Shane Mitchell tells us about his journey into the land to visit collectives in Northern Kenya that keep handicraft traditions alive.
When every day tasks – such as collecting water from wells, looking after babies, herding goats – can be set aside, some Samburu women have begun an initiative that meets up forming collectives creating handicrafts, such as beaded necklaces, bracelets, shawls and pottery – anything that can be handmade and used to create a little income. Shane describes the only drawback to this being getting around the conceptions about who should hold the purse strings in a family, when this becomes the mother, daughter or sister rather than the father, son or brother. However, these intiatives are beginning to bring about change and things in the west that are taken for granted, like being able to choose one’s own husband, are beginning to be bestowed on its members.
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