Uganda Wildlife Authority Archives

The Benet

The Benet people are an indigenous community from Mount Elgon in Eastern Uganda that have faced numerous human rights abuses as a result of the increased protection of the Mount Elgon National Park.

Karamojong pastoralists are an impoverished, historically marginalized group without political representation. They have suffered in the past from land grabs for conservation by the government. Open grazing land is dwindling and their entire way of life is at risk. Today, government officials seek to abolish pastoralism in the region.

The University of Michigan has its origins in land coercively purchased by the United States Federal Government from the Anishinaabeg (including Odawa, Ojibwe, and Potawatomi) and Wyandot nations. While this project documents ongoing cases of land expropriation and dispossession outside of the United States, we are also based in a university that stands, like almost all property in the United States, on lands obtained from indigenous peoples, generally through violence, intimidation, and dishonesty. Knowing and acknowledging where we live and work does not change this, but a thorough understanding of the ongoing consequences of these histories must shape our research, teaching, and outreach to create a future that supports human flourishing and justice for all individuals.

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The Benet

Karamojong vs. Land Grabbing

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