JAMII YA KIBERA (Family of Kibera)

No one could have predicted the degree to which chaos, destruction, and fear would sweep across Kenya last month.  The Kibera slum of Nairobi has been one of the places most adversely affected by the ethnic violence gripping the country for nearly two months. We at Carolina for Kibera (CFK) received countless messages and phone calls from concerned supporters and friends across the United States, Canada and Europe, asking “What can we do to help?”

The youth in Kibera are now telling us what we can all do to help: demonstrate our solidarity with the Kibera community by spreading their unique message of peace and healing.

This week CFK staff and volunteers in Kibera launched the JAMII YA KIBERA (Family of Kibera) peace campaign throughout the slum.  For the next four weeks, campaign organizers will be covering the community in JAMII YA KIBERA logos, posters, billboards, t-shirts, and stickers.  Radio spots in Swahili will run on local stations.  A team of youth leaders in Kibera has completed a one-week, intensive mediation and counseling training, and is reaching out to residents to bring people together at community forums.  The team is facilitating critical discussions about issues of ethnic tension, cooperation, and conflict resolution.  The JAMII YA KIBERA campaign will end with a Kibera-wide clean-up project, as well as a CFK sports event, which will bring together residents from all different ethnic groups.

CFK staff and campaign volunteers on the ground in Kibera have been working with local artists and community leaders for the past several weeks to develop a distinctly Kenyan campaign message in Swahili that will resonate with Kibera residents.  The artwork was tested in youth focus groups in order to select the most impacting images.  The youth are very excited about the JAMII YA KIBERA logo because it gives them ownership of the Kibera community and of the peace campaign.  This is a message of peace by Kenyans, for Kenyans.

As friends and supporters CFK, or just as concerned global citizens, we are all FAMILY OF KIBERA.  Please show your solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Kibera by spreading the JAMII YA KIBERA campaign message through e-mail, Facebook, blogging, and personal websites, as well as inviting your family and friends to do the same, over the next four weeks.

• Add the JAMII YA KIBERA FACEBOOK APPLICATION to your Facebook profile.

• Download the JAMII YA KIBERA LOGO to use on your blog, personal website, in your e-mail signature line, or as your profile photo on social networking and other websites where you maintain a profile.

Visit cfk.unc.edu or e-mail cfk@unc.edu for more information.