"You people elected a homeboy..."

… Is an expression I constantly. Basically, the Kenyans are thrilled that the U.S. has elected a president of Kenyan heritage. I have not been in a single home that doesn’t have at least one picture of Obama hanging in a place of honor, and one picture is by far on the low end. Most homes have small shrines to Obama in the living room. His face is badly Photoshop-ed into their family portraits. At every zoo and animal sanctuary, there is a baboon named Barack. Traditional African music groups are still popular here (despite the influx of Western media), and they all have songs called “Obama”. I have sat through dozens of music videos of people dancing in traditional animal pelts and such, overlaying a photo of Obama. On the street, people will walk up to me and my friends, shake our hands, and just say “Obama!”
One night recently, my host mom sat me down and told be very gravely that both her family and Obama are of the Luo tribe (tribal identity is key here, and a big reason for the violence after the last election). The gist of the 20 minute conversation was that my mom and Obama are practically cousins, and now that I’m her daughter, I’m a pretty direct relative as well.

Some Kenyans are greatly irritated that Barack Obama hasn’t affected huge change to the Kenyan political and economic instability yet, while others concede that he has enough to worry about on the domestic front. But invariably, they all detest Hillary.