Decolonization in Africa

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

The independence of African countries from colonial rule remains one of the pivotal events in the making of the modern world. Before and after the imperial flags were lowered in countries such as Ghana and Tanzania, many people of African descent questioned the extent to which decolonization equated liberation. This course invites students to examine how different segments of African society across age, class, gender, and ethnic backgrounds struggled for economic, gendered, social, and political freedom from the Second World War until the present. How did these actors define, experience, and imagine decolonization? What impact did their ideas have on their societies and the African diaspora? How can we apply their theories and practices of decolonization? The answers to these questions and more will help to shape students’ understanding of this pivotal period in world history.