Bwa-Mwesigire and structured around the chronology of Ngũgĩ ‘s publications.

A major thread concerns the arrival of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o as a rebel theorist following his detainment, as well as his long preoccupation with the legacy of the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, as well as the author’s major criticism of Kenya’s former presidents Moi and Kenyatta. His engagement with languages was lifelong. Yet his work on translation and oral tradition intensified in his later years combined with his interests in memoir.

This is a celebration of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s life with readings of his words in theory, drama, fiction, nonfiction, and personal reflections to the work. Sound design by Joseph Mutono.

Monday 30 June – The Novelist & Playwright

Sitawa Namwalie, Glaydah Namukasa, Achiro Patricia Olwoch, Bwesigye Bwa Mwesigire, Serubiri Moses, Margaret Nagawa, Ladan Osman, Wunpini Fatimata Mohammed, Sreddy Yen, Akpa Arinzechukwu, Omar Berrada, Jonathan Kubakundimana, Kyomuhendo A. Ateenyi, Bamba Ndiaye

Wednesday 2 July – Autobiography & Oral Tradition

Frances Ogamba, Anooradha Iyer Siddiqi, Bwesigye Bwa Mwesigire, Richard Oduor, Helen Mugambi, Vukoni Lupa Lusaga, Delight Ejiaka