Events:
The 6th Annual International Igbo Conference
Theme: Legacies of Biafra: Reflections on the Nigeria-Biafra war 50 years on
SOAS, University of London, April 21-22, 2017
Albert Luthuli, Nelson Mandela and South Africa’s Turn to Armed Struggle
Nov 16, 2016: Duke University, Friedl 225
Albert Luthuli, the president of the African National Congress (ANC) and
Africa’s first Nobel Peace Prize winner, was Nelson Mandela before Nelson
Mandela. On December 16, 1961, as Luthuli returned to South Africa from
accepting his Nobel Peace Prize, the ANC’s new armed wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe
(MK) initiated sabotage attacks in several South African cities. The ANC’s
turn to armed struggle raised questions including: Did Luthuli, who had so
eloquently defended Ghandian non-violent principles in Oslo, now advocate
violence, support MK and the turn to armed struggle? Or did younger, more
militant ANC members like Mandela override Luthuli’s objections to initiate a
thirty year period of armed struggle ? Based on a forthcoming biography of
Luthuli and a forthcoming co-authored article with Benedict Carton of George
Mason University, this paper uses new archival sources to answer these
questions and advance the historiography in this contentious, controversial
area of South African liberationist history.
Author: Robert Trent Vinson
Light lunch served— please RSVP to amanda.frederick@duke.edu by November 9,
2016.
https://igs.duke.edu/events/albert-luthuli-nelson-mandela-and-south-africas-turn-armed-struggle
The Evolution of the African Drum in America
November 7-10, 2016, Duke UniversityBiddle Music Building, Room 086,
Event led by Jalal Sherriff and professor Bradley Simmons
Djembe master Jalal Sherriff has studies and perfumed with Ldji Camara,
Famadou Konate, Abdou Kounta, Ibrahim Camara, and Souleyman Diop. He also
toured and recorded with renowned bassists Ahmad Abdul Malik, Steve Coleman
and Jean-Paul Bourelly, to name a few.
Professor Simmons began playing Afro-Cuban & African percussion when he was
nine years old. He has taught at Berkeley School of Music, Texas Southern
University, Wichita State University and North Carolina State University. He
is currently the director of the Djembe and Afro-Cuban Ensembles at Duke
University.
New Books:
International Migrants in Johannesburg’s Informal Economy
Sally Peberdy
This report provides a rich view of the activities of migrant entrepreneurs in
the informal economy of Johannesburg. It is hoped that the information will
facilitate understanding of the informal sector and its potential, and not
just in the context of migrant entrepreneurs. The informal economy plays a
significant role in the entrepreneurial landscape of the City of Johannesburg
and is patronized by most of the city’s residents. The research presented here
challenges commonly held opinions about migrant entrepreneurs in the City of
Johannesburg and shows that they do not dominate the informal economy, which
remains largely in the hands of South Africans.
Publisher: Southern African Migration Programme, South Africa, 2016
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.queensu.ca_samp_&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=PSpMkKl09xjg7NTt8esXYleCWdiJzAsEbie6EpE0KkU&e=
Obama-Mentum. An Anthology of Transformational Poetry
Edited by Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah
Obama-Mentum is a collection of poems that respond to the emergence in 2008 of
Barak Hussein Obama as President of the United States. From Obama’s
declaration at the Old Capitol in Springfield to contest, to his historic
inauguration as President, this anthology captures people’s experiences and
emotions in words, rhythm and performance. Poets from around the world and a
some debut poets express their aspirations and expectations in a
transformational presidency. 63 poems are included.
Publisher: Kraft Books, Nigeria, 2016
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.kraftbookslimited.com_about-2Dus.php&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=BKFMNquHMuI15ZrU6ktDtn3worJT5D6GS96M-sDVEGo&e=
Water We Use at my Home
Faith Tamayenda
The story Water We Use at My Home encourages children in Malawi to have safe
water for drinking at home everyday. The story is a joint collaboration
between the Mzuzu University Children’s Library and the Centre of Excellence
in Water and Sanitation. Publisher: Mzuni Press, Malawi, 2016
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__mzunipress.luviri.net_links.html&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=0zc_hh9DbQCXtbrRtd8qOvUyTanDjhsFflvzjb4PgnA&e=
Moroccan-born Leila Slimani won France’s top literary prize, the Goncourt, on
Thursday with a novel guaranteed to “scare the wits out of parents.”
The chilling tale of a “perfect” nanny who murders the two children she is
looking after, “Chanson douce” (roughly translated as “Sweet Song”) is based
on the real-life story of a Dominican child-minder shortly to stand trial for
the double murder of her charges in New York in 2012.
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.france24.com_en_20161103-2Dfrance-2Dgoncourt-2Dliterary-2Dprize-2Dfrench-2Dmoroccan-2Dauthor-2Dleila-2Dslimani&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=q1UxcxFIEES16rnPguZ-nSssIvHfRYfm3lrc6DkpL2E&e=
Book Review:
Is Senegal still the African exception? Sufism and democracy revisited
Mara A. Leichtman
This is a critical book review of Tolerance, Democracy and Sufis in Senegal,
edited Mamadou Diouf (Columbia University Press, 2015). The chapters of the
book attempt to reinterpret Senegal’s peaceful democratic experience since its
independence in 1960. Many chapters in the book frame this experience within
the rise of the Islamo-Sufi model that simultaneously challenges as well as
enriches this experience.
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.tandfonline.com_doi_full_10.1080_20566093.2016.1222731&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=VKoiPXQ-u3bVXfrStg0MICs5SNdDwQeLV115cgG-oqU&e=
Call for Papers:
The Annual Igbo Conference has carved out a unique space, serving as a bridge
between the community and academia. It is held at SOAS, University of London
in association with the Centre of African Studies.
Organiser: Igbo Conference in association with Centre of African Studies,
SOAS, University of London
https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.igboconference.com_biafra-2Dconference_&d=CwIFaQ&c=imBPVzF25OnBgGmVOlcsiEgHoG1i6YHLR0Sj_gZ4adc&r=XfmopQnygsAylZEbrBPfLWx7QWnTXZwTE-xHWohp-Is&m=FbqoriC-G0bGfpfUqNcoo7CRIldnzKstK9qCGfmBlg4&s=IAY1fVu0ZkZ_dgZpGDbApigfGNvuF-Te34jer46sDlI&e=
To submit information or papers, books and academic events to be shared in
next week’s email, please send requests to leah.rothfeld@duke.edu. Research
Africa also accepts book reviews, to be included in upcoming book review
editions.
Leah Rothfeld, Duke University, Research Africa Editor
Nathaniel Berndt, Duke University, Associate Editor
