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Obama win could boost blacks in global political arena

By: Ali A. Mazrui

[ Posted On: 2008-08-29 ]

A distinction needs to be made between Africans of the blood and Africans of the soil. Those of the blood belong to the African race, but not necessarily to the African continent. Africans of the soil, on the other hand, belong to the African continent but not necessarily to the black race.

By being left behind in America by his dad, young Barack Obama was prevented from evolving into an African of the soil; he became an African of the blood.

Most Algerians, Tunisians and Egyptians are Africans of the soil but not of the blood. Most African Americans, Afro-Brazilians, and Afro-Jamaicans are Africans of the blood — belonging to the black race — but no longer to the African continent. However, most black people who reside south of the Sahara are Africans of both the blood and the soil.

Defining africannes

Boutros Boutros-Ghali, former Secretary General of the United Nations, was an African of the soil by ancestry. FW de Klerk, former President of South Africa, was an African of the soil by adoption. On the other hand, Kofi Annan, also of the United Nations, was African of both the blood and the soil.

There are Africans of the blood objectively who may not subjectively regard themselves as Africans at all. These would include the Saudi or Kuwaiti princes born of black mothers.

The long-time Saudi Ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, was objectively an African of the blood, but subjectively in denial about his African-ness.

The late President Sadat of Egypt was an African of the soil objectively and subjectively. By virtue of his mother being black, Anwar Sadat was also an African of the blood, but only objectively. He did not regard himself as a black African at all.

As a result of their large numbers in countries and regions outside Africa, blacks or people of African descent are gaining significant political and economic positions worldwide.

Blacks are major players in many countries. It is uncommon to see black cabinet officials, legislators, judges, businessmen and women among other professions in countries in the Middle East, Europe and the Americas.

Rising to the top

In the United States, for example, the George W Bush administration has had three blacks in top government positions: former Secretary of State, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, former National Security Adviser and current Secretary of State, and former Secretary of Education, Rod Paige.

Also, the 110th Congress of the United States, which took office in January last year, has 43 black members, including 42 members (nearly 10 per cent) of the 435 total members in the House of Representatives. It also has one black Senator, Barack Obama. Clarence Thomas, a black man, is among nine members of the US Supreme Court.

In the UK, under Tony Blair, there were two black ministers in a Labour Government: Barones Amos and Paul Boateng. In Gordon Brown’s government, Attorney General Baroness Scotland is a black woman.

There was the long-serving and most influential Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, whose mother was black. Barack Obama retained his African and even his culturally linked Muslim names. Unlike Prince Bandar, Barack Obama has retained a conscious African connection. Obama was not, and has never been, in denial.

History in the making

Ralph Bunche and Martin Luther King, Jr were of course African American Nobel Peace Laureates and, therefore, Africans of the blood, but not of the soil.

Anwar Sadat and FW de Klerk were, as Peace Laureates, Africans of the soil but not of the blood. Albert Luthuli, Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela were Africans of both the soil and blood. All three were South Africans, as was de Klerk.

As the 20th Century was coming to a close, Nelson Mandela achieved unique status. He became the first truly universal black moral leader in the world in his own lifetime after spending 27 years in prison. Martin Luther King, Jr achieved universal status after his death.

President Barack Obama may be the final fulfilment of upward political mobility. Will he be the ultimate Brain Bonus for Global Africa? The answer remains in the womb of a history that is still unfolding.

Article Source: http://www.afroarticles.com/article-dashboard

About The Author(s): Prof. Ali Mazrui is Chancellor of Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture, Kenya.

| View Profile & All Articles By: Ali A. Mazrui |

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