12 Articles by: Sean Jacobs
Sean Jacobs is associate professor of international affairs at the New School and founder-editor of Africa is a Country.
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How Israel Uses Africa to Try to Whitewash Apartheid
In the years after its violent formation, Israel tried to position itself as a member of the rising anti-colonial world. And today, despite its obvious role as an occupier, Israel is trying the same thing: establishing ties to African countries to shield Israel from criticisms that it’s an apartheid state.
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Nigeria’s #EndSARS Protests Aren’t Just Opposing Police Brutality — They’re Opposing Neoliberalism
The #EndSARS movement has convulsed Nigeria for weeks, demanding an end to police brutality. But the protesters have something else in their crosshairs: the unequal, austerity-ridden status quo and the political class that defends it.
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Why Kwame Nkrumah’s Socialist, Pan-African Vision Continues to Inspire Radicals Today
Ghana’s Kwame Nkrumah was a postcolonial icon who tried to fight the forces of imperialism and capitalism to build a nation, continent, and world based on equality and self-government. That’s why, despite his faults, young people in Ghana today are resurrecting Nkrumah’s vision as a radical alternative to neoliberalism.
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How We Remember Steve Biko
South Africa’s apartheid government murdered Steve Biko 43 years ago this month. But they couldn’t snuff out his political influence — the Black Consciousness leader remains a symbol of defiance against injustice and racial oppression.
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Why South Africa Needs a Democratic Socialism
South African politics urgently needs an injection of electoral energy from the Left, that speaks in a language that resonates with voters, rejects chauvinism, and embraces democracy.
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A Human, Not a Myth
We should resist constructing self-serving myths about political figures — even someone as heroic as Winnie Mandela.
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From Zuma to Ramaphosa
Jacob Zuma won’t be remembered as a liberation hero, but as a corrupt leader who broke the South African left.
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Zuma Is Not the Only Problem
From Donald Trump to Jacob Zuma, we can’t reduce politics to “getting rid of the bad guys” and expect to win.
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Patrice Lumumba (1925–1961)
58 years ago today, Congolese prime minister and anticolonial leader Patrice Lumumba was assassinated.
South Africa’s Coming Two-Party System
Recent local elections show the bleak future of South African politics: two centrist parties and no left alternative.
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What Muhammad Ali Believed
Muhammad Ali’s political life was as frustrating and contradictory as it was principled and selfless.