Joan Rispa

I have never been the person to do the #PrayforRafah or #IStandWithUkraine or any other hashtags for that matter. I have also never been the person to mark myself safe on Facebook from floods or whatever calamity the world would be facing. My defence was that while the hashtags trend for a short while and spread awareness to the masses, I never deemed them an effective way to actually alleviate the calamities. What use would it be for me, in the safe solace of my blue sofa, tweeting or reposting about the lives of real people, real children in warzones? It wasn’t as efficient as sending money for aid or voting for better leaders or just doing something more ‘practical’ for that matter.

That was me up until this year. When it was time to march against femicide thanks to the hashtags #TotalShutDownKE, #EndFemicideNow, I was saw the power of digital activism for the first time. A common problem, bringing people together and having people so enraged that they needed to be in the streets screaming, chanting and crying their hearts out. I mean how could I sleep comfortably knowing that as a single babe, my next lover would possibly lead to my demise just because I retweeted? I felt the need to be part of something bigger. And so, I took to the streets to protest.

This week, however, has just taken digital activism to a whole new level. From having a code of conduct, a dress code to the civic engagement and accountability. Instagram which has never been a political app unless it is the cool thing to do actually broke off the aesthetics to have the conversation. It is the fact that even the lifestyle influencers knew that this was not the time to be talking about the brands they have partnered with. The fact that even though they display a lavish lifestyle that keeps us glued to our screens, they were honest about the economic ramifications of the proposed finance bill. #RejectFinanceBill2024 has been the most impressive hashtag I have witnessed. 

Statistically speaking, Kenyan youth make up for more than half the population. In a country whose median age is 20, our electorate is made up of old people and even the ‘young’ leaders are truthfully, only young in heart. On Tue, when the first peaceful protests over the finance bill occurred, the electorate wrote off the protesters as being ignorant and naïve kids who were only doing it for social media. However, what they failed to recognize was the power of social media. On Wednesday, the civic engagement on the social made it such that no other discussion could be held online. It could have been your birthday but the birthday wishes would have the #rejectfinancebill2024 pinned. Brands, businesses, influencers had to make their views known and the masses demanded accountability from their favourite influencers and even called out their religious leaders for being too silent. 

The battle lines had been drawn and there was no room for anyone to be a spectator in this fight. Taking it a step further was all the creators who translated the bill to vernacular to ensure no one was left behind. It was a youth-led protest but there was room to bring everyone on board. If the numbers on the streets are anything to go by then I would say the revolution is already here. Should we borrow a leaf from Sierra Leone, a country so young and historically scarred but is changing the narrative by having the youngest electorate in the continent? They said the youth are the leaders of tomorrow but maybe they are the leaders of today.