The Decade of Film
I participated in Sight & Sound's once-a-decade poll of the greatest films of all time. I included at least two African films: "Borom Sarrett" and "Mapantsula." Hopefully, they make the cut.
Media
More than one specter haunts South Africa
This week, the World Bank issued a report, South Africa Economic Update: Inequality of Opportunity. The
Africa Tumblrs: microblogs for lazy readers
Top photo tumblrs, not in any particular order, that Kola thinks you should be following if you have any interest in Africa.
Silent Elections
http://vimeo.com/26876381 This is a bit older, but still worth watching. Above is a short clip from
The abundance of black fashion
Senegalese designer, Adama Paris, organizer of Dakar Fashion Week, gives her opinion on the representation of African designs and designers in the fashion industry.
There Are Women in Botswana
It’s not even news that women and children leads AIDS activism in places like Botswana, except when it’s scanted. So, here’s a primer.
Independence Day Edition: What’s more ‘American’ than Chevron Corporation?
July 4. U.S. Day of Independence. What’s more ‘American’ than … Chevron Corporation? It’s pretty much
In Sudan, women set the spark
The women of Sudan have had enough. On the evening of June 16, 2012, women dormitory
On African Asylum Seekers in Israel
Media about African refugees and asylum seekers in Israel highlight their experiences and desires for rights, but erase their agency, portraying them solely as victims of violence and exploitation.
Her Zimbabwe
As the number of active female bloggers has increased, so too has the level of discourse around the dynamism and contradictions of life as a Zimbabwean woman.
The Very Best Politics
What's the story with The Very Best's video for the single "Kondaine," where they teamed up with an American NGO and shot it in very rural Kenya.
Africa is a Science Fiction Superpower
A film series in London explores what it would mean imbuing Africa with extra-terrestrial powers. We speak to the curators, Al Cameron and Nav Haq.
The United States of Africa
Yannick Létourneau talks about the genesis of his film about the Senegelese rapper, Awadi. Also, why so many political musicians come from West Africa.
Nando’s Grilled Chicken Politics
We asked the Africa Is a Country "office" to comment on Nando's new ad that is supposedly a comment on the widespread antiblack xenophobia in South Africa.
New Media and Activism in Africa
The limitations of working in the online space, given the small percentages of people with online access (despite the expansion of mobile technology).
Sodade
Meaning is elusive in Cape Verde, but it does result in an existential limbo conducive to creeping, fretful madness.
Pieter Hugo on ‘political correctness’
Pieter Hugo, the critically acclaimed South African photographer, has done an interview with Guernica (H/T Glenna Gordon) in which
The BET Awards do Africa
What are the cultural implications of the success of individual African artists in particularly U.S. mainstream media and award shows?
Suffering and Smiling
Mali’s rebel armies, their shifting alliances and their fans make for quite a spectacle.
The New Yorker on violence against lesbians in South Africa
How does an American publication write critically about a country without running the risk of reifying sexual and racial stereotypes?