Maasai: A Living Legacy

Living in harmony with nature...
We Maasai have lived in harmony within the rich ecosystems of East Africa for centuries. In the balance of our ancestors found with the natural environment, people shared the land with elephants, giraffes, rhinoceros, and other majestic wildlife. We see ourselves as custodians of the land, which to us is a sacred living entity. The land contains our history; it is the keeper of our memories and culture, and protector of our forefathers' bones. The Maasai believe that the land is entrusted to the living for safekeeping, to be passed on to future generations.

Devastated by triple disasters...
In the last decade of the 19th century, the Maasai were devastated by triple disasters. Smallpox ravaged the people while our herds fell victim to rinderpest, a disease of cattle. Both diseases were introduced by European colonists who partitioned the land into British Kenya and German Tanganyika. The two regimes implemented policies of land alienation and cultural annihilation against the Maasai. When Kenya and Tanzania attained independence in the early 1960's, the new African states inherited these policies from their colonial predecessors.

Maasai culture and wildlife of Maasailand are endagered...
Today, the triple disasters' effects are evident in attitudes, policies, and actions that continue to devastate Maasailand. The Maasai people have been systematically driven off our traditional lands in the wake of economic development, irresponsible tourism, large-scale farming, and other activities that destroy wildlife habitat.

Loss of traditional land tenure alienates Maasai people from our land and culture. Through MERC, a broad spectrum of Maasai grassroots groups is working to reclaim our land rights and our culture, with its traditional respect for Maasailand and its wildlife.

"It is not possible for a free man to catch a glimpse of the great elephant herds roaming the vast spaces of Africa without taking an oath to do whatever is necessary to preserve forever this living splendor."

~ Romain Gary: Roots of Heaven