Irua Ria Atumia and Anti-Colonial Struggles Among the Gĩkũyũ of Kenya: A Counter Narrative on “Female Genital Mutulation” 1

Abstract

My focus in this paper is on cultural and political mobilization centered on irua ria atumia in the anti-colonial struggles of Kenya's Gĩkũyũ ethnic group. While a currently hegemonic eradication discourse presents female genital practices as proof of these women's oppression and domination, the history presented here conversely demonstrates that irua should be presented as a means of empowerment and resistance. Irua ria atumia instilled a cultural ethic of courage among Gĩkũyũ women, and a rallying cause in struggles against British rule when officials attempted to ban the practice. By presenting this colonial history of political struggle associated with irua ria atumia na anake, I emphasize the importance of avoiding seeing cultural practices in terms of domination and conformity, but rather as site of multiple possibilities where individuals and groups as agents actively invent and reinvent themselves strategically.