British colonialists invariably saw Africa protest, resistance, and even rebellion as forms of criminality: Africans who protested, resisted or rebelled did so against the authority of the legitimate state, as embodied in the colonial legislature and imposed through its judiciary. Colonial laws governed African lives in Kenya, and those who infringed against the law brought punishment upon themselves.

The essays in this volume explore the many expressions of that protest in the social lives of Africans, drawing upon a diverse array of archival sources, to reconstruct detailed histories of resistance. Bringing together three interconnected themes, David Anderson examines the African response to colonialism in rural areas, the social interaction between the races in Kenya and the Mau Mau rebellion of the 1950s.

This book demonstrate a deeper, richer and more nuanced history of protest, resistance and rebellion that emphasizes multiple sites of contention in the interactions between Africans and their colonial masters. As such, it will be a thought provoking read for students and scholars of African and colonial history, political violence and African Studies.