Communism and the Tutelage of African Agency: Revisiting Mandela’s Communist Ties

منو

" Communism and the Tutelage of African Agency: Revisiting Mandela’s Communist Ties "
Osei-Opare, Nana

Document Type	:	AL
Record Number	:	941265
Doc. No	:	LA43d050xv
Language of Document	:	English
Main Entry	:	Osei-Opare, Nana
Title & Author	:	Communism and the Tutelage of African Agency: Revisiting Mandela’s Communist Ties [Article]\ Osei-Opare, Nana
Title of Periodical	:	Ufahamu: A Journal of African Studies
Volume/ Issue Number	:	38/1
Date	:	2014
Abstract	:	African liberation movements and Communist parties often collaborated in their efforts to remove the yoke of colonialism and imperialism from the African continent. This cooperation is not evidence of Communist parties dictating the affairs and decisions of these liberation movements. This inference may be applied to the African National Congress (ANC), Nelson Mandela, and the South African Communist Party (SACP). While the ANC and Mandela worked with Communists and the SACP, Mandela himself was not a Communist, nor did the SACP manipulate or dictate his actions. Mandela worked with Communists, and Communists joined the ANC, where they assumed high positions within that party. Both the ANC and SACP came to realize that their goals of removing colonialism and imperialism were identical and that they thus needed to work together. This essay looks at the relationship and symbioses between Mandela and the SACP, as well as popular media’s perceptions of this relationship.