Ethnic Mixing and Tolerance in Mathare Informal Settelment in Nairobi City, Kenya
Keywords:
Ethnicity, Tolerance, Nationhood, Diversity, Cohesion
Abstract
In any multi-ethnic society, tolerance is regarded as an integral element for achieving social, economic, and political stability within the nation. Today, majority of the multi-ethnic nations in Africa struggle to promote ethno-cultural tolerance and acceptance among the diverse populations. Numerous African nations are embroiled in inter-state conflicts and civil wars stemming from ethnic differences, thereby presenting a dilemma regarding the promotion of ethnic pluralism. This paper focuses on examining whether ethnic mixing in the city can be a potential tool for promoting ethnic tolerance and peaceful co-existence. This can be further diffused to the rural regions and subsequently to the whole nation. The study adopted interpretive study design that utilized qualitative and quantitative methods in the collection and analysis of data. The initial survey involved interviews with 80 participants, while the in-depth interviews included 24 individuals. Participants were rural urban migrants who had lived in the city for more than five years and were at the time of study living in the Mathare informal settlement. Following the contact theory, the study found compelling evidence that exposure to different ethnic group promotes cultural learning and accommodation toward outgroups, resulting to individuals who are more open to diversity. The study proposes ethnic mixing and the creation of ethnic diverse spaces as an alternative strategy for promoting ethnic understanding and nationhood.
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References
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39. Wamwere (2003). Negative Ethnicity: From Bias to Genocide. New York. Seven Stories press.
40. Wanyande, P. (2003). Reflections on the Kenyan Electoral System and Practices. Hekima Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(1):200-215
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2. Allport, G. W. (1954). The nature of prejudice. Addison-Wesley.
3. Amin, A. (2002). ‘Ethnicity and the multicultural city: Living with diversity’, Environment and Planning A, 34(6): 959–980
4. Amin, A. & Thrift, N. (2002). Cities and ethnicities. Ethnicities, 2(3), 291-300.
5. Barlow, F. K., Paolini, S., Pedersen, A., Hornsey, M.J., Radke, H.R.M., Harwood, J., Rubin, M., & Sibley. C. G. (2012). The contact caveat: Negative contact predicts increased prejudice more than positive contact predicts reduced prejudice. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 38(28):1629-1643.
6. Bissin, Patacchini, Verdier, & Zenou (2008). “Are Muslim Immigrants Different in Terms of Cultural Integration?” Journal of the European Economic Association, 6 (3):445–456.
7. Brown, R. & Hewstone, M. (2005). 'Contact is not enough: An intergroup perspective on the “contact hypothesis.” In Brown, M. H. A. R. Contact and Conflict in Intergroup Encounters. Oxford: Blackwell
8. Demange, G. & Wooders, M. (2005). Group Formation in Economics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
9. Desmond Tutu (2012). Moving beyond tolerance to understanding. tutufoundationUSA.org/2012/4/tolerance –versus-understanding
10. Esteban, J., Mayoral, L., & Ray, D. (2012). “Ethnicity and Conflict: An Empirical Study,” American Economic Review 102 (4): 1210–1342.
11. Fieldhouse, E. & Cutts, D. (2010). Does diversity damage social capital? A comparative study of neighborhood diversity and social capital in the US and Britain. CanadianJournal of Political Science/Review 43 (2): 289-318.
12. Francis, E. (2002). Making a Living: Changing Livelihoods in Rural Africa: Journal of Canadian African Studies 36(1): 148-50
13. Ghai (2013). Pluralism, Ethnicity and Governance in Kenya. In Ethnicity, Nationhood and Pluralism: 2010 Constitution. The Katiba Institute, Nairobi.
14. Hewstone (2015). Consequences of diversity for social cohesion and prejudice: the missing dimension of intergroup contact. Journal of Social Issues, 71 (2): 417-438
15. International Organization for Migration (IOM) (2020). World Migration Report: providing perspective on migration and mobility in increasingly uncertain times, Geneva. Available: http://www.iom.int.
16. Independent Review Commission (IRC) (2008). Report of the independent review commission on Kenya’s 2007 general elections. Nairobi, Government Printer.
17. Jha & Saumitra (2008). “Trade, Institutions and Religious Tolerance: Evidence from India.” http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=948734
18. Kasomo, D. (2012). Historical Manifestation of Ethnocentrism and its Challenges TodayMaseno University Journal, 1 (1): 32-41
19. Kanyinga, (2013). Pluralism, Ethnicity and Governance in Kenya. In Ghai & Ghai eds Ethnicity, Nationhood and Pluralism, Kenyan Perspectives. The Katiba Institute, Nairobi.
20. Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNHCR) (2017). Mirage at dusk: A human rights account of the 2017 general election. Kenya National Commission on Human Rights Nairobi, Kenya.
21. Karsten, L. (2020). Counter urbanization: Why settled families move out of the city again. Journal of Housing and the Built Environment, 35: 429–442. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10901-020-09739-3
22. Kioli, F. N. (2012). Ethnicity: The Legacy of Kenyan Politics from Colonial to Post-Colonial Era. Maseno University Journal, 1 (1): 41-62
23. Letki, N. (2008). ‘‘Does Diversity Erode Social Cohesion? Social Capital and Race in Britishm Neighborhoods.’’ Journal of Political Studies 56 (1):99-126.
24. Lynch (2006). Negotiating ethnicity: Identity politics in contemporary Kenya. Review of African Political Economy. 54 (33):49-70.
25. Miguel (2004). “Tribe or Nation? Nation Building and Public Goods in Kenya versus Tanzania,” World Politics, 56 (3):327–362
26. Mutie, S. M., Mang’oka, A. S., Chemwei, B., & Kitonga, N. N. (2015). Jommo Kenyatta’s Speeches & the Construction of the Identities of a Nationalist Leader in Kenya. English Language and Literature Studies, 5(2): 57-72
27. Ochieng’, P. (2010). ‘History Will Drive Tribalists to Extinction’, The Sunday Nation, Available at: http://allafrica.com/stories/201007050062.html
28. Pettigrew T. & Tropp, l. (2006). A Meta-Analytic Test of Intergroup Contact Theory. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 90 (4):751-83.
29. Pettigrew, T. (1998). Inter-group contact theory. Annual Review of psychology 49:65-85. https://doi.org.1146/annuerv.psych.49.1.65
30. Paolini, S., Harwood, J., & Rubin, M. (2010). Negative Intergroup Contact Makes Group Memberships Salient: Explaining why intergroup conflict endures. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 36(12):1723–1738. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167210388667
31. Putnam, R. (2007). E pluribus Unum: Diversity and community in the twenty first century, the 2006 Johan Skytte Prize Lecture. Scandinavian political studies, 30(2):137-174
32. Samuel, O. & Owuor (2007). Migrants, urban poverty and the changing nature of urban–rural linkages in Kenya, Development Southern Africa, 24:1, 109-122, DOI: 10.1080/03768350601165926
33. Sijuwade, P. O. (2011). Ethnic Tolerance in Urban Nigeria: The Case of Lagos. http://doi.org/10.3923/sscience.2011.34.39
34. Suliman & Osman (2011). The Dafur conflict. Geography or Institutions?New York. Routledge
35. Themnér & Wallensteen (2014). “Armed Conflicts, 1946–2013.” Journal of Peace Research 51 (4): 541–54.
36. UNHCHR (2008). United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (2008) Fact-finding Mission to Kenya.https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/Documents/Press/OHCHRKenyareport
37. Uchendu & Egodi (2007). “Recollections of Childhood Experiences during the Nigerian Civil War.” Africa: Journal of the International African Institute 77(3): 393-418
38. Uitermark, J., Rossi, U., & Van Houtum, H. (2005). ‘Reinventing Multiculturalism: Urban Citizenship and the Negotiation of Ethnic Diversity in Amsterdam’, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 29(3): 622–640.
39. Wamwere (2003). Negative Ethnicity: From Bias to Genocide. New York. Seven Stories press.
40. Wanyande, P. (2003). Reflections on the Kenyan Electoral System and Practices. Hekima Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, 2(1):200-215
41. Wepundi, M. (2012). “Availability of Small Arms and Perceptions of Security in Kenya: An Assessment.” Geneva, Switzerland: Graduate Institute of International and Development
42. Wessel (2009). Does diversity in urban space enhance intergroup contact and tolerance? Geografiska Annaler: Series B, Human Geography, 91(1): 5-17. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0467.2009. 00303.x
Published
2023-12-31
How to Cite
Kyuvi, S., Nzioka, C., & Ayiemba, E. (2023). Ethnic Mixing and Tolerance in Mathare Informal Settelment in Nairobi City, Kenya. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 19(34), 51. https://doi.org/10.19044/esj.2023.v19n34p51
Section
ESJ Social Sciences
Copyright (c) 2023 Stellamaries Kyuvi, Charles Nzioka, Elias Ayiemba
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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