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Prosecuting a Prophet: Justice, Psychiatry, and Rebellion in Colonial Kenya

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 June 2020

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Abstract

In Kenya, the prophecies of the late Elijah Masinde, leader of the anti-colonial religious revival Dini ya Msambwa, remain contested. MacArthur explores the religious innovations, intellectual work, and moral debates for the first time through Masinde’s own words. During his 1948 deportation trial, while the prosecution sought to remake Masinde from prophetic madman into calculating criminal, Masinde used the courtroom to challenge the pathologization of rebellion and remake his own patriotic vision. MacArthur argues that Masinde’s trial reveals colonial justice and psychiatry as discursive arenas for contestations over resistance, social control, and moral authority in colonial and postcolonial Africa.

Résumé

Résumé

Au Kenya, les prophéties du défunt Elijah Masinde, chef du renouveau religieux anticolonial, le Dini ya Msambwa, restent contestées. MacArthur explore les innovations religieuses, le travail intellectuel, et les débats moraux pour la première fois à travers les propres mots de Masinde. Au cours de son procès d'expulsion de 1948, alors que l'accusation cherchait à transformer Masinde de fou prophétique á calculateur criminel, Masinde a utilisé le tribunal pour contester la pathologisation de la rébellion et refaire sa propre vision patriotique. MacArthur soutient que le procès de Masinde révèle la justice coloniale et la psychiatrie comme des arènes discursives pour les contestations sur la résistance, le contrôle social, et l'autorité morale dans l'Afrique coloniale et postcoloniale.

Resumo

Resumo

No Quénia, as profecias do falecido Elijah Masinde, líder da religião Dini ya Msambwa, responsável pelo reflorescimento religioso anticolonialista, continuam a ser alvo de contestação. Numa abordagem inédita, MacArthur analisa as inovações religiosas, o trabalho intelectual, e os debates sobre moral à luz das palavras do próprio Masinde. Ao longo do julgamento de 1948, que ditaria a sua deportação, a acusação tentou transformar a imagem de Masinde, fazendo com que, em vez de profeta louco, este passasse a ser visto como criminoso calculista; Masinde, pelo contrário, utilizou o tribunal para desafiar a patologização dos movimentos rebeldes e reformular a sua própria visão patriótica. Segundo MacArthur, o julgamento de Masinde demonstra que a justiça e a psiquiatria coloniais foram arenas discursivas em que se debateram reivindicações em torno da resistência, do controlo social, e da autoridade moral na África colonial e pós-colonial.

Keywords

prophecyrebellioncolonial psychiatrycolonial justicereligionsocial reformcounterinsurgencyKenyaElijah MasindeDini ya Msambwa
Type
Article
Information
African Studies Review , Volume 63 , Issue 4 , December 2020 , pp. 805 - 830
Copyright
© African Studies Association, 2020

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