Re-Defining Hate Speech Towards Reform Agenda: The Discursive use of Referential Strategies in Kenya’s 2017 Pre-Election Campaigns

Hate crimes and inflammatory speeches have often been propagated in Kenya's election campaigns. Kenya has put in place various mechanisms to monitor hate speech. This paper focuses on various ways in which referential strategies by key leaders in the 2017 pre-election political discourse reflect and determine hate speech. It also examines the interplay of politics, social theory and linguistics towards achieving Kenya's Reform Agenda. The study is grounded in Fairclough's and Wodak's Discourse Historical Approach as a theoretical framework. The findings discursively depict the leaders as using representations that elevate their authority in the texts and naturalise the ideology of intolerance through vilification of others, intentional misinterpretation, subversive intentions, rumours, threats, innuendos, propaganda, depersonalising metaphors falling short of achieving the reform agenda. Policy makers would use the findings to adherence to laws and policies promoting national cohesion.