African History Commons^™

Café Con Mucha Leche: The Pasts, Presents, And Futures Of Puertoricanness And Puerto Ricanhood, Anthony Rosado

Masters Theses

The central theme of this text is self-governed naming. I am implementing Black feminist storytelling procedures to write and paint without the “white,” the “male” or the “elitist gaze.” I’m writing an anti-colonial historical narrative about the making of the Puerto Rican people. I am providing to the field of American Studies an Afrocentric narrative–and series of paintings–through an interdisciplinary study of the presence of the African in the Americas. Although many colonial narratives center Spain in histories of Puerto Rico and of Puerto Ricans. I’m rewriting my Afro Puertorriqueño ancestors’ abolition story and collecting my family’s oral histories. I …

Kofifi/Covfefe: How The Costumes Of "Sophiatown" Bring 1950s South Africa To Western Massachusetts In 2020, Emma Hollows

Masters Theses

This thesis paper reflects upon the costume design process taken by Emma Hollows to produce a realist production of the Junction Avenue Theatre Company’s musical Sophiatown at the Augusta Savage Gallery at the University of Massachusetts in May 2020. Sophiatown follows a household forcibly removed from their homes by the Native Resettlement Act of 1954 amid apartheid in South Africa. The paper discusses her attempts as a costume designer to strike a balance between replicating history and making artistic changes for theatre, while always striving to create believable characters.

“That New Africa Is Ready To Fight Its Own Battles": Kwame Nkrumah, The United States, And The Quest For A Modern Ghana, 1957-1966, Godwin Gyimah

Masters Theses

This project examines the United States-Ghana relationship and how the relationship transformed Ghana, 1957-1966. African leaders such as Dr. Kwame Nkrumah had declared: "That new Africa is ready to fight its own battles and show that after all, the black man is capable of managing his affairs." Despite the non-alignment philosophy, Ghana was not neutral regarding the West and East blocs rivalry. The thesis argues that it was through the United States' government and private firms' contributions that Ghana was able to achieve the mark of a modern nation through industrialization, universal education, and the expansion of international trade economy. …

The Power Of The Periphery: Aid, Mutuality And Cold War U.S-Ghana Relations, 1957-1966, Moses Allor Awinsong

Masters Theses

This project interrogates how economic self interest motivated periphery states such as Ghana to use foreign policy as a vehicle to attract improved development assistance from superpowers, in this case the United States. While the United States viewed its aid program in Ghana in stringently Cold War terms, Kwame Nkrumah and his advisors were less inclined to get deeply concerned about Cold War ideology. This project shows that Ghanaian agency was manifested in the Cold War through the new state's construction of a foreign policy image that made it a prominent African voice globally. It then examines how that image …

An Omen Of Things To Come: Translated From The Original Text "L'Ombre Des Choses À Venir" By Kossi Efoui, Amber Vandivort

Masters Theses

An Omen of Things to Come follows the story of a young man, recently entered into adulthood while he recounts the horrible histories, his own and those of his comrades and acquaintances, that have followed him through childhood, war, and the rediscovery of his father. He draws you into the story through first person narrative and allows you to walk alongside him and relive his past. His personal experiences open the readers eyes to the violence, disappearances and uncertainty that surround people in a time of war: in particular how these atrocities affect the lives of abandoned children and those …

Conflict Resolution In Africa: A Comparative Analysis Of The Demilitarization Process In Burundi And Rwanda (1993-2003), Victoria Chipoka

Masters Theses

The civil wars that have occurred in Africa have had destabilizing effects on the political and social structure of African countries. The massacres and genocide of 1993 and 1994 in Rwanda and Burundi shocked the whole world into experiencing the horror of the news that more than one million people had been slaughtered in cold blood. The causes of the conflict in Rwanda and Burundi are many and complex. In this paper, my major focus will be on the role the armed forces have played in the conflict and how demilitarization should be the alternative solution in bringing permanent peace …

Ethical Implications Of Politics In English Speaking West African Countries: The Need For A Greater Ethical Concern, Adeyinka Christopher Thompson

Masters Theses

This thesis evaluates the ethical implications of policies adopted by politicians in three West African countries: Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. The evaluation focuses on the policies African politicians adopt in their bid to solve two problems facing Africa: corruption, and achieving a democracy.

The evaluation relates selected policies of some African politicians to certain ethical theories propounded by various philosophers. Such questions as the respect politicians show for human life or dignity; the way they manipulate people, using them solely as a means to an end; secrecy in government; and whether their policies are meant for the general good …

The Military In Political Leadership In Ghana, Kenneth Koroma

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

The Agrarian Revolution In Kenya, Margie Senkowski

Masters Theses

Introduction

The objective of this research has been to present a picture of the revolutionary agricultural changes that have been taking place for the last few years in the East African country of Kenya. Kenya is an agricultural country; its economy is dependent almost entirely on agricultural production. In the words of Jomo Kenyatta, Prime Minister of Kenya, "To achieve the growth essential for increased welfare, the country will continue to rely on agriculture, which employs most of our people and provides almost all of our exports."

The progress is agriculture is helping to transform Kenya from a primitive tribal …