Monday, May 4, 2009

African Independence


African Independence was a period when African colonies gained there independence from the European countries. There were many changes in Africa from 1955- 1975. During the mid 1950's the continent of Africa was being ruled by European countries. The Europeans wanted there natural resources that were stored in Africa. After 20 years Africa was a whole different continent. The Africans began to study and become more educated. Many young men were enrolling in collage and a steady middle class began to emerge. They made the negritude movement, celebrating all Africans. It was a movement to celebrate there culture, heritage, and values. This movement viewed the black experience as unique. People were sparked by outsiders to make sure Europeans were wiped out of Africa.


One African leader who really made a difference was Kwame Nkrumah. He was the leader of their largely nonviolent protests. He studied in the United States and went to the University of Pennsylvania. He often held boycotts, strikes and the Gold Coast took the name of Ghana. The Gold Coast allowed more Africans to be nominated to the Legislative Council. Nkrumah also began to develop economic projects to help make Africa more advanced. It was the first nation to be governed by Africans. His hard word and effort was very successful. Other leaders included Leopold Senghor, he was a poet and a politician. Through his poetry he was able to support African traditions and emphasized the need for Africa to separate from Europe. He later on became president of Africa. The Africans were regaining power of Africa. Other African leaders included, Marcus Garvey, who being Jamaican focused on having Africans rise to full power of Africa. Jomo Kenyatta was another African leader, who studied and educated himself in London. He worked hard to unite the various ethnic and language groups in the country. He was a nationalist who led the African people toward independence. Then came the rise of the Mau Mau This was a secret society made up of Kikuyu farmers .The Mau Mau’s aim was to frighten the white farmers into leaving there territory. These important leaders made Africa what it is today.

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