Emancipating the “Kin beyond the Sea”: Reciprocity between Continental and Diasporic Africans’ Struggles for Freedom

Abstract

While the African Diaspora’s relentless commitment to the liberation of Africa from colonial bondage is well documented, the literature has, arguably, obscured the profound inspirations that Continental African people have had on Black Americans’ struggles against racism. Unfortunately, the downplaying of the pivotal role of the forces from Continental Africa divorces the understanding of the interconnectedness of transnational black consciousness. This paper contributes a greater balance to the understanding of black racial solidarity by discussing the formation and sustenance of the interrelationships between Continental African people and the African Diaspora, particularly in the United States, during the struggles of anti-colonialism in Africa and anti-racism in the United States, dating back to the turn of the 19th century. The paper conceptualizes the interconnectedness of the twin struggles from the Cross-national Diffusion theoretical framework. The theory offers appealing explanations and insights to the apparent mutuality regarding the formation, processes, outcomes, and consequences of the twin struggles. Galvanized by the common vision of emancipating the black race, the two movements were inspired by the exchange of ideological and organizational tactics, of which the exchange itself constituted another solid ideological tactic.