This collection of lively biographical essays examines historical and contemporary Pan-Africanism as an ideology of emancipation and unity. The volume covers thirty-six major figures, including well-known Pan-Africanists such as W.E.B. Du Bois, Marcus Garvey, Amy Ashwood Garvey, C.L.R. James, George Padmore, Kwame Nkrumah, Frantz Fanon, Steve Biko, and Thabo Mbeki, as well as popular figures not typically identified with mainstream Pan-Africanism such as Maya Angelou, Mariama Ba, Buchi Emecheta, Miriam Makeba, Ruth First, Wangari Maathai, Wole Soyinka, Derek Walcott, V.Y. Mudimbe, Leopold Senghor, Malcolm X, Bob Marley, and Fela Anikulapo-Kuti.
The book explores the history and pioneers of the movement; the quest for reparations; politicians; poets; activists, as well as Pan-Africanism in the social sciences, philosophy, literature, and its musical activists. With contributions from a diverse and prominent group of African, Caribbean, and African-American scholars, The Pan-African Pantheon is a comprehensive and diverse introductory reader for specialists and general readers alike. -- .
Author Biography:
Adekeye Adebajo is Director of the Institute for Pan-African Thought and Conversation at the University of Johannesburg. He was Executive Director of the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR) in Cape Town between 2003 and 2016. Adebajo served on United Nations missions in South Africa, Western Sahara, and Iraq, and was Director of the Africa Programme at the International Peace Institute (IPI) in New York. -- .
