A wave of ‘Gen-Z’ protests took place from Indonesia to Tanzania, from Nepal to Morocco. While they are often characterised as being shaped by digitally organised youth, these movements are fuelled by more mundane worries: youth unemployment and the strains of life in austerity societies. While the youth want to ‘speak back’, they are met with state repression, including abductions, arrests, and sexual violence. Kenya’s maandamano (protests) of 2024 and June 2025 lifted up these grievances, mainly sparked by discontent over the Finance Bill of 2024, which proposed higher taxation on basic goods amidst youth unemployment, disillusionment with society, entrenched corruption, and a deepening economic crisis. This was a cycle of protest against the austerity regime in post-colonial states...