Tweet By: Nadia Ahmadou* The state of the post-colony continues to be the subject of many debates in contemporary African politics and philosophy. We talk incessantly – almost in circles, really – about the negative impact of colonisation and about how the essence of all things African was shaken, interrupted, ruptured and often completely erased…
Tweet By: Nadia Ahmadou* Everyone who knows anything about political movements in Africa has, at some point or the other, come across this name: Dr. Mamphela Ramphele. She has been involved in South African politics from the early 1970s through the Black Consciousness Movement (BCM). Dr. Ramphele was part of an instrumental campaign by BCM that…
Tweet By Nadia Ahmadou* It’s hard to believe it’s been already a year since my last BLF reflection on the passion required to make it through the final stretch of an MA. The last year has gone by rather quickly, and I find myself transitioning once again. The difference this time, is that I’m transitioning…
Tweet Anyone not living under a rock must have come across news reports, articles and videos about the 14 minute trailer to the film: Innocence of Muslims[1]. News headlines and reports have not only covered the controversy around the film and its release, but have debated on the link between this movie and the spark…
Tweet Every year in any given bustling city on the African continent, a myriad people stand in endless queues in several ministries, city councils and other government offices to obtain driving licenses, permits of all sorts, certification of documents and so on and so forth. Should one be unable to adequately pass the required tests…
Tweet It’s interesting, this word ‘African’. The images and representations that pop up in one’s mind when one hears it. Reads it. Or thinks about it. I know what I think when I think about being African, but I’ve always wondered if others shared the same ideas. It’s funny, when you meet people in the…
Tweet Choosing to study further, at Masters level is rarely complicated at the beginning. While you’re busy with your coursework, presentations, and seminar papers, you tend to forget that at the end of it all, you have to submit something, on some topic or other that may or may not advance the cause of academia,…
Tweet I was once sitting in a lecture on Africa and the discussion, as it is often wont does during sessions/discussions on Africa turned to culture and the importance of its preservation and respect and so on and so forth. Different opinions were coming out across the room, and everyone seemed to think they were…
Tweet Not too long ago, I was involved in a heated debate with some friends and colleagues regarding Gender Equality. Rather shockingly, most of them, despite being well educated, cultured and well read, were convinced that what we ‘feminists’ were promoting was an ‘equality of the sexes’. This opinion was shared by both the men…
Tweet Theory is as complex a concept as reality itself. One often wonders at what point these two facets of life meet, or if ever at all they do. For most of us who have decided to undertake Post Graduate studies in the Social Sciences, this question becomes even more relevant as we pore through…
