Revolutionary Movements in Africa

A remarkable volume on the vicissitudes of the revolutionary left in post-independence Africa Issa Shivji, Professor Emeritus at the University of Dar es SalaamTwenty-first-century radicals should find new inspiration for action in this untold history Jean Copans, anthropologist and sociologistFrom the Tubu nomads of northern Chad to peasants, workers and students throughout the African continent, we see how these movements used old and new ideas to mobilize emancipatory struggles for change Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja, Professor of African and Global Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillWhile the revolutionary left of the 1960s and 1970s in Europe, the United States and Latin America have been the subject of abundant discussion, similar movements that emerged in Africa have received comparatively little attention.Yet Africas radical left was extremely active in these years. With pro-Soviet movements, Maoism, Trotskyism, Guevarism, Pan-Africanism and the Black Panthers, the rumble of revolution was felt across the continent. From feminist student rebels in Nigeria to pro-democracy movements in Liberia, the exciting and complex interplay between these many actors changed Africa forever. Can we see echoes of these movements in African politics today? What can we learn from the people who lived through these decades? How can revolutionary struggles on the continent today learn from this rich history? This unique collection will shed new light on Africas radical decades for those who are seeking new and important insights into global revolutionary history.Pascal Bianchini is a sociologist and independent researcher based in Senegal. Ndongo Samba Sylla is a Senegalese development economist and the co-author ofAfricas Last Colonial Currency. Leo Zeilig is an editor of theReview of African Political Economyand is the author of several books includingA Revolutionary for Our Time: The Walter Rodney Story.