Quote by Mekatilili wa Menza: “Our ancestors never paid taxes to anyone, why should we pay to strangers?”

This powerful rhetorical question challenges the legitimacy of British colonial taxation by invoking ancestral precedent and highlighting the foreignness of the rulers. It underscores a fundamental rejection of imposed authority and an assertion of sovereignty.

In 1913, the British colonial administration in Kenya imposed forced labor and hut taxes on the Giriama people. Mekatilili vigorously opposed these policies, viewing them as an infringement on their traditional way of life.

Giriama leader and activist in colonial Kenya who organised resistance to British colonial rule and forced labour practices in 1913. She led the Giriama Uprising, was arrested and exiled, but escaped and returned to continue her community leadership. She is now recognised as a national hero in Kenya.