Violence adds fear to rivalries

Re “‘First time I ever killed,’ Kenyan says,” Jan. 4

I taught for four years at an elementary school outside Nairobi in the late 1990s. Our students came from all tribal backgrounds, as did our staff. If ethnic tensions flared, we forced individuals to confront their prejudices and put them behind them. Unfortunately, with adults, long-held rivalries persist. One can argue that the Kikuyus simply were in the right place at the right time during colonization by the British, their lush farmland encircling what would become Nairobi, and so were educated and employed as civil servants. On the other hand, the Luo feel underrepresented and marginalized. There is a long history of repression of Luo political leaders that stretches back to independence. It is ironic that when the possibility of real representation comes to the opposition, they turn into an angry mob if they do not receive all they hoped for. Kenya has come a long way in the democratic process in recent years; let us hope it can find peace and stability again soon.

Deborah

Fletcher Blum

Los Angeles

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A morbid story, which we shouldn’t shrug off as if it pertained to some other world -- as if the Kikuyus tribe in Africa is not on the same planet Earth. Unfortunately, similar if not identical crimes were perpetuated in closer parts of the world -- in Europe -- not more than 65 years ago. It isn’t the number of victims but the ruthlessness and pathological bestiality of those crimes that is astounding.

Alex Yahontov

Long Beach