Binyavanga Wainaina Explained

Binyavanga Wainaina
Birth Name:Kenneth Wainaina
Birth Date:1971 1, df=y
Birth Place:Nakuru, Kenya
Death Place:Nairobi, Kenya
Occupation:Memoirist, short-story writer, editor
Nationality:Kenyan
Education:Moi Primary School; Mangu High School; Lenana School; University of Transkei; University of East Anglia
Awards:2002 Caine Prize
Known For:Founding editor of literary magazine Kwani?

Kenneth Binyavanga Wainaina (18 January 1971 – 21 May 2019) was a Kenyan author, journalist and 2002 winner of the Caine Prize for African Writing. In 2003, he was the founding editor of Kwani? literary magazine. In April 2014, Time magazine included Wainaina in its annual Time 100 as one of the "Most Influential People in the World".[1]

Early life and education

Binyavanga Wainaina was born on 18 January 1971[2] in Nakuru in Rift Valley Province, Kenya.[3] He attended Moi Primary School in Nakuru, Mangu High School in Thika, and Lenana School in Nairobi. He later studied commerce at the University of Transkei in South Africa, where he went to live in 1991.[4] He completed an MPhil in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia in 2010.[5]

His debut book, a memoir entitled One Day I Will Write About This Place, was published in 2011. In January 2014, in response to a wave of anti-gay laws passed in Africa, Wainaina publicly announced that he was gay, first writing an essay that he described as a "lost chapter" of his 2011 memoir entitled "I am a Homosexual, Mum", and then tweeting: "I am, for anybody confused or in doubt, a homosexual. Gay, and quite happy."[6] [7] [8]

Career

Following his education, Wainaina worked in Cape Town for some years as a freelance food and travel writer.[9]

In July 2002 he won the Caine Prize for his short story "Discovering Home"[10] [11] (the judges being Ahdaf Soueif, Margaret Busby, Jason Cowley and Abdulrazak Gurnah).[12] Wainaina was the founding editor of Kwani?,[13] [14] the literary magazine in East Africa that sprang out of an artistic revolution that started in 2002.[15] Established in 2003, Kwani? has since become an important source of new writing from Africa; Yvonne Owuor also wrote for the magazine and won the Caine Prize in 2003.[16]

Wainaina's satirical essay "How to Write About Africa", published in Granta magazine in 2005,[17] attracted wide attention.[18] [19] Wainaina summed up the way Western media has reinforced stereotypes and pre-existing ideas of Africa by saying their representation was that: "One must treat Africa as if it were one country... [of] 900 million people who are too busy starving and dying and warring and emigrating to read your book."[20]

In 2003, he was given an award by the Kenya Publishers Association for his services to Kenyan literature.[21] He wrote for The EastAfrican, National Geographic, The Sunday Times (South Africa), Granta, The New York Times, Chimurenga and The Guardian (UK).[22] [23] [24] [25]

In 2007, Wainaina was a writer-in-residence at Union College in Schenectady, NY (USA). In the fall of 2008, he was in residence at Williams College, in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where he was teaching, lecturing and working on a novel. He was a Bard Fellow and the director of the Chinua Achebe Center for African Literature and Languages at Bard College.[26]

Wainaina collected more than 13,000 recipes from around Africa and was an expert on traditional and modern African cuisine.[27]

In January 2007, Wainaina was nominated by the World Economic Forum as a "Young Global Leader" – an award given to people for "their potential to contribute to shaping the future of the world." He subsequently declined the award. In a letter to Klaus Schwab and Queen Rania of Jordan, he wrote:

Personal life

On 1 December 2016, World AIDS Day, Wainaina announced on his Twitter profile that he was HIV positive, "and happy".[28] In 2018, he announced that he would be marrying his long-term partner the following year.[29]

Death

Wainaina died, aged 48, after a stroke on the evening of 21 May 2019, at Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi, according to news and family sources.[30] [31] He had experienced several strokes since 2016.[32]

Selected publications

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Binyavanga Wainaina by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: Time 100. Time. 31 May 2014. 23 April 2014. 30 May 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140530225931/http://time.com/70795/binyavanga-wainaina-time-100/. live.
  2. News: Binyavanga Wainaina: coming out in Kenya. Adams. Tim. 16 February 2014. The Observer. 23 May 2019. en-GB. 0029-7712.
  3. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/spl/hi/world/02/voices_from_kenya/html/wainaina.stm "Voices of Kenya's Voters"
  4. http://www.kwani.org/publication/kwanini-series/4/how_to_write_about_africa.htm Biographical note
  5. http://www.hurstonwright.org/authors/binyavanga-wainaina/ "Binyavanga Wainaina | Biography"
  6. Web site: I am a homosexual, mum (A lost chapter from One Day I Will Write About This Place) . Binyavanga. Wainaina. Africa is a Country . 19 January 2014 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307133956/http://africasacountry.com/2014/01/i-am-a-homosexual-mum/ . 7 March 2016.
  7. Howden, Daniel (21 January 2014), "Kenyan writer Binyavanga Wainaina declares: 'I am homosexual'", The Guardian.
  8. BinyavangaW . 425397812826611712 . 20 January 2014 . I am, for anybody confused or in doubt, a homsexual. Gay, and quite happy. . https://web.archive.org/web/20190523030056/https://twitter.com/BinyavangaW/status/425397812826611712. 2019-05-23. dead.
  9. News: Binyavanga Wainaina, barrier-shattering presence in African literature, dies at 48 . Harrison . Smith . . 22 May 2019 . 22 May 2019 . 22 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190522233619/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/binyavanga-wainaina-barrier-shattering-presence-in-african-literature-dies-at-48/2019/05/22/4fddb096-7c9c-11e9-8bb7-0fc796cf2ec0_story.html . live .
  10. Web site: Caine Prize sways African writing. Mwenda. Micheni. 3 May 2010. The East African. 5 April 2020. 23 June 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220623070103/https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/magazine/Caine%20Prize%20sways%20African%20writing/-/434746/910622/-/rud575z/-/. live.
  11. Web site: Caine Prize 2002: Top award goes to Kenya's Wainaina. Stephen. Williams. 1 September 2002. All Business. Reprinted at The Free Library. 20 September 2017. 6 July 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170706062511/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Caine+Prize+2002%3A+top+award+goes+to+Kenya%27s+Wainaina.+%28Events%29.-a091568303. live.
  12. Web site: Caine Prize judges since 2000. . 26 October 2017 . 4 January 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170104102058/https://static1.squarespace.com/static/565c3d39e4b027c789ba5b70/t/56a93116ab2810988519b820/1453928731099/CainePrize+Judges+Archive+2000-12.pdf . live .
  13. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina . The Guardian . 23 May 2019 . 8 May 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240508095149/https://www.theguardian.com/profile/binyavanga-wainaina . live .
  14. News: Binyavanga Wainaina obituary – Kenyan writer and LGBT activist who made a revolutionary impact on literature from and about the African continent. Busby. Margaret. 2019-06-02. The Guardian. 2019-06-06. en-GB. 0261-3077. 8 May 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240508095210/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/jun/02/binyavanga-wainaina-obituary. live.
  15. Web site: 5 Literary Magazines That Have Transformed African Literature . Tadiwa . Madenga . 27 June 2018 . okayafrica. . 23 May 2019 . 28 August 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190828010916/https://www.okayafrica.com/5-literary-magazines-that-have-shaped-contemporary-african-literature/ . live .
  16. Web site: Previous Winners . The 2003 Caine Prize for African Writing . https://web.archive.org/web/20190412113259/http://caineprize.com/previous-winners/ . 12 April 2019 . 23 May 2019 . live .
  17. How to Write About Africa. Binyavanga. Wainaina. Granta. 2 May 2019. 25 May 2019. 23 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190523062112/https://granta.com/how-to-write-about-africa/. live.
  18. Wainaina, Binyavanga (24 May 2019), "How to Write About Africa II – The revenge", Bidoun, Issue 21: Bazaar II, 2008.
  19. Web site: Goats and Soda. Binyavanga Wainaina Tells Us 'How To Write About Africa'. 22 May 2019. 25 May 2019. 24 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190524141147/https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2019/05/22/725808622/binyavanga-wainaina-tells-us-how-to-write-about-africa. live.
  20. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina's 'How To Write About Africa' and the Dangers of the Single Story. Megan. Sickmueller. Retrospect Journal. 17 October 2021. 30 June 2022. 23 May 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220523135028/https://retrospectjournal.com/2021/10/17/binyavanga-wainainas-how-to-write-about-africa-and-the-dangers-of-the-single-story/. live.
  21. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina: 7 things you need to know about this controversial author . Stephen . Kamau . . 16 May 2018 . 23 May 2019 . 23 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190523123726/https://www.tuko.co.ke/273666-binyavanga-wainaina-7-controversial-author.html . live .
  22. Web site: 'How to write about everything'—Binyavanga Wainaina on the problems faced by African writers, and how to overcome them . Jennifer. Malec . The Johannesburg Review of Books . 7 August 2017 . 23 May 2019 . The piece was styled as a 'lost chapter' from his memoir, One Day I Will Write About This Place, and was published simultaneously on Chimurenga....
  23. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina . Sigrid . Rausing . Sigrid Rausing . Granta . 22 May 2019 . We had already published his memoir... and, among others, a satirical piece... . 23 May 2019 . 6 June 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190606132349/https://granta.com/binyavanga-wainaina/ . live .
  24. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina Archive . https://web.archive.org/web/20180831091818/https://planetbinya.org/ . 31 August 2018 . He wrote several essays for the Sunday Times, South Africa, commissioned by Andrew Unsworth, which are unavailable on their online archive. . 24 August 2017 . live .
  25. Web site: I am HIV positive, Binyavanga tweets . Patrick . Vidija . John . Muchangi . 1 December 2016 . . 23 May 2019 . 23 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190523153823/https://www.the-star.co.ke/news/2016-12-01-i-am-hiv-positive-binyavanga-tweets/ . live .
  26. Web site: . Fellows of the Bard Center. bard.edu. Bard College. 18 February 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150218183600/http://www.bard.edu/institutes/bardcenter/fellows/. 18 February 2015.
  27. Wainaina, Binyavanga (8 July 2021), "Black Mischief", G21: The World's Magazine.
  28. BinyavangaW. Binyavanga . Wainaina. 804256081774080004. 1 December 2016. i am HiV Positive, and happy.
  29. https://www.voice-online.co.uk/article/tributes-paid-binyavanga-wainaina-who-has-died-aged-48 "Tributes Paid To Binyavanga Wainaina Who Has Died Aged 48"
  30. Web site: Binyavanga Wainaina, 1971–2019, RIP. The Johannesburg Review of Books. Jennifer. Malec. en-US. 22 May 2019. 22 May 2019. 24 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190524184132/https://johannesburgreviewofbooks.com/2019/05/22/binyavanga-wainaina-1971-2019-rip/. live.
  31. News: Kenyan Author, LGBT Activist Binyavanga Wainaina Dies at 48. Associated Press. 22 May 2019. The New York Times. 22 May 2019. en-US. 0362-4331. 23 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190523221201/https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2019/05/22/world/africa/ap-af-obit-binyavanga-wainaina.html. live.
  32. News: Binyavanga Wainaina, Kenyan author and gay rights activist, dies aged 48. The Guardian. Alison. Flood. 22 May 2019. 6 December 2020. 29 May 2019. https://archive.today/20190529054812/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/may/22/binyavanga-wainaina-kenyan-author-and-gay-rights-activist-dies-aged-48. live.
  33. Web site: Discovering Home . The Free Library by Farlex . 2003 . 24 May 2019 . 24 May 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190524122801/https://www.thefreelibrary.com/Discovering+Home.-a0108599981 . live .
  34. Book: Wainaina, Binyavanga . Beyond the River Yei: Life in the Land Where Sleeping is a Disease . 2004 . 56639778 . 9789966983633 . 97.
  35. Web site: How to Write About Africa . Binyavanga. Wainaina. Granta.com . Winter 2005 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080421143147/http://www.granta.com/Magazine/92/How-to-Write-About-Africa . 2008-04-21.
  36. Book: Wainaina, Binyavanga . How to Write About Africa . Kwanini? . 15 October 2008 . 978-9966700827 . 52.
  37. Granta. How to write about Africa. Binyavanga. Wainaina. 149: 40th Birthday Special. 2 May 2019. 25 May 2019. 23 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190523062112/https://granta.com/how-to-write-about-africa/. live.
  38. Web site: In Gikuyu, for Gikuyu, of Gikuyu . Binyavanga . Wainaina. Granta.com . Autumn 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090501134318/http://www.granta.com/Magazine/Granta-103/Letter-From/1 . 1 May 2009.
  39. Book: Wainaina, Binyavanga . One Day I Will Write About This Place: A Memoir . 19 July 2011 . Minneapolis, Minnesota . Graywolf Press. 978-1555975913 . registration .
  40. Web site: Viewpoint: Binyavanga on why Africa's international image is unfair . Binyavanga . Wainaina . 24 April 2012 . bbc.co.uk . 24 May 2019 . 18 June 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190618193426/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-17814861 . live .
  41. Web site: I am a homosexual, mum . Binyavanga . Wainaina . January 21, 2014 . The Guardian . May 27, 2019 . 8 May 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240508095531/https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jan/21/i-am-a-homosexual-mum-binyavanga-wainaina-memoir#comments . live .
  42. Web site: A Letter to All Kenyans from Binyavanga Wainaina or Binyavanga wa Muigai . Binyavanga . Wainaina . 25 October 2017 . Brittle Paper: An African Literary Experience . 24 May 2019 . 3 December 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181203104031/https://brittlepaper.com/2017/10/kenyas-presidential-election-binyavanga-wainaina-essay/ . live .

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