African Independence movements 1945 – present
Themes:
- Nationalism Independence 2. Antiapartheid movement political reform 3. Desertification Famine & conflict
4. Ethnic / Clan rivalries War, Genocide
Key terms & places
Angola
Apartheid
Algeria
Black Homelands
Cash crop economy
Darfur
Desertification
Developing nation
Ghana
Grand Apartheid Laws
Kenya
Rwanda
Gacaca Courts
South Africa
Interaharmwe
Kikuyu
Kwame Nkrumah
Jomo Kenyatta
Janjaweed
Nelson Mandela
Sharpeville Uprising
Steven Biko
Soweto Uprising
Sudan
Mau Mau
Ahmed Ben Bella
UNITA
ANC
Hutu
Tutsi
Hosni Mubarak (Egypt)
To study, begin by organizing the above terms into categories and be able to explain the relationships.
- Based on the textbook reading ( p1012 – 1016, 1040 – 1044 in the World History Text or online on the power points page) and these declarations (1,2 &3 below), describe the Pan-African movement’s goals and tactics. Do you think these tactics would be effective to combat Imperialism in Africa? Why or Why not?
- Make a chart to compare the actions and tactics of Nkrumah of Ghana and Kenyatta of Kenya, both of whom fought for the independence of their respective nations Ghana and Kenya.
- Gandhi is often referred to as the father of his nation (India) Write a paragraph explaining who you think had the greater impact on his respective nation, Nkrumah or Kenyatta. Who should be considered as a “father” of the nation? Why?
- Read about Desertification and fill in the chart on the back of the review sheet.
Problems / Solutions / Outcomes
- The 1945 Pan-African Conference
George Padmore had been active in pan-African activism in Britain since his resignation from the Comintern in 1934… Towards the end of the war Padmore and his colleagues (mainly of West Indian origins) resuscitated … their Pan-African Federation, formed pre-war… The Pan-African Congress would be held in Manchester in October 1945. Kwame Nkrumah had arrived in Britain from the USA in late May 1945, and accepted George Padmore’s offer of the role of Regional Secretary of the Pan-African Federation, partly to aid in the organising of the Congress. He thus joined a Kenyan, Jomo Kenyatta and a South African, Peter Abrahams among the organising committee. What came to be miscalled the Fifth Pan- African Congress opened on October 15. There were over two hundred delegates … representing trade unions, farmers, political organisations and students and Black organisations in Britain. The ANC from South Africa had been was invited to send delegates, but they had not been able to obtain passports…
Thus at the Congress Nkrumah met many from the British speaking colonies who were already, or would become, national/political activists on their return home…The resolutions passed addressed various forms of racial discrimination, forced labour, and called for trade union rights and the granting of universal franchise in South Africa and the colonies. Nkrumah claimed that he had drafted the Congress’s Declaration to the Colonial People, which stressed the importance of forming a united front in the struggle against colonialism. The Congress also drafted a Decalaration to the Colonial Powers. (see below).
Source: - Marika Sherwood
- The Challenge to the Colonial Powers - Pan-African Congress - 1945
The delegates to the Fifth Pan-African Congress believe in peace. How could it be otherwise when for centuries the African peoples have been victims of violence and slavery. Yet if the Western world is still determined to rule mankind by force, then Africans, as a last resort, may have to appeal to force in the effort to achieve Freedom, even if force destroys them and the world.
We are determined to be free. We want education. We want the right to earn a decent living; the right to express our thoughts and emotions, to adopt and create forms of beauty. We demand for Black Africa autonomy and independence, so far and no further than it is possible in this “One World” for groups and peoples to rule themselves subject to inevitable world unity and federation.
We are not ashamed to have been an age-long patient people. We continue willingly to sacrifice and strive. But we are unwilling to starve any longer while doing the world’s drudgery, in order to support by our poverty and ignorance a false aristocracy and a discredited Imperialism.
We condemn the monopoly of capital and the rule of private wealth and industry for private profit alone. We welcome economic democracy as the only real democracy. Therefore, we shall complain, appeal and arraign. We will make the world listen to the facts of our condition. We will fight in every way we can for freedom, democracy and social betterment.
3.Declaration to the Colonial Workers, Farmers and Intellectuals. Pan-African Cong. 1945
The delegates of the Fifth Pan-African Congress believe in the right of all peoples to govern themselves. We affirm the right of all Colonial peoples to control their own destiny. All Colonies must be free from foreign imperialist control, whether political or economic. The peoples of the Colonies must have the right to elect their own governments, without restrictions from foreign powers. We say to the peoples of the Colonies that they must fight for these ends by all the means at their disposal.
The object of imperialist powers is to exploit. By granting the right to Colonial peoples to govern themselves that object is defeated. Therefore, the struggle for political power by Colonial and subject peoples is the first step tow towards, and the necessary prerequisite to, complete social, economic and political emancipation.
The Fifth Pan-African Congress therefore calls on the workers and farmers of the Colonies to organise effectively. Colonial workers must be in the front of the battle against Imperialism. Your weapons-the Strike and the Boycott-are invincible.
We also call upon the intellectuals and professional classes of the Colonies to awaken to their responsibilities. By fighting for trade union rights, the right to form cooperatives, freedom of the press, assembly, demonstration and strike, freedom to print and read the literature which is necessary for the education of the masses, you will be using the only means by which your liberties will be won and maintained. Today there is only one road to effective action-the organisation of the masses. And in that organisation the educated Colonials must join. Colonial and Subject Peoples of the World-Unite!
- Desertification, Deforestation & Drought
Read the following passage, then identify the problems, solutions and outcomes it proposed.
Ancient north African people named the area south of the Sahara the Sahel, which means “coastline” in Arabic. To these ancient people the Sahara appeared to be a vast ocean of sand. Since ancient times, the desert has taken over more and more of the Sahel during periods when the rainfall is low.
The people who live in the Sahel support themselves by farming and by herding camels, cattle and sheep. To cope with the challenge of dry climate and poor soil, farmers practice “shifting” agriculture. Using this method, farmers prepare a site and grow crops for a year or two. Having exhausted the soil they leave the farmed land. They move on, clear a new area and plant their crops. Trees are also cut down for firewood for cooking.
This deforestation, or stripping of the land of its trees, damages the environment. Deforestation allows fertile soil to be blown away, leading to soil erosion (soil loss) and drought. Overgrazing of herds also destroys plants and trees and contributes to the problem. More and more of the Sahel becomes desert.
In the mid-1960’s and lasting into the 1970’s a severe drought hit the Sahel. Farming in the region ended and over 200,000 people died of starvation. As the desert spread, many people fled to cities or lived in huge refugee camps. During the drought, foreign countries provided food, medicines and technical aid. Hundreds of miles of trees were planted to protect the soil from blowing away during the dry season and allowing vegetation to grow during the rainy season. In addition to tree planting, technicians from world wide agencies are teaching the people of the Sahel irrigation and other techniques to help them survive in their harsh environment.