Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Table of Contents -- List of tables -- Notes on contributors -- 1 Introduction: dissent, protest and dispute Africa -- Part I Protest and dissent in Africa -- 2 The music of heaven, the music of earth, and the music of brats: Tuareg Islam, the devil, and musical performance -- 3 Finding social change backstage and behind the scenes in South African theatre -- 4 Soccer and political (ex)pression in Africa: the case of Cameroon -- 5 Child labor resistance in southern Nigeria, 1916-38 -- 6 M'Fam goes home: African soldiers in the Gabon Campaign of 1940 -- 7 "Disgraceful disturbances": TANU, the Tanganyikan Rifles, and the 1964 Mutiny -- Part II Ethnic/land and other disputes in Africa -- 8 The role of ethnicity in political formation in Kenya: 1963-2007 -- 9 Land, boundaries, chiefs and wars in Nigeria -- 10 Borders and boundaries within Ethiopia: dilemmas of group identity, representation and agency -- 11 Rural agrarian land conflicts in postcolonial Nigeria's central region -- 12 The evolution of the Mungiki militia in Kenya, 1990 to 2010 -- 13 Refugee-warriors and other people's wars in post-colonial Africa: the experience of Rwandese and South African military exiles (1960-94) -- 14 Oiling the guns and gunning for oil: the youth and Niger Delta oil conflicts in Nigeria -- Index

This book provides unique and detailed perspectives on different aspects of dissent, protest and disputes and how these have, in turn, continued to pose challenges in Africa. The contributors argue that, dissent, protest and most forms of disputes in Africa are the result of daily challenges that its people have faced and continue to encounter to this day. These challenges include, amongst others, demands for transparency, good governance and accountability; waves of instability that have created insecurity in most parts of the continent, an unsustainable level of youth unemployment, rapid population growth, a continent-wide healthcare and poverty crises and numerous environmental challenges. The chapters elevate the debates on dissent, protest and disputes/conflict in Africa by adding new ideas and introducing new and useful interpretations. The book’s strength lies in the contributors’ ability to conflate colonial and postcolonial tendencies to show how challenges of the past are not so different from those of today, while also presenting important historical issues from various scholarly perspectives. Dissent, Protest and Dispute in Africa will be of interest for students and scholars of African history, politics, and culture as well as those interested in social movements and civil society.

From Egypt to South Africa, Nigeria to Ethiopia, a new force for political change is emerging across Africa: popular protest. Widespread urban uprisings by youth, the unemployed, trade unions, activists, writers, artists, and religious groups are challenging injustice and inequality. What is driving this new wave of protest? Is it the key to substantive political change? Drawing on interviews and in-depth analysis, Adam Branch and Zachariah Mampilly offer a penetrating assessment of contemporary African protests, situating the current popular activism within its historical and regional contexts.

Fully updated compendium of revolt and resistance Throughout the ages and across every continent, people have struggled against those in power and raised their voices in protest-rallying others around them or, sometimes, inspiring uprisings many years later. Their echoes reverberate from Ancient Greece, China and Egypt, via the dissident poets and philosophers of Islam and Judaism, through to the Arab slave revolts and anti-Ottoman rebellions of the Middle Ages. These sources were tapped during the Dutch and English revolutions at the outset of the Modern world, and in turn flowed into the French, Haitian, American, Russian and Chinese revolutions. More recently, resistance to war and economic oppression has flared up on battlefields and in public spaces from Beijing and Cairo to Moscow and New York City. This anthology, global in scope, presents voices of dissent from every era of human history: speeches and pamphlets, poems and songs, plays and manifestos. Every age has its iconoclasts, and yet the greatest among them build on the words and actions of their forerunners. The Verso Book of Dissent should be in the arsenal of every rebel who understands that words and ideas are the ultimate weapons.

This book brings together conceptual debates on the impact of youth-hood and gender on state building in Africa. It offers contemporary and interdisciplinary analyses on the role of protests as an alternative route for citizens to challenge the ballot box as the only legitimate means of ensuring freedom. Drawing on case studies from seven African countries, the contributors focus on specific political moments in their respective countries to offer insights into how the state/society social contract is contested through informal channels, and how political power functions to counteract citizen’s voices. These contributions offer a different way of thinking about state-building and structural change that goes beyond the system-based approaches that dominate scholarship on democratization and political structures. In effect, it provides a basis for organizers and social movements to consider how to build solidarity beyond influencing government institutions. Chapters 3, 5, and 6 are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

The Complex Interplay between Power, Politics, and African Agency: The Philosophy of Toyin Falola by Serges Djoyou Kamga examines the impact of colonialism by using Toyin Falola’s philosophy as a framework. It delves into the evolution of African political culture under colonial rule. This book offers a unique perspective on the intricate dynamics of African society, providing a deeper understanding of how power and politics have shaped African culture. Kamga emphasizes the complex interplay between these elements and highlights the significance of African voices in determining their own destiny. Using Falola’s works, this book analyzes and critiques the influence of Europe and establishes the ongoing unequal relationship between ex-colonized African countries and their imperialist colonizers. This book is highly recommended for scholars of African studies, political science, and anyone interested in African history and culture.