Category: The African World

The Arab democratic revolt has highlighted a potential reshaping of Pan-Arabism for the 21st century, and it is exciting to observe. In the period from Abdul Gamal Nasser’s coup against the then King of Egypt in 1952 through the mid-1970s, there was a sense of Pan-Arabism that shook North Africa and the Middle East. This…

The breathtaking Arab democratic revolt has been moving at such a pace that it is difficult to stop at any one juncture and analyze what is unfolding. At the same time, simply broadcasting the facts is not enough since, among other things, the facts never speak for themselves: people speak and, indeed, the facts can…

New Social Movements in the African Diaspora: Challenging Global Apartheid, edited by Leith Mullings, New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2009, 334 pps., paperback. City University of New York Graduate Center professor, Leith Mullings, has put together a unique work. Although published in 2009, I just recently read it and it was more than timely. With 2011…

Just when it felt like Western imperialism had the upper hand in North Africa and the Middle East, a firestorm unfolded. First in Tunisia, followed by sparks igniting in Oman, Jordan, Algeria, Libya, Yemen, and, yes, Egypt, uprisings and mass demonstrations have started shaking the Arab World. In many respects the uprising in Tunisia was…

Is it me or are events in Haiti taking a bizarre turn? The arrival of Jean Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier defied the expectations of probably every observer of Haitian politics and history. This notorious monster who, along with his father “Papa Doc” Duvalier, presided over the rape of Haiti and the murder of thousands, returned…

Horace Campbell, Barack Obama and Twenty-First Century Politics: A revolutionary moment in the USA (New York: Pluto Press, 2010), 319 pps. $29 paperback, $95 hardback. Horace Campbell has produced a rigorous, thought-provoking look at the political moment in which we find ourselves. Barack Obama and Twenty-first Century Politics: A Revolutionary Moment in the USA presents…

When I first heard about the Israeli murder of the very innocent 66 year old Omar Qawasmeh, I thought about a remark someone made a few years ago in commenting on Israeli atrocities against Palestinians. They said that the next time any Palestinian military group blows up a bus, they should apologize for the death…

Over the last two decades increased attention has focused on the ramifications of failing to complete an anti-biotics regimen in treating infections. The most noteworthy example of the problem involves tuberculosis. Many patients begin their treatment and then decide at a certain moment to stop because they believe that they have been ‘cured.’ The net…

Since his 2008 campaign, much discussion has been devoted to understanding President Obama’s approach. At various points Obama’s public coolness has been seen as a plus, while at other points it has been viewed as a real minus. On those rare occasions when Obama has dared give expression to his ire, he has confronted the…

A referendum is to soon take place in the southern Sudan as to whether the south will secede and form an independent nation or whether it will remain part of, what is now, the largest nation-state in Africa. This referendum is the result of peace talks that brought the North/South civil war in the Sudan…