Language as Liberation

Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o grew up in colonial Kenya, where he was taught that his language,

culture, and stories were inferior to those of the colonizers. As a young writer,

he gained international recognition writing novels in English — the language of power.

But then he made a radical choice: he stopped. Ngũgĩ decided to write only in his

native language, Gikuyu, believing that true freedom begins in the mind — and that

language is the carrier of culture, memory, and dignity. This decision came

at a cost. After writing a politically critical play for local villagers, he was imprisoned

without trial by the Kenyan government. While in prison, he wrote a novel on toilet paper,