I Refuse To Die

(Hardback)

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Description

Introduction by Kerry Kennedy Cuomo In this startlingly direct autobiography, Kenyan human rights activist Koigi wa Wamwere documents the brutality of the colonial years, speaking of the physical and emotional abuse his parents and others suffered at the plundering hands of the British. Offering a historical, personal account of the major events in recent Kenyan politics, he tells how in 1979 he won a seat in the parliament, only to be imprisoned and tortured by the Kenyatta and Moi regimes for more than 13 years. A history filled with pain, insight and burning hope.

Reviews

This strange and powerful work mixes memoir, social history, polemic, and manifesto A terrifying work of enormous importance that contrasts humanity with bestiality, dignity with depravity. Kirkus (Starred Review)


Fascinating It is difficult to completeI Refuse to Diewithout admiring Koigi's selflessness and courage. Washington Post Book World


Gripping Despite his personal suffering and Kenya's struggles through colonial and postcolonial strife, wa Wamwere exhibits resilience and optimism in his inspiring autobiography. Booklist


a passionate and poignant testimony to the struggle of one manand by that I also mean one family and one peopleto remember and survive the evil lessons of history. But it is also much more than that. Koigi wa Wamwere, in life and print, challenges us to make freedom a word that means something tangible for all. Rain Taxi

Author Bio

Koigi wa Wamwere is a political activist and writer, whose scheduled execution was averted only by the efforts of the Norwegian government and human rights activists around the world. Kerry Kennedy Cuomo is a human rights activist, the founder of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights and author of the book Speak Truth to Power.