The University as a Place to Think
How we harness knowledge to the ethical injunctions we uphold against marginality, pain or suffering, on a global scale.
History
Remembering Differently
Slavery, despite its centrality to South Africa's founding, remains on the periphery of popular and institutional memory there.
Apartheid Israel
Is it fair to compare Israel to Apartheid South Africa? And no, making the comparison is not antisemitic.
The limits of the idea of “alternative Africas”
How much energy should we invest in counterfactuals like: What if a diminished Europe, devastated by a plague, did not produce colonial powers, how might Africa’s history have unfolded?
The Digital Mandela
Finding ways to deconstruct the legacy from reality when it comes to South Africa's democratic president, Nelson Mandela.
The Spear of the People
The KwaZulu-Natal Midlands has a bit of a reputation as a “sleepy hollow.” But it was a crucial node in the struggle against apartheid.
Burkina Faso Is on The Boil
And can someone tell the BBC: No, Blaise Compaore is not a "peacemaker."
Ali Mazrui and Me
A fateful meeting with Mazrui, the famed Kenyan historian and broadcaster.
The Future of The Gettleman
After re-reading this article last night, I traveled to the end of the world and was
The Historic Legacy of Ivor Wilks
A historian of Ghana, Ivor Wilks was crucial to the founding of African history as an academic discipline in the late 1950s and to its development over subsequent decades.
The Resurrection of Nat Nakasa
“This is Simply a Personal Statement from Me to You” On August 18th I attended the
The Economist has a slavery problem
To repeat: The Economist magazine has had a "Slavery Problem" since 1843.
The Recalibration of Tribalism
Do White South Africans constitute a tribe and if so, are they guilty of tribalism?
A brief history of Nigeria’s Super Eagles
There are no records of when the first official football match was played in Nigeria, but it started in the 1920s.
History Class with Cheta: Who is Herbert Macaulay
Too many people have forgotten about the one Naira coin, and the chap on that coin.
Jihad in Nigeria
Long before Boko Haram, talk of holy war in what became Nigeria was everywhere.
Thinking About Genocide
An extract from Mahmood Mamdani's seminal study, 'When Victims Become Killers: Colonialism, Nativism, and the Genocide in Rwanda."
The balkanization of Nigeria?
For those who want Nigeria to balkanize, try being a small, ineffectual African country.
Who sold Nigeria to the British for £865k in 1899?
The Royal Niger Company and the founding of what became Nigeria.
A History of Nigeria’s Police Service
Asides from a few isolated cases, Nigeria's police force was never really an investigating force.