OFF MY CHEST: Please, don't touch my buttocks!

I think if Taylor Swift was in Kenya, she would be suing our men on a daily basis because of this buttocks-grabbing behavior.

What you need to know:

  • There were people milling around us when Bungalow apparently noticed my award-winning 'asset' and in his 'wisdom' chose to grab it.
  • I turned, saw the smug smile on his face and lost it.
  • Before he knew what was happening, my hand was up in the air and the smug look wiped off his face with a brazen slap.

I was born in Nairobi’s Eastlands where apparently there is an unwritten code of not fighting back when you are aggrieved.

However, I have been brought up to believe that women deserve respect and every part of their body should be cherished and not treated like a commodity.

So this guy, let’s call him Bungalow because, well, he was shaped like one, sees me walking out of a club at about 8pm with some friends.

I had had a meal and one drink (It’s important you know I was sober). There were people milling around us and Bungalow apparently noticed my award-winning 'asset' and in his 'wisdom' chose to grab it, a deliberate and calculating move.

I turned, saw the smug smile on his face and lost it. Anger and humiliation took over bringing back memories of similar incidences in my younger years when I had been too naive to stand up for myself. I knew that if I let this happen one more time I would regret it. I detest that feeling.

Before he knew what was happening, my hand was up in the air and the smug look wiped off his face with a brazen slap. The adrenalin rush felt so good even as my friends stood there and gasped, obviously in shock over what I had just done.

My reaction was so unexpected that it took Bungalow a few seconds to regain his composure. Suddenly, I heard him shout: “Why are you slapping me? Why are you slapping me? I will kill you!”

I ran across the room, through the dance floor and out the door. Thankfully, I found a bouncer standing there and explained my situation amidst trying to catch my breath. Believe it or not, Bungalow was thrown out of the club.

Later on, the bouncer told me that he had thought the commotion was a lover’s spat and that is why he had not intervened. Lover’s spat? So it would be okay for him to pummel me to death if I was his lover?

Why are Kenyan men like this though? You would be surprised at the number of men who have similar tales as mine. I think if Taylor Swift was in Kenya, she would be suing our men on a daily basis.

Kudos to all the women out there who stand up for themselves. To those who watch in silence and sometimes even tell us to stop overreacting, shame on you!

This flagrant behaviour needs to stop!