Africa After WWII

Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972)

Led many Pan-African movements in his time as PM, later became president of Ghana

Pan-Africanism

Called for the unity of all people of African descent all over the world

Organization for African Unity (OAU)

Established by 37 independent African nations and designed to promote Pan-Africanism (unity, sovereignty, eradication of colonialism, cooperation, policy, etc.)

Jomo Kenyatta

Nationalist who wanted Kenyan independence from the British; became president in 1963 after independence

Mau Mau

Kenyan farmers who used violence to drive the British out of Kenya and started the Mau Mau Rebellion (1952-1960)

Apartheid

A segregation policy created by whites in South Africa (blacks and other non-whites had to live in certain zones of the city and were not allowed in the white areas, non-whites not allowed to vote/hold office, etc.)

Nelson Mandela

Important leader of the African National Congress (ANC) who fought against apartheid; became the first elected president of South Africa in 1994

Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Helped to end apartheid by asking foreign businesses not to trade with South Africa and boycott their products; won Nobel Peace Prize in 1984

F.W. de Klerk

Reformist president who released Mandela, ended segregation laws, and opened free elections

Rwandan Genocide (1994)

The Hutus slaughtered 800,000 Tutsis in only a few months; genocide and major human rights violation

Algerian War (1954–1962)

Brutal war for independence from France led by the FLN (National Liberation Front)

Congo Independence (DRC, 1960)

Gained independence from Belgium, chaos and civil war

Mobutu Sese Seko dictatorship (Congo)

corruption, nepotism, and embezzlement of billions of dollars

Sudan/Darfur Conflict (2003–present)

Conflict between Arab militias (Janjaweed) and non-Arab groups; mass displacement, deaths, and charges of genocide

African Union (AU)

Successor to the OAU, aimed to increase political and economic cooperation