Gen Z revolution: A reflection on sacrifice, freedom

Gen Z's cheer during the Shujaaz Memorial Concert held at Uhuru Park, Nairobi, on July 7, 2024. [Denis Kibuchi, Standard]

As the Gen Z revolution has been unfolding in the last few weeks, I've had a deep reflection on the whole issue of sacrifice to the nation, and sacrifice to humanity.

People often pay the ultimate price for their causes. Many argue that nothing is worth dying for. However, as someone once said, if you do not identify anything worth dying for, you do not have anything worth living for.

My late father often surprised me with his lack of bitterness about the sufferings he encountered during the Mau Mau War. He was detained in Manyani and Mwea where they were put to task digging canals for the rice field. He also lost his elder brother in the forest.

Despite these hardships, he held no bitterness. I once asked him why. He replied, “Anyone who goes out to fight for his country and expects to benefit from that fight is not fighting for his country; he’s fighting for himself. It’s like saying you can only plant a tree if you’re going to eat its fruits. You never plant a tree because it may take longer than your lifetime. All who have fought for various causes know that the cause is bigger than themselves.”

He would tell me, “What we fought for is what you are enjoying. If we had stayed at home, afraid of what could happen to us, you would still be living under oppression.” His sense of reconciliation was evident when I introduced him to the late Michael Aronson, the DO in charge Mwea detention camp.

They met in their 90s, hugged, laughed, and joked in broken Kiswahili. My father told Michael, “I have no bitterness against you. You were doing your job, and we were doing ours. Our side won, and now we can live in harmony. Our problem was not with you but with the system you were propagating.”

This brings us to the current Gen Z revolution. In recent protests, some youths have died. They did not go out intending to die - no one ever does. As a soldier once told me, it is not the intention of a soldier to die for his country but to try and ensure the soldier on the opposing side dies for his.

Yet any soldier going to war knows there’s a significant possibility they may not return. The youth who faced police who were armed live bullets, tear gas canisters, and water cannons with only a phone and a water bottle were aware of this possibility, and some did not come back.

Today, Gen Z is not fighting for freedom of expression or multi-party democracy—we have those. They are fighting for transparency and economic inclusivity. They demand their nation back, not to become second-class citizens abroad but to fix their country. They have made it clear that their struggle is not about taking over seats of power but ensuring the current leaders address their issues.

The success of the Gen Z revolution lies in its focus on issues, not personalities. They are not asking to replace one leader with another but to have their grievances addressed. This focus on issues over individuals mirrors the sacrifices of past movements. 

This is a tribute to Rex Maasai and all those who have died in the struggle, known and unknown. Your deaths were not in vain. You, the latter-day heroes, have made Kenya a better place.

-The writer is an advocate and expert in property law. [email protected]