“The One Truth Amidst a Realm
of Falsehoods”
A Presentation on Cheikh Anta Diop
and the legacy of his work, beliefs,
and ideals.
By DeLandis K. Brooks
Main goals of this presentation:
Increase the awareness of the scientific contributions
made by African peoples by informing everyone
of who Cheikh Anta Diop is.
Provide Insight
on the trials and
tribulations Diop faced as an African male,
scientist, and political activist
Inform everyone of the works and research
of Cheikh Anta Diop and through his work
and research:
Dispel the widely accepted false assumption
that Africans played no part in the age of reason
or enlightenment of philosophical thought.
Show how Cheikh Anta Diop and his legacy
relate to the idea of Pan Africanism
Who is Cheikh Anta Diop?
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• Born on December 29,
1923 in Diourbel, Senegal.
• A well renowned scholar
as well as a
groundbreaking scientist
whose scientific methods
are still being widely used
to this day.
• Like many other
conscious members of the
African population, Diop
was an avid political
activist.
• Passed away on February
7, 1986.
Insight into Diop’s early life,
trials, and tribulations…….
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• Studied Physics at the
prestigious University
of Paris, Sorbonne in
the country of France.
Insight into Diop’s early life,
trials, and tribulations…(cont’d)
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• While studying in France,
Diop held a position as
Secretary General of the
Rassemblement
Democratique Africaine
(RAD) from 1950 - 1953,
a political group dedicated
to the liberation of the
African peoples from
outside the walls of the
motherland.
Insight into Diop’s early life,
trials and tribulations…(cont’d)
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• In 1951, Diop helped to
establish the very first
Pan-African Student
Congress in the city of
Paris, a group of students
dedicated to” lifting the
shackles of colonialism
that existed in Africans
and the African people
dispersed globally”.
Insight into Diop’s early life,
trials, and tribulations…(cont’d)
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• In 1951, Diop applied for
his initial doctorate with a
dissertation based on the
premise that Ancient
Egypt of the pharaohs was
without a doubt an African
civilization contrary to the
stories many were told of
the history of Ancient
Egypt.
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth………..
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• Narmer (or menes),
the first pharaoh of
Egypt. He unified
upper and lower Egypt
for the first time. From
this picture you can
tell that he is
unquestionably
African.
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
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• Protohistorical figure
of Lord Tera Neter, of
the Negro Anu race,
who were the first
inhabitants of Egypt.
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
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• Mycerinus of the
Fourth Dynasty. Built
the Giza Pyramid.
Unquestionably
African.
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
• Pharaoh Mentuhotep.
Founder of the
Eleventh Dynasty.
(circa 2100 B.C.)
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Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
• Pharaoh Sesostris I
(Twelfth Dynasty)
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Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
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• Pharaoh Ramses II(left) and a modern Watusi(right). The
Watusi hairstyle can only be achieved with wooly hair. The
small circles that appear on the statue would indicate the
wooliness of the Pharaohs hair himself.
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
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• Queen Ahmes Nefertari(left/middle) and modern African
woman(right).
Physical and historical evidence
of the truth…(cont’d)
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• The Great Sphinx as the
first French scientific
mission found it in the
nineteenth century. This
statue is not Greek or
Semitic. It is said to have
been modeled for Pharaoh
Chephren (2600 B.C.,
Fourth Dynasty) who built
the second Giza pyramid.
Scientific evidence of the
truth……….
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• Diop did not stop there,
however, he also invented
a scientific method of
determining the melanin
content of mummified
and badly burnt deceased
peoples called,
Radiocarbon dating. It is
with this test that Diop
proved without a doubt
that the Ancient
Egyptians were
unquestionably dark
skinned Africans,
contrary to what we are
told or believe.
More trials and
tribulations………..
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• With all of this
information as proof of a
stolen legacy, Diop’s
initial doctoral
dissertation was turned
down in 1951 and it was
not until 1960, after the
publication in 1955 of his
doctorate as, “Nations
Negres et Culture” won
him international acclaim,
and after numerous
additional attempts that
he was finally granted his
doctorate degree.
What does all this mean?
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• Frederich Hegel, the
German philosopher who
claimed that Africans had
no ability to reason,
obviously had no idea
what he was talking about,
which dispels the myth
that Africans played no
part in the age of reason or
had no ability to reason.
Contrary to what Hegel
claims, Diop has proved,
if anything, that Africans
were the catalysts that
helped to spawn
development and reason.
Impact on the scientific and
international community…….
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• In 1966, the First World
Black Festival of Arts and
Culture held in Dakar,
Senegal honored Dr. Diop
and W.E.B. Dubois as the
scholars who contributed
most to the influence on
African thought in the
20th century.
Impact on the scientific and
international
community…(cont’d)
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• In 1961, six years after
“Nations Negre et
Culture” was published by
Diop, anthropologists all
over the world began
flocking to Africa looking
for remains of the earliest
humans which the Leakey
family did find. The
remains of the oldest
humanoid(3.2 million
years) where found in
Africa and the Leakey’s
named her “Lucy”.
Impact on the scientific and
international
community…(cont’d)
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• The scientific method
founded by Diop is still
being widely used
throughout the world by
scientists and police
forensic labs to identify
the remains of badly burnt
victims of homicide.
Diop’s thoughts on PanAfricanism……..
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• “I want my accomplishments, our accomplishments to be
known so that through the cultural unity of the African
peoples dispersed globally, we as a people can finally
liberate ourselves with the power of our minds.”
Thank you for your time………
This concludes my
presentation………..THE END.