Until Everyone Is Free

Uhuru wa Palestina ni Uhuru Wetu

Until Everyone Is Free

Show Notes

At "Until Everyone Is Free," we're here to talk about power and freedom. Our last season focused on the life and work of Pio Gama Pinto, who organized various movements that paved the way for independence in Kenya. We remember Pinto so that we can understand how Kenya got free without its people getting free… in other words, why independence is not the same as decolonization.

On 7 October 2023, Hamas launched an offensive attack on Israel, killing over 1,300 Israelis, over 1,000 of whom were civilians. As of Nov 6, Israel has rained over 18,000 tons of bombs on Gaza, committing war crimes and committing genocide on Palestinians. As of Nov 6, more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed, including over 4,000 children. It is impossible to count how many have been killed because the genocide has not stopped. The death toll continues to rise—as much of the western world cheers Israel on.

Many people around the world shake their heads, asking “Why can’t we humans just make peace? Why can’t both sides stop fighting?” Many Kenyans have this attitude too, and many simply feel that this is a very complex history with no end in sight.

This attitude is shameful and morally bankrupt.

Kenyans should remember that the Kenya Land and Freedom Army, or Mau Mau, were also called terrorists for their violent resistance. There was violence on “both sides” then too. But most Kenyans seem to understand why the side fighting for their own freedom chose to do so. Kenyans should support those fighting global imperialism, which also oppresses us.

We created this special episode to help Kenyans understand the parallels between the fight against settler colonialism here and that in Palestine. We dedicate this episode to Palestinians who are teaching us every day what Dedan Kimathi said: “It is better to die on our feet than live on our knees.”

More from Until Everyone Is Free

Jul 4, 2025

Yesterday, we hosted the final installment of our teach-in series "Beyond the Bill." After the June 25 uprisings last year, many Kenyans were radicalized, they began seeing the state for what it is, they started seeing the contradictions. We wanted to capture that momentum and, through political education, help people make sense of the shape of power that guides what has been happening in the country—from "how countries should think about debt" to the history of Mwakenya, to Pan-Africanism in the DRC, and much more. Every month for the last year, we invited people to help us understand these connected struggles, and we're grateful to everyone who took part and, of course, everyone who listened and shared! In two of our sessions, we spoke to Sudanese comrades Rabab Elnaiem, Husam Mahjoub, and Gussai Sheikheldin. The edited transcripts of these conversations, we put together and published in a booklet called "Revolution Neither Starts Nor Ends." Our ultimate goal is to distribute these as free pamphlets for reading in social justice centres and other political organizing spaces throughout Nairobi (and maybe throughout the country)! However, in order to fund a big print run, we are selling bound copies of this book at 800 KES. Please buy some copies and help us raise money to print hundreds more to give away! You can find them at Cheche Bookshop. Some of you who have already sent money can pick up your copies there anytime.

May 28, 2025

There's a season for everything, and the time has come for April Zhu, our producer, to sign off. Until Everyone Is Free will continue with our team Stoneface Bombaa, Felix Omondi, and Wairimu Gathimba—bringing history into the living archive of our listeners' minds, hosting discussions on political shifts in the airwaves and, of course, radicalizing people. A luta continua.

Apr 24, 2025

A lot of the talk about AI focuses on how human AI is. Can it write like me, draw like me, sing like me? What we need to be concerned about, however, is how AI makes us less human. Kenya has become a hub for companies that recruit African workers to do the content moderation and data labeling microwork that AI depends on — and yet workers and their often inhumane conditions are hidden. Commissioned by Project Ether, Until Everyone Is Free produced a special podcast episode highlighting how AI technology is just the latest stage of a long story of capitalism. But, as with all other stages, there is worker resistance too.

Mar 22, 2025

We've said before on the podcast that "Uhuru wa Palestina ni uhuru wetu"—that when Palestine is free, we are all free—because the occupation of Palestine is the "heart of the beast," it is imperialism at its baldest, it is a colony that in 2025 has yet to exercise its right to self-determination. In this episode, we want to not only explain the history of the long war in the DRC but, more importantly, how this is true of Congo too. There is a reason Pan-Africanists have called DRC the "heart of Africa," why—as some sources claim—Kwame Nkrumah proposed the capital of the United States of Africa to be located in Kinshasa. It is not simply because Congo is in the geographical center of the continent. It is because, from the First Industrial Revolution to the Fourth, Congo—which contains half of Africa's water resources, half of Africa's forest cover, and enough arable land to feed half of Africa—reveals the darkest face of colonialism, imperialism, and capitalism. And a free Congo reveals a horizon for African self-determination and self-sufficiency that we’ve yet to reach. Today, we are speaking to Nteranya Ginga. Nteranya Ginga has a research background in rehabilitation, reconciliation, and reintegration of former child soldiers in post-conflict communities using creative participatory mediums such as dance and film. As Content Director for #CongoExcellence, he worked on educational content for Congolese youth to nurture their potential to contribute to the development of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nteranya has been the implementation support lead for the SOS Children’s Villages (CV) Ombuds implementation project for West, Central, East, and Southern Africa regions. He has also worked with the research centre Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, Kenya Scholar’s Access Programme (KenSAP), Tuition Aid Data Services (TADS), and immigration law company, Rivero Law LLC.

Dec 14, 2024

Busia Senator and activist lawyer Okiya Omtatah recently declared his intent to run for president in 2027. Over his career, Omtatah has sued multinationals, government, politicians, and many others on behalf of the public interest and promises to focus on "anti-corruption measures" and executing the Constitution.

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