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The Impact of Consumerism on Youth in Laini Saba Kibera-Nairobi

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The Impact of Consumerism on Youth in Laini Saba Kibera-Nairobi t2,24 TANGAZA COLLEGE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN AFRICA flit mina OF COMSVMMISM Oil You fit IA LAM SABA, KIISCRA MAIR081 AUTHOR: LESA NORBERT SDB SUPERVISOR: DR. MARY GETUI FEBRUARY 2001 NAIROBI - KENYA TANGAZA COLLEGE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN AFRICA Mg impAct OF COMSOMERMI4 Ott rooms 11141 WHit SABA Infiggit - NAIROBI • AUTHOR: I.F.SA NORBERT SUPERVISOR: DR. MARY GETUI This is a long essay submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies. February 2001 NAIROBI - KENYA • • STUDENT'S DECLARATION I hereby declare that this long essay has not been submitted for academic credit to any other institution. All sources have been cited in full. Signed: 24444. LESA NORBERT SDB This long essay has been submitted for examination with my approval as the college supervisor. Signed: 4‘/L-1111, DR. MARY GETUI (SUPERVISOR) 4 11 Dedication I dedicate this work to: - The Lesa family who have been supportive in many ways. - The young people of Laini Saba, Kibera — Nairobi. - All who have been my teachers in one way or another. 4 111 Acknowledgements I want to take this opportunity to thank God and all those who have made it possible for the completion of this work: - Dr. Mary Getui, my supervisor and the one who taught me to love African Studies; The community of Utume, the staff and the brothers for their support in the past years of togetherness; Fr. Roy Fosker, for correcting my work; - Br. John Cosgrove, a confrere from the U.S.A, for helping me with materials, books and periodicals; Brs. Anthony Lobo sdb and Eustace Siame sdb, for computer work; The youth group of Laini Saba, in Kibera; - All my friends from Tangaza who have been inspiring, Canice, Wilfried, John Paul, Paul Idra, Roberto Carlos, Phyllis, Denise, Raphael; - Fr. George Kocholical sdb, for his help with the questionnaire; - My batch in the community of Utume (1997 — 2001), Ladis, Augustine, Leopold and Camille, for teaching me to love books and life. • iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Student's Declaration Dedication 11 Acknowledgements iii Table of Contents iv General Introduction 1 0.1 Background of the Study 2 0.2 Statement of the Problem 3 0.3 Objectives of the Study 4 0.4 Scope and Limitation of the Study 4 Chapter One: Consumerism and its Implications 6 1.1 What is Consumerism 6 1.2 Historical Overview of Consumerism in the West 8 1.3 The Effects of Consumerism on the African Society 14 Chapter Two: The Susceptibility of Youth to the Influence of Consumerism 18 2.1 Youth: Victims of Consumerism 18 2.2 The Influence of Mass Media 22 2.3 Consumerism and Youth Morality 27 2.4 Youth: Defy or Embrace Traditional African Values 31 Chapter Three: Consumerism as a Pastoral Challenge 36 3.1 Young People and the Church in a Consumeristic Society 36 3.2 Consumerism and New Evangelization 41 Conclusion 47 Bibliography 50 Appendix 55 The impact of consumerism on youth I Pt GENERAL INTRODUCTION. Since 1998 I have been working in the Catholic Parish of Laini Saba, in the Kibera slum, with young people between the ages of 14 and 30 years. Kibera slums had a population of 600,000 in 1998, representing 25% of the whole Nairobi population. It is one of the most congested slum settlements in Kenya with an average population density of 2,300 persons per hectare. Laini Saba alone was estimated to have a population of 40,000 in 1998. Kibera is a conglomeration of temporary dwellings, most of which are small mud-plastered rooms. Usually one family lives in one room. It comprises nine villages; Shilanga, Lindi, Laini Saba, Soweto, Makina, Mashimoni, Gatwikira, Kisumu Ndogo and Kianda. Kibera's residents are marginalized, underpaid and unemployed poor people who have no social security and are exposed to all kinds of social abuses. They experience the bitter realities of poverty that cause gross inequality, deprivation and malnutrition.' The organization of this essay is around three topical areas, each of which are aspects of the question under study. The three areas each provide an opportunity to gain insight into possible answers to the question of consumerism. Chapter One will investigate consumerism and its implications. The definition of consumerism will be given as the basis for the whole essay. The history of consumerism in the West will be explored from different perspectives used by different scholars, each in search of an answer to when, how, and why consumerism began. Finally I will consider how consumerism has entered the fabric of an African society, and look at the effects on the African society in general. Chapter Two will look closely at the susceptibility of youth to the influence of consumerism. The sections to be tackled are: Youth as victims of consumerism, in which I 4 Information from Christ the King Parish, Kibera. Pastoral and Evangelization programme, 1999-2000. The impact of consumerism on youth 2 will try to show how this group is the most at risk. I will also look at the influence of mass media on youth, with all the cultural changes it has brought. Consumerism and youth morality will be covered also, since this is in line with the effects of consumerism on the behaviour of young people. Finally, the last section will deal with youth and traditional African values. Traditional African values vary from place to place. The most noticeable ones, common to many cultures, are respect for elders, initiation rites, songs and the dances etc. Whether youth are for or against these African traditions will be my main concern. Chapter Three will tackle consumerism as a pastoral challenge. This part has two sections: the first, young people and the Church in the consumeristic society tackles the problem of the Church's response to the culture of modernity and youth. The second section will be on consumerism and new evangelization in a society affected by this culture of modernity. The understanding of the term "New Evangelization" will be dealt with as viewed by different people. Occasionally, I may have recourse to a general approach as far as the young people are concerned, and not to be restricted to Laini Saba group. This will be in line with the common characteristics of this group. Finally the terms `Kibera' and 'Laini Saba' will be used interchangeably, to mean only one thing, "slum", in my case Laini Saba village. 0.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY. When I was first assigned to do my apostolate among the youth of Laini Saba, I was rather appalled by the tough living conditions of the people of this area. Most of them live in extreme poverty. As I continued going there I discovered that the young people with whom I work try to be unique in many ways, for example, their dressing, habits, and lifestyles. I asked myself, 'why'? Whenever I visited them, I was shocked by the deplorable standard of living in their homes, yet consumerism is truly present in Laini Saba and many young people have The impact of consumerism on youth 3 become victims of it. Some people may argue that consumerism can only affect the affluent. However, I believe that the opposite is also possible: that consumerism is experienced even in the slums. I have been trying determine the Church's in curbing this problem of consumerism, since it has become a pastoral challenge. 0.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM. Many people in contemporary Africa say that Africa has become an extension of the West. By this they imply the effects of materialism in Africa, by so-called 'Westernization'. My first impression about Kibera was a distorted one because of the many hardships people endure. This is a place were people buy everything they need starting from water. Big men expose many of the young people to danger, especially small girls who become victims of sexual abuse. In this place the refuse is never collected by the City Council, posing the danger of the outbreak of diseases. Many people have resorted to drinking local brew, which is quite hazardous to their health. Since I was interested in the young people, I discovered that their manner of dressing, the music they listen to, the movies they watch, the discotheques they go to at night, showed that they belong to another environment, different from that of the slum. I became confused because there was no reconciliation between the way they, young people, appear and live and the life of Laini Saba in general, where the situation is atrocious because of the lack of the basic necessities of life. This made me conclude that there is a consumerist mentality at play, which has affected many young people. This is a problem and needs to be addressed. The youth that have become victims need attention in order to create in them awareness about consumerism. The impact of consumerism on youth 4 0.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY. -Consumerism is a virus with no cultural condom on the part of the youth to block it", to use the very descriptive language of Brian Swimme (1996).2 Young people are the most susceptible to any change in society, and in this case Laini Saba, being a slum in the big city of Nairobi. is no exception at all. My main objectives of this research study are as follows: 1. To note clearly that consumerism is present in the slums of Africa. 2. To obtain the views of the youth and others about consumerism. 3. To make the pastors of the Church aware of the need to evangelize this culture of modernity.
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