It's terrifying to think that if Wangari Maathai had not taken on Moi and his cronies, we would have no Uhuru Park today. As Keguro Macharia writes, in his Gukira blog: ‘Indeed, the history of public space in Kenya is inextricably linked to Wangari’s name.’

Wangari Maathai was a great tree in her lifetime. Now, she is a forest. Her legacies are not just for future generations of Kenyans – her influence was global. We have lost her far too early.

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* Shailja Patel is a Kenyan poet, playwright and activist.
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