EQ 2: HOW HAS MODERN NATIONALISM
AFFECTED AFRICAN AND ARAB COUNTRIES?
KEY TERMS: PAN-AFRICANISM, KWAME
NKRUMAH, W.E.B. DUBOIS, MARCUS GARVEY,
NEGRITUDE, PAN-ARABISM, ARAB LEAGUE, PLO
PAN-AFRICANISM
• Pan-Africanism was about unity, shared identity, and
cultural heritage of people of African descent.
• These ideas were expressed by writers like W.E.B. Du Bois
and Marcus Garvey.
• Kwame Nkrumah, the founder and first president of the
modern nation of Ghana, was one of the most influential
Pan-Africanists of the 20th century.
Kwame Nkrumah
“Africa is a paradox which illustrates and highlights neo-colonialism. Her earth is
rich, yet the products that come from above and below the soil continue to enrich,
not Africans predominantly, but groups and individuals who operate to Africa’s
impoverishment.”
"History has shown that where the Great Powers cannot colonize, they balkanize.
This is what they did to the Austro-Hungarian Empire and this is what they have
done and are doing in Africa. If we allow ourselves to be balkanized, we shall be
re-colonized and be picked off one after the other...."
"Common territory, language and culture may in fact be present in a nation, but the
existence of a nation does not necessarily imply the presence of all three.
Common territory and language alone may form the basis of a nation. Similarly,
common territory plus common culture may be the basis. In some cases, only one
of the three applies. A state may exist on a multi-national basis. The community of
economic life is the major feature within a nation, and it is the economy which
holds together the people living in a territory. It is on this basis that the new
Africans recognize themselves as potentially one nation, whose domination is the
entire African continent."
PAN-AFRICAN
CONGRESS, 1919
• In 1919, the first of five Pan-African Congresses was held
in Paris. The congress was organized by W.E.B. Du Bois.
• Fifteen African countries were represented.
• Their goal was to change the way Europeans governed
Africa, with the eventual goal of African independence.
• Their second goal was influence the Versailles Peace
Conference at the end of World War I.
PAN-AFRICAN
CONFERENCES
• Met again in 1921, 1923, & 1927
• Pushed for self rule
• Define of relationship of Europe and Africa
• 1945: 5th Pan African Congress
• 90 delegates, 26 from Africa
• W.E.B. DuBois and Marcus Garvey’s wife were in
attendance
• Declared condemnation of capitalist systems and
racial discrimination
NEGRITUDE
• Négritude (meaning “blackness”) was a French-language
literary movement expressing the colonial experience
using elements of modernism, surrealism, and jazz.
• It was started by black students and intellectuals in Paris
during the 1930s.
• The Négritude movement was founded by Léopold Sédar
Senghor (later the first president of Senegal) and poets
Léon Damas and Aimé Césaire.
Langston Hughes
Richard Wright
The Négritude movement was highly influenced by the
Harlem Renaissance and the works of poets such as
Langston Hughes and Richard Wright.
Aimé Césaire
Aimé Césaire of the French colony of Martinique is an
outstanding poet of the Négritude movement. In a 1967
interview, Césaire explained:
“We lived in an atmosphere of rejection, and we developed an
inferiority complex.” The desire to establish an identity begins
with “a concrete consciousness of what we are…that we are
black...and have a history…[that] there have been beautiful
and important black civilizations…that its values were values
that could still make an important contribution to the world.”
-- Aimé Césaire: une voix pour l'histoire [A Voice for History]
MODERN STRUGGLES
IN AFRICA—LIBERIA
•
•
•
•
•
Starting in 1926, the company Firestone began
renting rubber plantations
William V. S. Tubman (1944-1971):
• President of Liberia, instituted reforms to
developed economy
• integrated the Americo-Liberians and
indigenous African populations
• expanded foreign trade and mining of iron ore
1980 military coup took over and established an
oppressive military government
Civil War 1989-1996, in which 200,000 died and
millions were forced into refugee camps
Political unrest continues today
WHAT ABOUT THE MIDDLE EAST?
BACKGROUND
Arab Nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism reflected the desire
of the Muslim nations of the Middle East to end western
domination. England and France had controlled the area since the
defeat of the Ottoman Empire after WWI.
PAN ARABISM
• By 1950, most Middle Eastern nations had won independence
• However, most still felt great effects from western imperialism
• Arabs wanted western technology but not all wanted western
culture
• Pan Arabism sought to unite all Arab nations with a common
language and customs
• To promote this, the Arab League was formed in 1945 by
nationalists
Flag of the Arab League
ARAB LEAGUE -1945
Formally named the League of Arab States, it is a voluntary
association of independent countries whose peoples are mainly
Arabic-speaking. Its stated purposes are to strengthen ties among
the member states, coordinate their policies, and promote their
common interests.
THE LEAGUE WAS FOUNDED IN CAIRO IN 1945 BY EGYPT,
IRAQ, LEBANON, SAUDI ARABIA, SYRIA, TRANSJORDAN
(NOW JORDAN), AND YEMEN.
Countries that later joined, listed alphabetically, are the following:
Algeria (1962),
Bahrain (1971),
Comoros (1993),
Djibouti (1977),
Kuwait (1961),
Libya (1953),
Mauritania (1973),
Morocco (1958),
Oman (1971),
Qatar (1971),
Somalia (1974),
Sudan (1956),
Tunisia (1958),
United Arab Emirates (1971).
Remember that the Middle East is a
cultural term the west uses to
describe most of southwest Asia
THE ARAB LEAGUE
It has managed to settle some Arab disputes and to limit conflicts
such as the Lebanese civil wars of 1958 and 1975-76. The league has
been more effective in activities fostering economic, social, and
cultural cooperation among Arab states.
STRUGGLES IN
PALESTINE
• Palestine is a region in the Middle East with some of the
most violent attacks and riots. It has been a contested
region between Israelis and Arabs for centuries.
• Palestine Liberation Organization was formed in 1964 with
the goal of destroying the Israeli control of Palestine.
• The PLO began as a terrorist organization and for the first
ten years of its existence, used violence to achieve their
goal. This resulted in 100s of casualties and nothing
gained. The PLO altered its strict focus on terrorism to
include diplomacy and cooperation.
• In 1976, Palestine, represented by the PLO, was admitted
into the Arab League.
DISRUPTIONS IN
THE ARAB LEAGUE
Egypt's membership was suspended in 1979, after it
signed a peace treaty with Israel, and the league's
headquarters was then moved to Tunis. The league voted
in 1987 to allow its members to restore diplomatic ties
with Egypt; in 1990 the league's headquarters was moved
back to Cairo.
UNITED ARAB
REPUBLIC (1958)
Egypt and Syria joined together but was
short-lived when Egypt dominated its
government.
UNITED ARAB
REPUBLIC (1958)
OBSTACLES TO UNITY
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Nationalism – Countries
were loyal to their own
nation and not an Arab
nation
No Geographic unity
Too many different
ethnic groups
Too many different types
of government
Economic differences
(Oil)
Rich – Have Natural
Resources vs…
Poor – No Natural
Resources
POLITICAL TRADITIONS- FORMS OF
GOVERNMENT
• Most states built powerful
central governments
• Different types of government
• Republic – Egypt, Iraq, and Iran
• Monarchy – Saudi Arabia,
Jordan, and Kuwait
• Old Law – The teaching of the
Koran
• Modern Law – Western law
• Turkey and Israel have
multiparty systems
CHALLENGES TO
STABILITY
• Minority ethnic groups such as the Kurds have
demanded self-rule.
• Rapid Population growth
• Urbanization
• Widespread poverty
• Illiteracy
CIVIL WAR IN
LEBANON
• One of the most unstable places in the Middle East
• Beirut, its capital, has sometimes been ranked as the
most deadliest city in the world
• Muslim and different Christian groups live there
• The Lebanese constitution divided power amongst
the groups
• Muslims were given less political power even though
their population is increasing
• In 1975 civil war broke out lasting 16 years
• Palestinians also fled to Lebanon from Israel
• The Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO)
launched terrorist attacks on Israel from bases in
Lebanon.
RUINS OF BEIRUT RESIDENTIAL
NEIGHBORHOOD, 1982
FOREIGN INVOLVEMENT IN
THE CIVIL WAR IN LEBANON
•
Syria, Israel, Iran, and the United States all
became involved in the struggle.
•
Syria and Israel occupied parts of Lebanon
•
Thousands of Lebanese died
•
The economy and infrastructure were
destroyed
•
1991 – the Lebanese government gave more
power to Muslims
•
Peace was finally restored
THE ARAB MOVEMENT TODAY
•
•
•
•
•
Westernization was viewed as colonialism, an evil
force undermining Islamic society
Some Muslims wanted to return to the values of the
Koran and a time before western domination
Supporters wanted more power given to religious
leaders
Wanted a strict separation of men and women in
public places (workplace and schools)
A religious revival that seemed to counter a rapid
social and economic change in the Middle East