Pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism — current trends of the XXI century: the potential of symbiosis

Emelianenko Ekaterina Gar’evna ORCID: 0009-0006-0997-4938 Independent Researcher 199004, Russia, Saint Petersburg, line 3, 38, sq. 8 ekatem@mail.ru Other publications by this author

Introduction

The assessment of the place of African society and the role of Africa in world history and culture by Western philosophical thought of the XIX-XX centuries exposes the insurmountable gap that existed and still exists in the perception of European culture by African culture. As L.A. Hoskins explains: "Eurocentric history intentionally propagated the myth that Africa is a "Dark continent" inhabited by cannibals, savages and inferior, uncivilized, backward, primitive peoples, devoid of any knowledge and culture, lazy and evil in nature" ^{[1, p. 248]}. This perception was based on careful etymological developments, ontological and epistemological distinction, which represented an unbreakable basis in the East-West dichotomy ^{[2, p. 17]}. As a result, this led to the opposition of everything non—Western to the West and determined the right of European culture to rule other cultures - ontologically, ideologically, politically, sociologically, militarily and even imaginatively, starting from the Enlightenment period. The East-West dichotomy defined an Object-Subject pair, where everything that was subjected to conquest, management and study became an object, thereby losing its own roots, history, genetics, and culture. An alien system of values, codes and knowledge was implanted in the object, and a new epistemology imposed its assessment on events, phenomena and processes.

At present, when many African states are beginning to experience their economic recovery, "a common ideology is required, as a system of ideas, views, theories in which public interests, goals and objectives of social communities are realized and justified" ^{[3, p. 3]}. The new ideology should serve as a certain bond that would keep Africa in a new fairway so that it could follow its vector without fatal deviations.

The word "ideology" was introduced in the early 19th century by the economist and philosopher Antoine Destute de Tracy (1754-1836). The French researcher used the term to refer to the science of ideas, which can provide a solid intellectual foundation for politics, economics, ethics and other spheres of public life and the humanities. In his main work "Elements of Ideology", A.D. de Trassy raises the question of why some ideas have an impact on society, while others do not cause public resonance ^{[4, p. 315]}. Considering ideology as the "torch" of all other sciences, which act as its application to various objects" ^{[5, p. 42]}, de Tracy prepared a work for the reform of the French school education system. Therefore, this term could not be applied as a scientific phenomenon, "since at that time there was neither a social field nor carriers of ideas (people and institutions) capable of replacing traditional social and political institutions for the old culture in this regard" ^{[6, p. 170]}. As a result, the concept of "ideology" turned out to be extremely in demand in the vastness of political struggle, and not within the framework of armchair science. Marxist theory had a great influence on the interpretation of the concept of "ideology" and its integration into socio-political discourse. It was perceived by a wide range of the African public, which was experiencing, on the one hand, pride in its culture, and, on the other, anger and resentment for the oppression caused by the imperialists. Within the framework of Marxism, the concept of "ideology" was considered as a system of ideas and views: political, legal, philosophical, religious, aesthetic and moral, expressing the fundamental interests of social groups and classes. According to K. Marx, "ideology is a reflection of social existence in the minds of people and, in turn, actively influences the development of society, contributing to it ("progressive" ideology) or hindering its development ("reactionary" ideology)" ^{[6, p.171]}.

It was pan-Africanism that became the expression of social existence, which transformed society into a socio-political movement, an ideology that was able to unite the peoples of Africa in the first half of the last century in order to wage a national liberation struggle. In the 21st century, pan-Africanism is being reborn, and its goal is now the fight against neocolonialism.

On the other hand, at the end of the 20th century, the theory of afrocentrism appeared in the United States, which became the legislator of new trends in the study of Africa and the interpretation of certain socio-historical events. Initially existing exclusively within academic circles, the theory is spreading beyond North America, finding supporters in African countries. She proposed to rethink the historical experience of the continent from an African point of view. The revision of historical facts, cultural events, and achievements were aimed at restoring those pillars that were largely destroyed during the existence of the territories of Africa under the colonial rule of European states. Currently, the symbiosis of pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism can help African society rebuild its foundation and defend policies aimed at realizing the national interests and values of both individual States and the continent as a whole.

Pan-Africanism

Pan-Africanism was first announced at the first Pan-African Conference, which took place in 1900. At the same time, the origins of the formation of the movement can be traced back to the XVIII century. In 1787, key events took place in the triangle of the slave trade (later the triangle of pan-Africanism), which served as an impetus for the ideological formation of pan-Africanism. The abolitionist movement, organized by free African Americans, began in the United States of America, abolitionist agitation began in Britain, and a new state of Sierra Leone arose in West Africa.

The first ideas of pan—Africanism were born thanks to the efforts of young writers who were brought to England as slaves, educated there, and later freedom - Olaudah Equiano (or Gustav Vasso) and Ottoba Cougoano.

Since the middle of the 19th century, new followers, among whom the most prominent figures and subsequently the developers of the ideology of pan-Africanism have become: Martin Delaney (1812-1885), abolitionist and the first proponent of black nationalism, Frederick Douglass (1818-1895), educator and abolitionist, Alexander Crummell (1818-1898), developer of the concept of pan-Africanism, Edward Wilmot Blyden (1832-1912), politician, founder of the concept of "cultural nationalism", William E.B. Dubois (1868-1963), public figure, sociologist and historian, Marcus Garvey (1887-1940), founder of the World Association for the Advancement of Blacks (UNIA), George Padmore (1902-1959), politician and adviser to K. Nkrumah (1957-59), etc. Among the later followers of pan-Africanism were J. E. Casey Hayford (1866-1930) from the Gold Coast (modern Ghana), as well as African political leaders: Nnamdi Azikiwe - the first president of Nigeria (1904-1996), Kwame Nkrumah - the first president of Ghana (1909-1972), Leopold S. Senghor - the first president of Senegal (1906-2001)^{[7, p. 189]}, Ahmet Sekou Toure - the first president of Guinea (1922-1984).

Among the key figures of pan-Africanism, Marcus Garvey, a native of Jamaica, one of the leaders of the global black liberation movement, deserves special attention. M. Garvey is known for his widely distributed work "Philosophy and Opinions". It is about him that Kwame Nkrumah will say in his autobiography that this book "ignited enthusiasm" ^{[8, p. 30]}. M. Garvey gained other fame as an ideologist of the "Back to Africa" movement, where, as the main appeal to the descendants of African slaves, he put forward the idea of returning to the continent to reunite with the societies living there and create a new empire. M. Garvey called on African Americans to repatriate and argued that a black person could gain true freedom only on his native land. "The 'dispersed race' that is to be united into an empire will be able to compete in size and power with the great British Empire."^[9] It was this idea that became the basis of the ideological movement "Back to Africa".

In 1914, in Kingston, M. Garvey founded the organization "The Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League", UNIA. In 1918, M. Garvey moved to New York in the Harlem area, where the UNIA continued its activities.

The ideological component of the movement and the central narrative was the question of the importance of the black race relative to other races. Great efforts have been made to develop self-esteem among black men and women. His articles in the newspaper "The Negro World" ^[10], published in the period from 1923 to 1932, played a great role in spreading the ideas of M. Garvey. In them, he allowed himself to express the most daring ideas, for example, that Ancient Egypt gave the world civilization. Here, Garvey talked about the beauty and purity of black skin. He argued that blacks should not design their world through the prism of a white man. In particular, he defended his thesis that blacks should see God in their own image, that is, with black skin color, and not with white.

Edward Wilmot Blyden, a writer, journalist, diplomat and politician, played an important role in creating the ideological foundation for pan-Africanism. He was known for introducing such concepts as: "spiritual decolonization", "cultural nationalism", "African socialism", "African personality".

In 1887, a collection of sermons entitled "Christianity, Islam and the Negro Race" was published, which became a fundamental work for the formation of African thought. In 1890, in the sermon "Elements of Permanent Influence" ^[11], delivered by E. Blyden in Washington, he made an attempt to conceptually unite Africans not only in terms of their residence, but also in terms of their role in history. He analyzed the impact of the slave trade and the results of the implementation of European culture in African society. He noted that the most serious consequence of the slave trade was the introduction by Europeans of the statement about the "inferiority of Africans", their "non-historicity". Also, according to the African politician, it was the slave trade that had a catastrophic impact on the continent's progress. It has become an obstacle to the economic and social development of the peoples of Africa, as it has deprived the continent of a huge number of able-bodied people.

E. Blyden formulated a number of fundamental principles of African nationalism. The main one is the unity of the destinies of the peoples of the Negroid race and the "socialist" character of African society. The ideologist protested against the Eurocentric view of the "non-historicity of Africa" and called for the "Africanization" of the education system. Despite the fact that a Christian, in his opinion, was the highest type of European man, he considered the European version of Christianization not suitable for an African. The Pan-Africanist proposed to establish an independent African church, as he considered this option the most suitable for Africa ^{[12, p. 131]}. E. Blyden saw the main task for Africans as preserving the cultural identity of the continent and the spiritual wealth of the African people by any means.

In 1872, an African thinker began to talk about the need for "spiritual decolonization." He called on the peoples of Africa to free themselves from the spiritual enslavement to which their adherence to European traditions condemned them. Seeing the impact of an alien culture, E. Blyden warned Africans against turning into "black Europeans". He urged the public to protect their African nature, warned against assimilation with Europeans and loss of connection with African culture and spirituality.

Various ideological currents around the idea of the need for cultural and mental decolonization with the subsequent rehabilitation of African culture and identity began to develop later by African scientists and thinkers, as well as political figures. The scientific and public discourse included new concepts aimed at popularizing and updating the discourse on African identity and uniqueness of culture, on the assessment of its achievements and significance. The flagship concept was the Negro (L. Senghor, E. Sezer, L. Damas), followed by other collective concepts. A number of them were introduced by L. Senghor: "negrite", "Afrikanite", "negrism", "Arabite" ^{[13, p. 108]} and others. The formation of a new African identity was aimed at getting rid of slave psychology and at creating a certain foundation that could in the future ensure the emergence of a new type of society - creative, spiritual, independent and resistant to external challenges. The revival of the African personality was seen as an important condition for overcoming backwardness.

E. Blyden tried to outline the future of the African continent. He saw Africa as free from foreign influence, only united and "as one citizen of the world of nations" ^{[14, p. 1286]}. According to the thinker, the new African society must reinvent itself and achieve "self-respect, a correct assessment of its own strength and the strength of other people." But most importantly, Africans must do this on their own, abandoning European influence on the fate of the continent.

According to the thinker, in order to save African culture and preserve its spiritual principles, it is necessary to reject everything European and, above all, start with the education system. The latter should offer the study of African history based only on the creations of ancient civilizations in Africa.

Blyden convinced the African society that in order to choose and pave their own path, they could cope without the help of Europeans, which the latter always convinced of the need. In memory of this, he warned against the influence of Europeans on the formation of the political system, laws, rules, the social sphere, and interference in politics. He insisted on a more attentive attitude and "study " of his brethren from the interior of Africa, who know better the laws of race development" ^{[14, p. 1292]}.

Since 1872, in response to the actions of the colonial authorities on the African continent, the protests of Africans have been increasing, especially in the period from 1890 to 1914. The ideas of pan-Africanist Edward Blyden about identity and originality helped to revive Africans' self-confidence, contributed to the growth of anti-colonial sentiments and the necessary confidence to make changes. Since that time, instead of the old elite represented by traditional leaders, educated Africans and intellectuals began to lead the popular resistance in the fields of culture, economics and politics.

The writings and speeches of Edward W. Blyden form the basis of the pan-African ideology of the twentieth century. His work became a rich treasure trove of ideas, from where the future ideologists of African nationalism drew many provisions for their teachings. Blyden's ideas undoubtedly influenced future African political leaders: Marcus Garvey, Kwame Nkrumah, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sekou Toure, as well as an entire movement of historians and philosophers, including Cyril James, Sheikh Anta Diop, John Henrik Clark, Franz Fanon and Molefi Kete Asante. The latter became the creator of the theory of afrocentrism and one of the most influential African figures of the last quarter of the 20th century. 

Blyden managed to take on an intellectual challenge and develop an ideological base that helped Africans change their optics and see themselves as the subject of history. Those people for whom the only value and salvation at that time was the teaching of Christianity, were able to find a new support and see themselves as a descendant of the "creators of human civilization and guardians of spirituality for humanity — revolutionary and inspiring ^[15].

Today, pan-Africanism as a concept of a free Africa and an ideology continues to live on. Evidence of this is the emergence and work of numerous continental organizations of various types, including economic, humanitarian, and political ones. As E. Korendyasov notes, "in modern conditions, it serves as an important tool for uniting African peoples, overcoming persistent - and in some cases, increasing - tribalist, ethnonationalist, ethnoseparatist tendencies that generate acute interstate and internal political conflicts" ^{[16, p. 79]}. The struggle for spiritual liberation and the decolonization of the consciousness of Africans became the main business of the lives of many public and political figures who lived in Africa, the United States and Europe. They were most deeply aware of the consequences that would inevitably happen to African society decades later. Even if the African peoples "painlessly" go through the period of turbulence that accompanies the process of decolonization, new peace—building and strengthening of sovereign statehood are possible only in the case of complete decolonization - mental and spiritual. Otherwise, another system of knowledge, beliefs, values, and introduced traditions forces you to follow the wrong path — not the African one.

Afrocentrism

The emergence of the concept of afrocentrism dates back to the 80s of the last century. The main developer of the theory of afrocentrism is the African-American Molefi Kete Asante. In 1980, the book "Afrocentrism: a Theory of Social Change" was published, in which the scientist for the first time brought a new concept to the attention of the academic community. The work becomes a fundamental work for the subsequent study of the theory. M. Asante presented a concept designed to review each of the spheres of life of African-American society in order to help it overcome the trauma of the slave trade and racism, as well as Africa — colonialism and neocolonialism. "The theory of afrocentrism is based on the ideas of the central position of Africa in world history and culture" ^[17], pan-African unity, and the revival of African values and traditions. The key message of the theory was that only the central position of Africans, making them the main actor and subject of certain phenomena and processes, can change historical injustice and lead to the decolonization of the consciousness of Africans. 

The concept of afrocentrism has already been institutionalized within the framework of Temple University, where its main ideologist still works. Afrocentric scientists have developed a methodology focused on the revision of all humanities (anthropology, linguistics, sociology, psychology, communications, gender studies, and so on) from an "African point of view" ^{[18, p. 203]}. Also, on its basis, a number of scientific disciplines were created, where Africology became the leading one.

A historical analysis of the concept of Afrocentrism shows that the first publications reflecting fundamental ideas about the central role of Africa in various historical and cultural processes appeared in the United States in the 19th century and were more abolitionist in nature. One of these works was written by David Walker (1785-1830) — "Walker's Conversion" (1829), where he makes a bold statement that in fact knowledge, arts and sciences originated in Africa on the banks of the Nile, and then "... were transferred to Greece, where they have already been perfected" ^[19]. D. Walker was one of the first to draw attention to the true role of Africa and its importance in the achievements of world culture and science. After him, this idea of afrocentricity of African culture for Africans was developed in the writings of Frederick Douglass (1817-1895), an American reformer and abolitionist, Edward W. Blyden, an ideologist of pan-Africanism and others.

However, a special place in the pantheon of exponents of Afrocentrism is occupied by the figure of an African-American, pan-Africanist, sociologist and public figure William Edward Burkhardt Dubois. In the book "The Souls of Black People", with the help of a socio-psychological analysis of the situation, W. Dubois reveals the nature of the split in which the American Negro finds himself throughout his life. B. Gilenson explains as follows: "He is an American, and at the same time he is a Negro who is aware of his second-classness. He lives in a hostile environment, where all his behavior is dictated by the possible negative reaction of white people" ^{[20, p. 38]}. The convincing argumentation of W. Dubois, the clear and intelligible manner of presentation, but most importantly the relevance of the problem raised, determined the classic status of this work in the history of not only Negro literature, but also culture, socio-political life ^{[20, p. 38]}, which later influenced the Status quo of Africa in the minds of African Americans themselves.

Since the publication of the work "Souls of Black People", the idea of Afrocentrism has received an impetus to fill the content and spread among African communities living both outside and inside the continent. The ideas of Afrocentrism gain an additional intellectual base through interaction with early forms of black nationalist thought, which include works of black studies and pan-Africanism, and then with the statements of Malcolm X (el-Hajj Malik al-Shabazz), an African-American Islamic spiritual leader and fighter for black rights. Along with this, the emergence of afrocentrism was preceded by the Vietnam War with mass protests against it, stagflation, and the counter-cultural revolution" ^{[21, p. 32]}. Russian African scientists D. M. Bondarenko and N. E. Khokholkova believe that "Afrocentrism has developed in a situation of large-scale transformation of American society provoked by the economic and social crisis" ^{[21, p. 32]}.

Also, the movement "Black is Beautiful" (Black is Beautiful), which was extremely popular at that time and was able to expand beyond the United States of America, makes a significant contribution to the spread of Afrocentrism ideas. Thanks to the writings of pan-Africanist Steve Biko, the Afrocentrism movement and ideas have spread in South Africa. The main themes of the movement are the struggle for human rights, racism and State violence. It is from this moment that Afrocentrism acquires a new meaning for representatives of the intelligentsia of African-American origin, politicians and historians as an ideology and a political movement. The concept becomes a kind of bridge connecting the African community living in the United States and the African continent. Thus, Afrocentrism is born as a worldview system and a special direction of public thought designed to protect people of the black race, aimed at emphasizing the identity of African cultures and their contribution to world history. In addition, afrocentrism is beginning to be used as a tool to combat Eurocentrism.

One of the first Afrocentrists was John Hendrick Clark (1915-1998). He criticized the teaching methods and curriculum of history in African countries. According to Clark, civilization did not originate in European countries, and the rest of the "world did not wait in darkness for Europeans to bring light" ^{[21, p. 32]}. For almost half a century, J. Clark was the main opponent of the Eurocentric view of Africa, where the contribution and achievements of African society to world culture were completely excluded. Along with this, he was the leader of the struggle for the African Renaissance and the author of many scientific papers.

 Sheikh Anta Diop (1923-1986), a Senegalese public figure, anthropologist, politician and historian who studied the origin of man and African culture before colonial times, played a major role in the development of Afrocentrism ideas. His work is considered fundamental in the theory of afrocentrism. The main merit of Sh. Diop is that he contributed to the revision of African history and culture as a civilization. By exposing bias, he brought into the space of public discourse the unreliability of European scientific research in relation to Africa.

It was the revision of historical science that became one of the main areas of work of Afrocentric scientists under the leadership of M. Asante, who studied history through the prism of its contribution and influence on world culture. Scientists also aimed to rethink the history of Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece, the role of Africa in modern times. A. Davidson explained that "the Afrocentric approach to history focuses on proclaiming the primogeniture of the "black race" ^{[22, p. 1125]}, and not the white one.

According to Asante, Afrocentrism is designed to equip African peoples with the necessary tools and research methodology for critical reflection and analysis of their history. Afrocentrism helps to displace the feeling of insignificance and weakness among African peoples, to be imbued with a positive, subconscious sense of self-confidence and self-strength. In his opinion, in this way, it will contribute to the "complete eradication of mental paralysis caused by collective historical and cultural amnesia, collective lobotomy and psychological genocide imposed by Eurocentrism" ^{[23, p. 213]}. In his works, M. Asante emphasized that Africa has never been a subject, it has always existed as an object, which was controlled by one or another conqueror.

This was confirmed by the German writer Jan Janheinz in his work "Muntu: a brief overview of Neo-African culture". In the book, he describes the general belief that existed in Europe in the middle of the 20th century that under its influence a unified model of cultural change was being formed for Africa, which was an absolute boon for the latter. The theorists of that time believed that in order to adapt to these processes, Africa should abandon its traditions and absorb foreign ideas, working methods, forms of government and principles of economic organization. A Europeanized Africa should be the end product of this process, where Europe will act as a spiritual mentor and Africa as a host partner. "Since Europe is considered a teacher and Africa is considered a student, only Europe can decide when Africa will be ripe: for faith, for action, for freedom. Europe knows better than Africa itself what is best for it" ^{[24, p. 11]}. This narrative, according to the German writer, was one of the main storylines that forced the scientific and socio-political community to "work" on the appropriate basis.

According to M. Asante, intellectual colonialism has become the result of such long-term work on the part of Europe to transform the consciousness of African society. In his opinion, this same intellectual colonialism underlies political and economic colonialism.

According to the scientist, this situation will change in the XXI century. M. Asante believes that there are objective opportunities for the success of Afrocentrism, since Europe is currently in decline. The new generation of Africans is no longer so blindly fascinated by the West. It sees the causes of many existing crisis phenomena on the continent, including in the absence of once knocked out pillars of society, which forms a giant vacuum that requires a new semantic content.

The emergence of Afrocentrism reflects new trends that have emerged in the humanities, especially historical, as well as in African society. The world community is dominated by ideas about the past and the picture of the world created by the West with all the political and cultural consequences that follow from this ^{[25, p. 8]} for peoples of non-European origin. The traditional understanding of Afrocentrism goes back to the ideas of historical truth, the rejection of the view of the origin of everything in this world through the prism of the West. Knowledge of their foundations and roots, the importance of Africa's role and its subjectivity in world processes should change the self-perception of Africans. The change of orientation from external stimuli and values, the "centralization" of the presentation of events, trends and narratives should be replaced by internal ones (African culture, national interests). All this is the main conceptual, strategic goal of Afrocentrism.

Conclusion

The theory of Afrocentrism has long existed exclusively within academic circles, and to a greater extent within the African-American community. Now it has become very popular as an object and a method of research. It is studied in Canada, European countries, as well as in Africa. In addition, its problems have found their supporters among representatives of other cultures. As M. K. Asante notes, many of his students from Japan, South Korea, India and other countries, using the theory of afrocentrism, discover a new approach to studying the history and culture of their countries, using theory as a method of learning their own history.

The concept of Afrocentrism, born by a descendant of slaves, Molefi Kete Asante, became a continuation of pan-African ideology and an instrument of struggle against colonialism and neocolonialism. One of the main tasks set by Afrocentric scientists within the framework of this concept is the mental liberation of the African community living not only on the territory of the African continent, but also beyond its borders. At the same time, the people of Africa are experiencing great changes related to economic, demographic, and political changes. Society is undergoing a certain transformation, which ultimately exposes the historical injustice and, at the same time, the illusions in which the peoples of Africa have been for a long time.

Modern political, economic and social processes force African society to initiate certain changes in society. This forces them to rally and revisit the ideas of the pan-Africanism movement. However, traditional calls for decolonization and the fight against Eurocentrism cannot bear long-term fruit. The general pan-African idea should be based on an understanding of the historical meanings and experiences that the peoples of Africa have accumulated about themselves. Therefore, Afrocentrism in this sense can become part of pan-Africanism, that is, the method used in the formation of the corpus of knowledge and national ideas. This will help to formulate the basis for the creation of a state strategy, where national interests and values will form a solid basis.

African society has an understanding of the need to turn all its experience and heritage into a certain resource. In 2001, the NEPAD (New Partnership for Africa's Development) economic program was released. It appeared at the historical turn of the century, when globalization raised the question of the fate of the continent in the 21st century. The following words are recorded in the IV section of the program "Appeal to the Peoples of Africa": "... our peoples, despite the existing difficulties, must revive faith in their genius and in their ability to overcome obstacles and join in the construction of a new Africa. But the struggle ... will be successful only if our peoples are masters of their own destiny" ^{[26, p. 77]}.

Calls of a pan-African nature are heard from one rostrum, then from another. But pan-Africanism is a form, and the content, the core, should be afrocentrism. The idea of community, so deeply present in various cultures (Fulbe, Hausa, Amhara, Igbo, and many others), for which the collective word is African, represents a connecting thread between all African peoples and can be strengthened by an afrocentric view of history, culture, education, health, security, economics, and politics. Afrocentrism in this case becomes an integral part of pan-Africanism. The restoration of a common afrocentric core, where Africa's place, the interests of its States and the values of peoples are central and decisive in the global agenda of the continent, along with the assertion of national interests and values in the domestic and foreign policy of a single State, will help the continent to find the place that rightfully belongs to Africa due to its historical, cultural and intellectual contribution to the development of world civilization.