I am proud that Generation Z is finding its voice in the fight for change

Oh, what a time to be alive!

To be honest, I am a proud member of Generation Z. I am extremely proud of my generation, without forgetting the Millennials.

I never thought that one day I would see young people my age taking matters into their own hands and working in harmony for a higher cause and for change.

This past week, the patriotic spirit of a generation supposedly with little or no interest in politics has been shattered in our own Kenya, in Africa as a whole and around the world.

Exactly two months ago, I expressed my deepest concern here about the lack of participation of young people in political decision-making, and now we are faced with the situation again.

I was very concerned about the lack of a youth participation culture in government matters.

Today we are creating what I would call a kind of script of New Age patriotism.

My friends from neighboring countries are amazed and never miss an opportunity to talk about how Generation Z and Millennials in Kenya have set a standard to be emulated in every online conversation I have with them.

I was fortunate enough to participate in the first two nationwide protests in the country, all of which were organized online by the Generation Z community pushing for change.

The wake-up call? Kenya’s proposed Finance Bill 2024.

The chants, the songs, the dances, the unity, wow! It was truly beautiful to witness such a historic moment.

At no point did I see a peaceful protester throw a rock, destroy property, or even use a weapon or anything like that.

Peaceful protests through and through.

However, this was not the case with our Kenyan men and women in uniform.

Police arrested people, threw stones, beat peaceful protesters with batons, and even fired tear gas grenades at demonstrators.

Yes, I was there and experienced every moment.

In fact, I witnessed an incident where a young man was caught pickpocketing a cell phone. The device was returned to its rightful owner while the people who caught him broke some branches, beat the young man and called an ambulance to help him.

They then accompanied the young man to his matatu terminal so that he could board a matatu and go home.

At first I wasn’t sure what had happened, but after all the commotion on the street I decided to ask why they had attacked him.

“Hello, you are so corrupt. If you get fed up, tunafukuza wezi, and when you do, do the same to tunakataa!” “Aende home,” said one protester.

I have never seen Baby Boomers and Generation X so proud of and supportive of the actions of Millennials and Generation Z.

For the international community, every single moment is recorded and disseminated through the media.

In our own country, the media – both mainstream and online – have dedicated themselves to documenting every single detail of the protests so that everyone can witness what is happening.

The protests are organized entirely online and there is neither a political party nor a select team of individuals who have appointed themselves to represent the voices of the youth.

In fact, youth declared on social media that they had no one to represent them in the form of an elected leader or a political party.

Young people have even turned their social networks into a place of activism, where they want to express their thoughts and opinions, advocate for change, and share relevant information while trying to educate each other.

To prove a point to those who said they didn’t know anything or hadn’t even read the bill, Generation Z members went a step further and even translated the document into different languages ​​– and more importantly – into sign language.

You’d think that would be it. Nope, they’ve even developed a chat GPT version for those who want to understand what the bill proposes while using Generative AI.

What a time to be alive!

When I describe the recent rise of Generation Z as phenomenal and history-making, you will agree that history is being made here.

However, it is sad that some lives were lost while we were fighting for a noble cause. And it was also very sad and disappointing to witness the duplicity of those in power to such an extent that those who freely expressed their views on the internet were now being hijacked.

The Generation Z movement has even cornered the religious community, elected leaders, influential figures, and even their own parents and guardians, confronting them with their viewpoints.

Whether the approach of Generation Z and Millennials is right or wrong is up to you to decide.

Personally, I am happy about the actions being taken to bring about change, but I am even happier that we as young people have become activists, actively involved in this issue and advocating for change for a better future.