The Kikuyu Central Association (KCA), led by

James Beauttah James Beauttah (1889–1985) led the Kikuyu Central Association, Kenya's first all-African political organization together with Joseph Kang'ethe. They were later joined by Jomo Kenyatta in 1924 as they lay the foundation that would be the beginni ...

and Joseph Kang'ethe, was a political organisation in colonial

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

formed in 1924 to act on behalf of the

Gĩkũyũ The Kikuyu (also ''Agĩkũyũ/Gĩkũyũ'') are a Bantu ethnic group native to Central Kenya. At a population of 8,148,668 as of 2019, they account for 17.13% of the total population of Kenya, making them Kenya's largest ethnic group. The t ...

community by presenting their concerns to the

British government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

. One of its greatest grievances was the expropriation of the most productive land by British settlers from African farmers. Most members of the organisation were from the Gĩkũyũ tribe. KCA was formed after the colonial government banned the earlier

Young Kikuyu Association The Young Kikuyu Association (YKA) was formed in Kenya on 10 June 1921, as a break away organisation from the Kikuyu Association Kikuyu or Gikuyu (Gĩkũyũ) mostly refers to an ethnic group in Kenya or its associated language. It may also refer ...

founded by

Harry Thuku Harry Thuku (1895 – 14 June 1970) was a Kenyan politician, one of the pioneers in the development of modern African nationalism in Kenya. He helped found the Young Kikuyu Association and the East African Association before being arrested an ...

and the East African Association. In either 1925 or early 1926, Beauttah moved to Uganda, although remained in contact with Kenyatta. When the KCA wrote to Beauttah and asked him to travel to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

as their representative, he declined, but recommended that Kenyatta who had a good command of the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

go in his place. Kenyatta accepted, probably on the condition that the Association matched his pre-existing wage. He thus became the group's secretary.

Jomo Kenyatta Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti- colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He was the country's first indigenous ...

, later the first president of Kenya, joined it to become its General Secretary in 1927. The Kikuyu Central Association was banned in 1940 when World War II reached East Africa. Some fighters of the later Mau-Mau still understood their struggle as continuation of KCA and even called themselves KCA. WAZI BUDA The end of World War II, however, saw the new type of African organisation that went beyond tribal boundaries with the rise of the

Kenya African Union The Kenya African Union (KAU) was a political organization devoted to achieving independence for British Kenya. In 1960 it became the current Kenya African National Union (KANU). Formation The Kenya African Union was founded in 1944 under the nam ...

that later was to become KANU. KCA published the ''Muiguithania'' ("the reconciler"), a Kikuyu language newspaper. It was banned alongside KCA in 1940.SHIRAZ DURRANI
NEVER BE SILENT: PUBLISHING & IMPERIALISM IN KENYA 1884 - 1963

References

''Muigwithania 2.0 - The original KCA publication banned by the colonial government revived on the Internet in 2008''

External links

History of Kenya Political parties established in 1924 British Kenya {{poli-org-stub

See also

References

External links