By Edwin Adjei
Pan-Africanism, the global intellectual and activist movement that seeks to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between people of African descent, has existed for many decades. The mention of names such as George Padmore, W.E.B Du Bois, Kwame Nkrumah and Jomo Kenyatta triggers memories of this intellectual movement, whose goals included (for Padmore), “Back to Africa” and (for Nkrumah), “the United States of Africa”.
Some supporters of Pan-Africanism believe that to be a true Pan-Africanist, one must live on the African continent. That is because as an African proverb with variations in many languages says, “no matter how long a log remains in water, it does not turn into a crocodile.” In other words, for those who belong to this school of thought, no matter how long blacks have been in the Americas and other parts of the developed world or lived there, they will never become Americans or citizens of other non-African countries because, no matter where they were born, their identity as blacks and their roots as Africans have not changed. This is one of the reasons some people of African descent in the diaspora have resettled in various parts of the African continent over the years. For example W.E.B. Du Bois, a Pan-Africanist and African in the diaspora who obtained Ghanaian citizenship late in life, died in Ghana and is buried in Accra, Ghana. Du Bois is quoted by Alexander (2015:130) as having said, “I have returned so that my remains may mingle with the dust of the forefathers.” Moreover, Du Bois, according to Alexander, also reflected on the African unity at the heart of his pan-African identity: “Now my life will flow on in the vigorous young stream of Ghanaian life which lifts the African personality to its proper place among men. And I shall not have lived and worked in vain.”
On December 28th, 2016, a ceremony for Africans from the diaspora to receive Ghanaian citizenship was held at the W.E.B. Du Bois center in Accra, Ghana. This event was the culmination of a series of monthly meetings at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana. The Institute of African Studies supported the dream of these Africans of the diaspora by offering them space for their meetings where they could plan as a group the process of acquiring Ghanaian citizenship so as to ease the stress and financial burden individuals bear in individual citizenship applications. The group was largely successful in their group application, despite challenges faced due to the politics associated with an election year. The group also received support from the deputy AU chairperson, Ambassador Kwesi Quartey.
People of African descent have over the years endured a variety of forms of discrimination, such as in the area of employment, which, when compounded by numerous immigration rules in the global north, can make their stay in many countries untenable. Could this swearing-in of Africans from the diaspora be the new “normal”? With all the challenges Africans in the diaspora face such as racism, lack of employment and persecution, could a mass return of Africans in the diaspora to their roots be the solution? With the introduction of the visa on arrival in Ghana for Africans from any of the fifty-four member states of the African Union, with plans to include Africans in the diaspora, could the world be about to see more movement of Africans in the global north to their roots in Africa?
Ghana has historically been a welcoming haven for Africans of the diaspora. This swearing-in ceremony could be the beginning of many more swearing-ins of people of African descent from the diaspora, who may decide to become citizens of Ghana and other African countries in the near future.
For additional information about the Swearing-in ceremony and process, visit: http://stamp3.com/download/dr-obadele-kambon-sworn-in-as-ghanaian-citizen-by-president-mahama
Featured image source: www.abibitumikasa.com
REFERENCE
Alexander, Shawn Leigh. 2015. W.E.B. Du Bois: An American Intellectual and Activist. London: Rowman and Littlefield.