Understanding Revolutionary Pan-Africanism
By Sheik Abdurrahman T.L. Nelson
The concept of Pan-Africanism is a lightening rod that draws attacks from many sectors, not the least of which is zionism. Therefore, I want to share my understanding of Pan-Africanism with the hope of alleviating some of the lies and confusion that is being spread about it. I hope that once we deal with it we will be in a better position to move forward.
My late Comrade, Dr. Kwame Ture, probably published more than anyone else on Pan-Africanism. At the core of Pan-Africanism is the idea of Africans controlling the institutions that affect our lives. These include police powers, political representatives and national sovereignty. This is known as Black Power. Black Power was first brought out on a massive scale during the March against Fear through Mississippi in the late 1960’s by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). The book Black Power: Ideology for Liberation in America by Carmichael (Ture) and Hamilton is available for further study.
Even at the Black Power stage, Pan-Africanism showed progressive, revolutionary tendencies on one side; and, reactionary tendencies on the other side. These two tendencies can be traced back to the opposition between the liberal wing of the early Civil Rights Movement and the African Nationalist Movement led by The Honorable Marcus Garvey. To this day, we have difficulties reconciling the type of power represented by Tuskegee University and the National Negro Business League represented by Dr. Booker T. Washington; and the more liberal movements such as the National Association of Colored Peoples and the National Urban League. During the 1960’s, clashes along ideological lines sometimes led to death on both sides.
Dr. Kwame Ture connected the concept of Black Power to the anti-colonial struggles throughout the world. He traveled to Latin America, Asia and Africa. This laid the foundation for the idea of solidarity between Asians and Africans; and between Hispanics and Africans to emerge. These ideas are expressed and defined in Stokely Speaks by Carmichael (Ture).
Dr. Ture’s world travels provided a concrete basis for the revolutionary tendency of Pan-Africanism. Not only did he establish links with Vietnam Worker’s Party and the Communist Party of Cuba, he established direct ties with all of the progressive anti-colonial movements in Africa and Arabia.
Under Dr. Ture, Pan-Africanism became a tremendous revolutionary force. Revolutionary Pan-Africanism was anti-racism, first and foremost. It was the opposite of tribalism and ethnocentrism. While not anti-Afro-centricity, it found an uneasy relationship with Afro-centrism because Afro-centrism is a form of ethnocentrism.
Today, Brother Gamal Nkrumah is perhaps the world’s leading advocate of revolutionary Pan-Africanism. We emphatically salute his leadership. Brother Gamal is the leader of a new generation of revolutionary Pan-Africanists. Some of the very best revolutionary Pan-Africanists are as young as their early 20’s and late teens. This is cause for much optimism in the worldwide Pan-Africanist Movement.
Having been in the struggle for a long time in various capacities, we try to make a positive contribution by refining some of the rougher edges of Pan-Africanism. We have done and are doing some the heavy lifting in the Movement. W here Dr. Ture expressed Pan-Africanism on the form of political parties and the African United Front; Their Excellencies Presidents Gamal Abdel Nasser, Osagyfo President Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, Ahmed Seku Ture and many others expressed it in the form of confederal states and multi states associations such as Organization of African Unity. Their Excellencies Brother Colonel Muamar Quadafi and President Nelson Mandela, and many others, moved this to the next step, known as the African Union. His Excellency President Saddam Hussein’s leadership of the Arab Nation and his subsequent martyrdom has provided the glue, the cement binds the Arab Nation with the African Nation. This glue, this cement is composed of the blood of many martyrs from both the Arab Nation and the African Nation.
Therefore, a form of organization half-way between the political party and the nation-state emerges. This form of organization is known a political front. The Front brings together all individuals and organizations that can and will pursue African and Arab Unity. It is an intermediary step between the theory of revolutionary Pan-Africanism and the actual realization of a state organization that embodies revolutionary Pan-Africanism.
I have called for the establishment of the United States of Africa and Arabia (USAA). It is clear that such USAA needs to rest upon Constitutional Law. Constitutional development is well within the tradition established by the United States of America as it fought against imperialism and launched the worldwide Democratic Republican Movement. We also have the example of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the People’s Republic of China and many more to draw from. The example set by such entities as the United Arab Republic, the Mali-Ghana-Guinea Union, the United States of Mexico, the European Union, the North American Free Trade Agreement and many more are not to be ignored.
Zionism
The main opposition to this proposal seems to be coming from the usual suspects, primarily the zionist movement. Anti-Zionism is an integral part of revolutionary Pan-Africanist Movement. His Excellency Abdel Nasser was not only a Pan-Arabist, he was also a Pan-Africanist. The fact that the United Arab Republic of Egypt was forced to fight not less than five wars against zionist aggression did not help matters, as far as Jewish-African relations are concerned. In addition, there have been conflicts over the decades involving other African states defending themselves against zionist attacks and other acts of hostility. Even so, relations between Jews and Africans tend to improve in direct relationship to zionist flirtation with ideas of peace. In other words, relations tend to improve during times of peace negotiation.
Fluctuations in Jewish and African relations alone prove that anti-Judaism is foreign to African culture. Judaism, like Christianity and Islam, is an African religion. The African origins of these religions are proven in anthropology and archeology. History tends to place emphasis on the Arabian Peninsula. But, this is largely a result of flawed interpretations of the Holy Scriptures. However, a casual glance at a map shows that the Arabian Peninsula is an integral, unbreakable part of the African Continent.
Zionism became an intimate problem for Diasporic Africans as Palestinian refugees began to come among us. Let it be clearly known that every “Arab-Israeli” conflict involves Africans in huge numbers. Africans have shared space with Arabs since the very beginning of recorded history, and even in pre-historic times. So, whenever we hear or read about Arab suffering, be sure that it includes African suffering.
The Arabs tend to mix more easily in the Hispanics cultures than in the Anglo-Saxon cultures. This explains why anti-zionism in the USA began as we reached out to form alliances with Native Americans and Latin Americans.
SNCC had members from such places as Brazil. These members brought to SNCC’s attention to the suffering of the Arabs. As SNCC reached out to the suffering Arabs, the Palestinian refugees, the discovery was made that “the Arabs” included many Africans.
In the interest of peace, it is always desirable to add a note of optimism whenever we speak of anti-zionism. The Zionist project exists on the Arabian Peninsula which is a part of Africa. To the extent that sincere, honest and peace-loving Jews promote and seek peace, let it be known that they will be doubly reciprocated. Africans are the last people on earth who would harbor anti-Jewish feelings and attitudes.
Today, the Palestinian refugees have been welcomed and embraced among us. He is the Muslim sitting next to us as we pray in the Masjid. She is the dark, beautiful lady sitting next to us at Sunday School. They are our neighbors and friends, our fellow students and co-workers. Above all, they are our allies in the fight against imperialism and zionism. And, we expect that they will play a meaning role in the unification of Arabia and Africa.
