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Africans on the Move

From the Nkrumaist, by Sis. Marpessa Kupendua
19 February 1998

WHY SHOULD AFRICANS BORN AND RAISED OUTSIDE OF AFRICA, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES, STRUGGLE FOR PAN-AFRICANISM?

Malcolm X clearly understood the connection between Africans in the diaspora and Africans in Africa. On December 12, 1964, he stated: "When the African continent in its independence is able to create the unity that's necessary to increase its strength and its position on this earth, so that Africa too becomes respected as other huge continents are respected, then, wherever people of African origin, African heritage or African blood go, they will be respected -- but only when and because they have something much larger that looks like them behind them."

HOW WILL PAN-AFRICANISM CHANGE THE LIVES OF AFRICAN PEOPLE?

Pan-Africanism will mean:

1. A whole continent with all of its natural resources truly owned and controlled by African people for the benefit of its people, even those in the diaspora; these natural resources used to prevent starvation and disease; infant mortality; these resources used to promote humanism, collectivism, and egalitarianism.
2. An African government where the people govern themselves within a "true" democracy.
3. A proud African people returned to their rightful place in history; respecting themselves and accepting nothing less from anyone else.
4. A social system with equal access for women as well as men; satisfying the needs of both women and men; allowing both women and men to grow and develop to their fullest potential.

WHAT IS THE ROLE OF STUDENTS IN THE AFRICAN REVOLUTION?

A worldwide look throughout history will reveal the crucial involvement of students in sparking positive changes. Their success is due to the unique position that they hold in society. With their exposure to wide-ranging information and their access to educational tools and resources, students are able to develop an understanding of the world still lacking among the masses. Students, too, are in a unique position because they, for the most part, have not yet committed themselves to their career jobs. Kwame Ture stated in an address entitled, "Education as a Tool for Liberation," that the purpose of education is "to lead one out of problems." Once armed with the educational tools and an understanding of the problem as well as the solution, the student is prepared to use her or his youthful energy to unite with others and struggle against oppressive economic and political systems.

The African student, both continental and diasporal, have left their mark on history with their involvement in the struggle to liberate African people from various forms of oppression. In South Africa, students sparked many of the fights against settler- colonialism including the Soweto Uprising in 1960. In the United States, student organizations such as SNCC were key in providing people power for the various boycotts, protests, and demonstrations that took place in the name of civil rights and Black Power. The 1970's found students from Soweto to the Ivory Coast, Madagascar and Senegal struggling on the African continent against oppressive conditions both internal and external to the university setting.