What about Africa?

[adipocere]

A few days ago, I was at (large chain) bookstore and I was looking in the History/Military History/Political Science sections etc. for books about the current, ongoing conflicts in Africa - to be clear in "black" Africa. I was somewhat surprised to see that there was literally nothing, not even squirreled away in African American History. Zero. There was just a sad little book about the slave trade stuffed in the Middle East section.

Anyway, I've noticed the same thing here on Revleft. There have been a few pitiful little threads about Africa, some discussion of Mugabe - but I think it would really be helpful and educational to all of us for a mod to sticky a thread here about news/struggles in Africa.

[Lenina Rosenweg]

There is a thread started by Jolly Green Giant about the struggles in South Africa. Otherwise there is adefinite paucity of Africa discussion here (and elsewhere).

[Ismail]

I do study Africa and have a few books relating to it, mainly concerning the 1960's Congo and also Soviet perspectives on the continent. I guess if anyone has questions they could ask me, although my knowledge of African states and the continent's history is nothing compared to Albania. :D

[TaylorS]

My local Barnes and Noble has a few books on African history, but not anything specific to current conflicts.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

I thought Bono and Bob Geldof were taking care of Africa? You mean they're not? Right, to the batmobile!

On a more serious note, I guess that as most of the comrades here are European, North American and from the East/Russia, that's where most of the history-orientated threads tend towards. As for more contemporary threads, luckily the Arab Spring has given us a renewed interest in the source of conflicts in Libya, Syria etc.

[Flying Purple People Eater]

A few days ago, I was at (large chain) bookstore and I was looking in the History/Military History/Political Science sections etc. for books about the current, ongoing conflicts in Africa - to be clear in "black" Africa. I was somewhat surprised to see that there was literally nothing, not even squirreled away in African American History. Zero. There was just a sad little book about the slave trade stuffed in the Middle East section.

Anyway, I've noticed the same thing here on Revleft. There have been a few pitiful little threads about Africa, some discussion of Mugabe - but I think it would really be helpful and educational to all of us for a mod to sticky a thread here about news/struggles in Africa.

Actually there have been many threads on Africa - I remember making a few myself on struggles in Nigeria and Ethiopian history.

The amount of threads isn't the problem. The problem is that over half of this websites' population comes from America, Britain and the Netherlands, meaning people usually only ever tend to talk or care about labour struggles in those countries (unless it's something major internationally like Turkey or Egypt), while ignoring threads on other countries.

I do agree with you, however. African history and political events are both often ignored completely in most political discourse, unless it's on a talk about the history of modern racism or something. It's really bad when one of the most exploited continents on the planet with over a billion people in it just becomes this black-hole in current events.

[TaylorS]

Actually there have been many threads on Africa - I remember making a few myself on struggles in Nigeria and Ethiopian history.

The amount of threads isn't the problem. The problem is that over half of this websites' population comes from America, Britain and the Netherlands, meaning people usually only ever tend to talk or care about labour struggles in those countries (unless it's something major internationally like Turkey or Egypt), while ignoring threads on other countries.

I do agree with you, however. African history and political events are both often ignored completely in most political discourse, unless it's on a talk about the history of modern racism or something. It's really bad when one of the most exploited continents on the planet with over a billion people in it just becomes this black-hole in current events.

And the problems there are dismissed as "corruption", "tribal divisions", and "thuggery" at best by Liberals, and are used as proof of the inferiority of blacks by the Far Right, while Imperialism and Neo-Colonialism is ignored.