'Not So Much a Melting Pot': White Expulsions and the Diplomatic Safety Valve in Kenya, 1964–1967.

This article analyzes the political impact of two rounds of arbitrary expulsions of white and Asian British citizens by the Kenyan government in 1964 and 1967, following Kenya's independence in 1963. It explores how these expulsions reflected Kenya's assertion of sovereignty, the evolving Anglo-Kenyan relationship, and the shifting status of the white settler community, divided between those who left ("leavers") and those who remained ("remainers"). The British government prioritized maintaining stable relations with Kenya and protecting the economic and political interests of compliant white settlers, while showing discriminatory and less supportive treatment toward expelled British Asians. The expulsions served both as a tool to remove dissident minorities and as a demonstration of the new Kenyan state's authority, setting a precedent that created lasting insecurity among minority communities in Kenya.