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Essay on The Cultural Invasion of Kenya

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The Cultural Invasion of Kenya

A screeching yell ripped through the house that Wednesday evening, "Ahhhhh, we're being invaded!". My mother rushed into the living room. I pointed to the flickering television screen. "Look," I whispered in disbelief. A few seconds of silence followed. There they were, the words I never thought would appear on our 29 inch Sony screen: "Sizzlin' Hot Country". The appearance of American country music on the Kenyan airwaves was the latest sign that American culture had penetrated the borders of my country. The airing of Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton on the local television station is not the only evidence of the rapid spread of American culture in Kenya. One look at a large portion of its youth and …show more content…

Pete was an example of a victim of the culture invasion. He would often be seen with his pants held precariously at his hips only by a belt. Sagging soon caught on with many students and yet again, I admit, with me. Sagging probably had its origins in the popular American hip hop that appears on many local channels. While walking around in school, I would find students mimicking the popular '2 Pac' and 'Dr. Dre', with a "Wesssaaid" sounding in the air occasionally. A friend was also nicknamed Krayzie Bone, after a member of the Bone Thugs- N- Harmony group. Baggy jeans that could have fit two people at a time were also the order of the day at many parties and get-togethers. Donning DKNY, Karlkani, CK and Adidas attire made one hip. Jeans had become such a popular article that during our school's annual Cultural Day, the only day when one could or would show off one's cultural attire, they were banned.

School dances and parties rarely featured traditional songs. Instead, American icons like Aaliyah, Dr Dre and Britney Spears dominated the playlists. Roaming the grounds of my secondary school, I would find a girl singing out "What a girl wants, what a girl..." in a desperate attempt to mimic pop idol Christina Aguilera. For some reason, emulating American youth was trendy. Rakim, another one of my friends, was popular for putting on an American accent when talking with girls. This act of putting on a fake American accent was so

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