Obama and Kenya

Barack Obamas political ascendancy has focused considerable global attention on the history of Kenya generally and the history of the Luo community particularly. From politicos populating the blogosphere and bookshelves in the U.S and Kenya, to tourists traipsing through Obamas ancestral home, a variety of groups have mobilized new readings of Kenyas past in service of their own ends. Through narratives placing Obama into a simplified, sweeping narrative of anticolonial barbarism and postcolonial tribal violence, the story of the United States presidents nuanced relationship to Kenya has been lost amid stereotypical portrayals of Africa. At the same time, Kenyan state officials have aimed to weave Obama into the contested narrative of Kenyan nationhood. Matthew Carotenuto and Katherine Luongo argue that efforts to cast Obama as a son of the soil of the Lake Victoria basin invite insights into the politicized uses of Kenyas past. Ideal for classroom use and directed at a general readership interested in global affairs, Obama and Kenya offers an important counterpoint to the many popular but inaccurate texts about Kenyas history and Obamas place in it as well as focused, thematic analyses of contemporary debates about ethnic politics, tribal identities, postcolonial governance, and U.S. African relations.