The African Diaspora: Slavery, Modernity, and Globalization (Rochester Studies in African History and the Diaspora)

The African diaspora is arguably the most important event in modern African history. From the fifteenth century to the present, millions of Africans have been dispersed -- many of them forcibly, others driven by economic need or political persecution--to other continents, creating large communities with African origins living outside their native lands. The majority of these communities are in North America. This historic displacement has meant that Africans are irrevocably connected to economic and political developments in the West and globally. Among the known legacies of the diaspora are slavery, colonialism, racism, poverty, and underdevelopment, yet the ways in which these same factors worked to spur the scattering of Africans are not fully understood -- by those who were part of this migration or by scholars, historians, and policymakers. In this definitive study of the diaspora in North America, Toyin Falola offers a causal history of the western dispersion of Africans and its effects on the modern world. Reengaging old and familiar debates and framing new ones that enrich the discourse surrounding Africa, Falola isolates the thread, running nearly six centuries, that connects the history of slavery, the transatlantic slave trade, and current migrations. A boon to scholars and policymakers and accessible to the general reader, the book explores diverse narratives of migration and shows that the cultures that migrated from Africa to the Americas have the capacity to unite and create a new pan-Africanist movement within the globalized world. Toyin Falola is the Jacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the 2011 recipient of the Distinguished Africanist Award from the African Studies Association and serves as the vice president of the International Scientific Committee of the UNESCO Slave Route Project. His previous books published by the University of Rochester Press include The Power of African Cultures and Nationalism and African Intellectuals. In this definitive study of the African diaspora in North America, Toyin Falola offers a causal history of the western dispersion of Africans and its effects on the modern world.The African diaspora is arguably the most important event in modern African history. From the fifteenth century to the present, millions of Africans have been dispersed -- many of them forcibly, others driven by economic need or political persecution--to other continents, creating large communities with African origins living outside their native lands. The majority of these communities are in North America. This historic displacement has meant that Africans are irrevocably connected to economic and political developments in the West and globally. Among the known legacies of the diaspora are slavery, colonialism, racism, poverty, and underdevelopment, yet the ways in which these same factors worked to spur the scattering of Africans are not fully understood -- by those who were part of this migration or by scholars, historians, and policymakers. In this definitive study of the diaspora in North America, Toyin Falola offers a causal history of the western dispersion of Africans and its effects on the modern world. Reengaging old and familiar debates and framing new ones that enrich the discourse surrounding Africa, Falola isolates the thread, running nearly six centuries, that connects the history of slavery, the transatlantic slave trade, and current migrations. A boon to scholars and policymakers and accessible to the general reader, the book exploresdiverse narratives of migration and shows that the cultures that migrated from Africa to the Americas have the capacity to unite and create a new pan-Africanist movement within the globalized world. Toyin Falola is theJacob and Frances Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities and University Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the 2011 recipient of the Distinguished Africanist Award from the African Studies Association and serves as the vice president of the International Scientific Committee of the UNESCO Slave Route Project. His previous books published by the University of Rochester Press include The Power of African Cultures and Nationalism and African Intellectuals. Dedication Contents Preface and Acknowledgments Introduction: The Old and New African Diaspora Part 1: The Old Diaspora: Slavery and Identity Politics 1 Africa and Slavery in a Transnational Context 2 The Slave Mutiny of 1839: The Colonization of Memory and Spaces 3 The Centralization of Africa and the Intellectualization of Blackness 4 Communalism, Africanism, and Pan-Africanism Part 2: An African Case Study: Yoruba Ethnicity in the Diaspora 5 Atlantic Yoruba and the Expanding Frontiers of Yoruba Culture and Politics 6 Politics, Slavery, Servitude, and the Construction of Yoruba Identity 7 Orisa Music, Dance, and Modernity Part 3: The New Diaspora: Transnationalism and Globalization 8 Western Education and Transatlantic Connections 9 Africa in the Diaspora and the Diaspora in Africa: Toward an Integrated Body of Knowledge 10 Tanure Ojaide and Akin Ogundiran: Knowledge Circulation and the Diasporic Interface 11 Nollywood and the Creative World of Aderonke Adesola Adesanya: The African Impact on Global Cultures 12 Globalization and Contemporary Cultures Postscript: United States Foreign Policy on Africa in the Twenty-First Century Notes Bibliography Index Introduction : The Old And The New African Diaspora -- Africa And Slavery In A Transnational Context -- The Slave Mutiny Of 1839 : The Colonization Of Memory And Spaces -- The Centralization Of Africa And The Intellectualization Of Blackness -- Communalism, Africanism, And Pan-africanism -- Atlantic Yoruba And The Expanding Frontiers Of Yoruba Culture And Politics -- Politics, Slavery, Servitude, And The Construction Of Yoruba Identity -- Orisa Music, Dance, And Modernity -- Western Education And Transatlantic Connections -- Africa In The Diaspora And The Diaspora In Africa : Toward An Integrated Body Of Knowledge -- Tanure Ojaide And Akin Ogundiran : Knowledge Circulation And The Diasporic Interface -- Nollywood And The Creative World Of Aderonke Adesola Adesanya : The African Impact On Global Cultures -- Globalization And Contemporary Cultures -- Postscript: United States Foreign Policy On Africa In The Twenty-first Century. Toyin Falola. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.