Pan-Africanism is an ideology that started and promoted by several Pan Africanists who believe that a unified Diaspora is an essential step in creating a progressive economic, social, and political climate. Pan-Africanist ideals emerged in the late nineteenth century in response to European colonization and exploitation of the African continent. Pan-Africanist philosophy held that slavery and colonialism depended on and encouraged negative, unfounded categorizations of the race, culture, and values of African people. These destructive beliefs in turn gave birth to intensified forms of racism, the likes of which Pan-Africanism sought to eliminate. As a broader political concept, Pan-Africanism’s roots lie in the collective experiences of African descendants passed through over four centuries of slavery, colonization, and racial segregations. Perhaps John B. Russwurm and Samuel B. Cornish who founded ” the first African American owned newspaper Freedom’s Journal” in 1827 in New York is among the early believers and initiators of the movement against enslavements of Africans.
However, the organized Pan-African movement can be said to have begun with the founding of the African Association by Henry Sylvester Williams, in London in 1897 just one year after Adwa Victory. Since the originations of the Pan-African movement, originated met six times to discuss colonial control of Africa and develop strategies for eventual African political liberation. The first four meetings (1900, 1919, 1921, 1923) held in London, UK while the fifth one in 1927, New York, USA and the sixth one in Manchester, UK in 1945. These meeting were attended by several political leaders and intellectuals from Europe, North America, and Africa have joined the Pan-African movement. Among the early Pan Africanists who participated in the meetings among other includes black America’s leading intellectual, W.E.B. DuBois, who drafted an address “To the Nations of the World,” demanding moderate reforms for colonial Africa along with Bishop Alexander Walters, Henry B. Brown and Sylvester-Williams which was published and sent to Queen Victoria of England. Blaise Diagne, a member of the French Parliament from the West African colony of Senegal, John Hope, Columbia University professor Joel Spingarn, William English Walling, and Charles Edward Russell were among Pan Africanist of DuBios. The other Pan Africanists were Roscoe Conklin Simmons, a well-known black orato, USA; Rayford W. Logan, who had served with the U.S. Army in France; black women’s rights activist Ida Gibbs Hunt; and Dr. George Jackson, a black American missionary in the Congo. The detailed account on leading Pan Africanists provided in the annex part.
These meetings have played significant role in shaping the Pan African movement drafting addresses that demanding reform for colonial Africa, . adopting resolutions and calling for the drafting of a code of law “for the international protection of the natives of Africa.” Demanding prevention of economic exploitation of Africa by foreign nations; abolish slavery and capital punishment of colonial subjects, demanding right to education of insist on colonial peoples. The 1945 meeting was of particular importance as it switched the focus of Pan-African movement to Africa. This gradually led to the founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1963 which significantly contributed to the liberation of African countries from colonial yoke and ending of apartheid in South Africa.
This epoch-making event planned to take place from February 27th to March 4th, 2023, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is a continuation of the above mentioned and other similar conferences held since then. The event augments the great awakening initiated and going on across the globe; in the heart of the people of African descent in Diaspora– from America, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, and others https://youtu.be/ozzb933Q8ps. The event aims to achieve a brand-new Africa in the end of this event, creating long lasting relationships, partnerships and collaborations that will bring sustainable development. It provides a platform for Africans to assert and recommit that developing the rich, beautiful, vibrant, energetic, and incredibly blessed continent with every natural resource the world could ever need is primarily the responsibility of Africans. The melting pot event provides the rare opportunity to reconnect Africans in the continent with their brothers and sisters outside Africa and end over four centuries separation of African descent. Leading personalities in governments and non-governmental organizations, businesses enterprises, learning institutions, social institutions, music, fashion, movies, sports, and media industries in Africa and outside Africa are among the expected participants of the event. The event also provides a unique opportunity celebrate the 127th Victory of Adwa, on March 2nd, 2023, together with Ethiopian Brothers and sisters.
