The following are short descriptions of individuals, places and events which have contributed to the shaping of African American history. These encyclopedia entries serve as a starting point for much more inclusive descriptions and discussions that appear in other sources. For additional information please consult the print or website sources cited in the entry.
Black Ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church: Statement on Apartheid Statement by Black Ministers of the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk in Afrika (Dutch Reformed Church in Africa) Johannesburg November 16, 1973 The ministers fraternal of the Dutch Reformed Church in Africa met to discuss newspaper reports … Read More(1973) Black Ministers of the Dutch Reformed Church: Statement on Apartheid
SASO The University—What Does it Mean to You? From a pamphlet of SASO, the South African Students’ Organization 1972 Not many of us are thinking seriously about a university among our people except to suggest a craving for higher education. To many of us this … Read More(1972) SASO: Black Students and the University
South African Students Organization (SASO) “Resolution on Black Theology” Resolution No. 57 taken at General Students’ Council 1971 This G.S.C. believes that: (1) Black theology is not a theology of absolutes, but grapples with existential situations. Black theology is not a theology of theory but … Read More(1971) SASO Resolution on Black Theology
The Uganda Agreement of 1900 We, the undersigned, to wit, Sir Henry Hamilton Johnston, K.C.B., Her Majesty’s Special Commissioner, Commander-in-Chief and Consul-General for the Uganda Protectorate and the adjoining Territories, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India, … Read More(1900) The Uganda Agreement
Soweto, an acronym for “South Western Townships,” is a grouping of townships scattered across twenty kilometers southwest of Johannesburg, South Africa. A quintessential example of segregationist planning, Soweto initially was the result of mass evictions and evacuations of black residents of the city of Brickfields … Read MoreSoweto, South Africa (1904- )
The Congo Civil War, or Congo Crisis, was a complex political tumult that began just days following Belgium’s granting of Congolese independence in 1960. Lasting four years, the associated violence claimed an estimated 100,000 lives including the nation’s first Prime Minister, Patrice Lumumba, and UN … Read MoreCongo Civil War (1960-1964)
The Angolan Civil War, beginning at the time of the country’s independence from Portugal in 1975, was a 27-year struggle involving the deaths of over 500,000 soldiers and civilians. Initiated at the height of the Cold War, pro- and anti-communist forces in Angola set the … Read MoreAngolan Civil War (1975-2002)
The Mahdist Revolution was an Islamic revolt against the Egyptian government in the Sudan. An apocalyptic branch of Islam, Mahdism incorporated the idea of a golden age in which the Mahdi, translated as “the guided one,” would restore the glory of Islam to the earth. … Read MoreMahdist Revolution (1881-1898)
Samuel Kanyon Doe, army officer and Master Sergeant, was the unelected President of Liberia from 1980 to 1990. Notorious for his human rights violations, Doe seized control of Liberia in April of 1980 through a bloody coup. A polarizing figure throughout his tenure, Doe was … Read MoreSamuel Kanyon Doe (1951-1990)
Omar Bongo was President of Gabon from 1967 until his death in 2009, over 42 years, and thus ruled longer than any other African leader. Bongo was born in the Beteke region of Gabon on December 10, 1935. He was the youngest of twelve children … Read MoreOmar/Albert-Bernard Bongo (1935-2009)
