World Theater Day in Tunis
Plays, operas, children’s events, participatory performances by audiences, and even some “open society” speeches lit up the Tunisian capital in defiance of religious extremists.
6395 Article(s) by:
Fatima B. Derby
Fatima B. Derby is a Ghanaian feminist writer and queer activist.
Christine Lagarde cares for Niger
Journalists rarely ask the IMF chief technocrat to consider whether or not she gives any kind of a shit about the people who are getting screwed by her “austerity” agenda.
Pieter Hugo on ‘political correctness’
Pieter Hugo, the critically acclaimed South African photographer, has done an interview with Guernica (H/T Glenna Gordon) in which
The BET Awards do Africa
What are the cultural implications of the success of individual African artists in particularly U.S. mainstream media and award shows?
Suffering and Smiling
Mali’s rebel armies, their shifting alliances and their fans make for quite a spectacle.
The New Yorker on violence against lesbians in South Africa
How does an American publication write critically about a country without running the risk of reifying sexual and racial stereotypes?
An ode to Benni McCarthy
Watching a 34 year old Benni McCarthy back in South Africa with Orlando Pirates, leave many observers with a lingering feeling that he could have achieved so much more.
Lesotho votes today
The coverage of Lesotho’s 2012 elections don’t move beyond superficialities and actually delve into the complexities of local politics.
Friday Bonus Music Break, N°11
10 songs we've been listening to this week. First up -- and fresh -- Gaël Faye
This is not about art
Between the relentless media coverage, the twitter deluge, the pronouncement by a South African judge (“This
Akin Omotoso’s Country
A recurring theme in director Akin Omotoso’s films is the fraught postapartheid relationship between Nigerian migrants and their South African hosts.
Pinkwashing South Africa
The positive media surrounding ‘Cape Town as a gay paradise’ obscures far more complex realities.
A balanced marriage between solitude and companionship
For our series, “My favorite photographs,” we asked Philippa Ndisi-Herrmann about her favorites.
War and peace in Côte d’Ivoire
By the end of 2004, Côte d'Ivoire’s civil war had cooled to a simmer, but the
The loneliness of the Kenyan long distance runner
How the death of a very talented Kenyan marathon runner points to structural problems in the country’s national running industry.
The Aura of Didier Drogba
Didier Drogba is the master of the unruly and the absurd: when he is in form, none of what the other team does matters.
Egypt after Edward Said
Last December, when the Institut d’Egypte was burned down, I thought immediately of Edward Said. Napoleon’s expedition
Joyce Banda and Gay Rights
Is Banda serious about repealing Malawi’s anti-gay laws? Is she just cynical so as to secure donor cash? And, what about Malawian public opinion?
Mali: Soldiers Acting Like Children
It’s very hard to figure out what the soldiers who took power in a coup in Mali, have in store for the country. Or if they even have a plan.
Blackwater’s “Rwanda”
The fantasies of Blackwater, the Michigan firm of mercenaries and as contractor to imperial powers. Also, how it employs Africa as a rhetorical device to get more business.