NatGeo Accused Of Blocking Kenyan Photographer From Participating In Contest

A Wildlife photographer, Clement Kiragu was exempted from participating in this year’s National Geographic’s (NatGeo) Travel Photographer of the Year Competition because he is Kenyan.

“So apparently I can’t enter a NatGeo photo contest because I’m a Kenyan citizen. All I can do is watch and cheer as fellow photographers win awards with photos taken in Kenya,” Kiragu said on social media.

Responding to the amazingly talented photographer’s sentiments on May 10, 2018 the NatGeo support said that in fact Kenya and other countries had been excluded from the contest because of ‘legal and financial restraints in running the contest in some foreign countries.’

NatGeo in its terms and conditions for those eligible to enter the contest does not make mention of exempting Kenyans.

https://t.co/EonnLaRAbu Terms and conditions apply pic.twitter.com/AOZEBP5pC4

— Waigoko Kimengemenge (@jrobah) May 11, 2018

Read: Kenyan Student Sexually Harassed By Staff Member At Makerere University

In an article titled “For Decades, Our Coverage Was Racist. To Rise Above Our Past, We Must Acknowledge It” by a NatGeo writer highlights instances from the past where the NatGeo photographers, reporters, explorers, scientists and writers have ignored people of colour who lived in the United States and rarely acknowledging them beyond laborers or domestic workers.

It is ironical, however how the aforementioned contest will allow images submissions from Kenya as long as they are not by Kenyans.

https://twitter.com/lolabe/status/994962236648165376?s=21

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