SYL founders sought to override genealogical segmentation with shared values

Evidence

The nationalist founders of the SYL understood the major contradiction in Somali identity. On the one hand, Somalis shared common values that uniquely brought them together, and on the other hand, their underdevelopment created internal segmentation that barred their collective advancement. Mindful of this conundrum, they thought it was possible to capitalize on the common values and significantly tame, if not eliminate, the politically divisive tendency of genealogical segmentation. — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 430

Categorization

• DEFINE: Articulates the founding ideological diagnosis of Somali political fragmentation that the whole SYL program responds to.