Liberating Minds, Restoring Kenyan History

Anti-Imperialist Resistance by Progressive South Asian Kenyans 1884-1965

“It is my duty to take the message of revolt to other[s]. This is the only way to liberate the victims of suffering and slavery”, Nazmi Durrani quotes W.L. Sohan in this book. Resistance to imperialism in pre-independence Kenya by progressive South Asian Kenyans propelled the Kenyan liberation struggle to new heights. They were active in almost every field, from publishing progressive newspapers to supplying arms and material to Mau Mau. Liberating Minds consists of biographies of progressive South Asian Kenyans written by Nazmi Durrani. Originally published in Gujarati in the 1980s, they are available here in English for the first time, together with the original Gujarati. Also included is Naila Durrani’s 1987 conference paper, “Kenya Asian Participation in People’s Resistance”, while Benegal Pereira introduces Eddie H. Pereira (1915-1995) and his resistance letters to the Colonial Times Newspaper.

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Reviews

"Nazmi Durrani has portrayed the people immersed in public life brieﬂy but firmly. Some of these names would have remained unknown and hidden, buried under the ashes of time… He has the knack of using simple, comprehensible words… He never loses sight of international trends which he uses as the backdrop of these character sketches… I welcome this volume and salute Nazmudin Durrani for his spirited, vigorous endeavour.": Vipool Kalyani, Editor of the on-line Opinion