Africa's Left: An Undying Intellectual, Activist + Contemporary Liberatory Consciousness

By Takura Zhangazha*

The editorial team of a legendary academic/activist journal the Review of African Political Economy (Roape) recently organized a workshop in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.  Themed 'Imperialism in Africa Today: The Place of Class Struggles and Progressive Politics'  it was a  workshop that was always going to definitively capture the attention of many a Pan African and Africa based socialist. 

It was a workshop that had as its primary intention an historical assessment of the state of Africa's liberation and ideological liberatory left and its placement in contemporary anti  global neoliberal/imperialist politics.   With a purposive intention of discussing the future of Pan-Africanism, socialism and how to counter contemporary imperialism. 

I agreed to attend the workshop largely because of my own leftist political persuasions but also because of the evident need to revive Pan-Africanist and socialist alternatives to the current regrettable dominance of contemporary African political and economic discourse by neo-liberalism. And also because in the words of Professor Shivji,  Roape was never meant to be entirely academic but activist in intent and result.  It helped inform not only socialist strategy during liberation struggles but has held its head high in countering contemporary neoliberal political and economic narratives.  

And also because of the importance of linking the past with the present, which Roape still helps us to do.  That is, a left leaning academic perspective on the political economy of the continent that spanned the liberation struggle decades and a post independence optimism that remained, even in academic practice (within the journal at least) a people centered and socialist optimism of a better life for all on the continent and in the world.  

Roape therefore has come to represent the link between the organic intellectual and the organic activist, either of whom could be found in one person.  Hence most liberation struggle icons would find their way into the journal at the height of the struggle or in explaining their post –independence projects.  

This is why there are so many of our struggle luminaries (Nyerere, Cabral, Nkomo, Machingura, Saul among others) that would feature either by way of their own writing or analysis of the same who came to feature in its historical pages. 

But more significantly is the fact that Roape has spanned so many decades of analyzing Africa from a socialist perspective and in respect to how socialism was/is the founding ideology of African liberation.  As informed by the October 1917 Russian revolution as well as the Arusha Declaration of 1967 as authored by Julius Nyerere of Tanzania.  These two global historical departure points (Russia 1917 and Africa 1967) are indelible in the history of Africa’s struggles against imperialism both in its past and contemporary forms. One representing genesis and the other contextual idealism for a better future for all, respectively. 

It is the African contextual idealisation of struggle and revolution that was therefore an important and salient reminder of the noble history of the struggles of the African people (locally and in the Diaspora) against imperialism and unrepentant global capital. And this is what remains most important for this write up but also an organic and historical understanding of the improtance of Africa's left.  

Even though I had not until the Dar es Salaam workshop been involved in Roape activities, I understood full well the urgency and importance of keeping the pan Africanist and socialist counter narrative in academic terms and counter hegemonic alternative in activist terms, alive. 

It therefore emerged that  from the three day meet up with new perspectives on the state of Africa’s left, I was nudged into remembering how we, as Africans and people with an evident sympathy toward the global left, are quick to forget our past in favour of a catastrophic neoliberal perspective to the lives of those people we should be proffering progressive alternatives to.     Both from an academic perspective as well as that of a leftist/socialist activism. 

From an academic perspective and as informed by the values of the Roape journal I have come to a firm appreciation that Africa’s socialists must never abandon the pursuit of academic knowledge as it relates to socialism and  people centered democratic solutions.  And that this always requires linking up with colleagues and cdes in the global north who also require acts of academic solidarity from those of us in the global south. 

But even beyond this solidarity, I also realized that context always matters and that while socialism is still a credible global alternative it is not dogma or borderline religion.  It must always be contextualized and utilised to enhance a national/continental historically grounded and progressive leftist consciousness.  

I also realised that in discussing activism of the left, there is always need to organically link older generations of activists with younger ones.  That is, to ensure that knowledge is passed on between more experienced activists and younger but more enthusiastic ones  And that this knowledge is not just in the form of what texts to use but what strategies and tactics need to be applied in contemporary times to keep the original vision of African liberation alive within younger Africans.  There is therefore need for greater inclusive conversations between younger and older socialists on what would be a contemporary  way forward. As informed by the past, contemporary reality and the persuasive dictum, ‘another world is possible’. 

I also came to terms with one of the most difficult elements of Africa’s contemporary struggle against neo-liberalism.  Especially if one is an activist.  This being that of survival.  Whereas in the struggles against direct colonialism there was an element of self sacrifice, in contemporary times it has become more difficult to pursue.  The rampant consumerism African societies face and the neoliberal hegemonic onslaught that makes a greater majority of our people appear hopeless makes for pessimistic reading and analysis in some elite circles.  The intellectual reality of the matter is that we have not thought hard enough about the means and methods to counter these seemingly dominant narratives.  

And this is the purpose of Roape. To keep the socialist/leftist intellectual and activist fire burning beyond the crass neoliberal materialism that is creeping into African and global consciousness. Almost as though we have forgotten the historical departure points that were the 1917 Russian revolution against global capitalism and the contextually revolutionary Arusha Declaration in early 1967.

Drawing form the intellectualism and organic activism of the past, fusing it with the energy/impatience of the more youthful present we can work out newer approaches that exploit the self destructive contradictions of neoliberalism.  for the betterment of our people.  In Africa and in the world.

This is why continual questioning as to the reality of imperialism remains important.  Not only because of the energetic lecture by Trevor Ngwane of South Africa who recalled the 'Spirit of Marikana' as linked to Ujamaa.  But more significantly because with greater concerted socialist intellectual and activist effort we can indeed raise our minds and fists high to claim as in the past that 'another socialist world is possible'.

Thank you Dar es Salaam. Asante Sana.

*Takura Zhangazha writes here in his personal capacity (takura-zhangazha.blogspot.com)