Concepts of Cabralism

Rabaka contributes to radical black politics and Africana critical social theory and exceeds expectations on both counts. Six chapters guide readers through a corpus that 'draws from a diverse array of often eclectic and enigmatic sources and, therefore, offers no closed system or absolute truths.'. . . .Rabaka's critical introduction outlines Cabrals biography and the genealogy of his thought. Chapter 1 begins with a provocative claim: 'in many respects Frantz Fanon and Amilcar Cabral represent the pillars and pinnacle of the Africana tradition of critical theory in the second half of the 20th century.' The author situates the dialectic task before black thinkers as 'challenging both whites demonization and Blacks romanticism' of Africa. Chapter 2 carefully outlines Fanons challenge to negritude. Fanons method for apprehending the totalizing effects of European colonialism becomes cartographic in Rabakas reading of Cabrals engagement with colonialism, neocolonialism, imperialism, Marxism, and history. The book ends by articulating Cabrals usefulness for Rabakas larger vision of Africana critical theory. An original contribution to Africana philosophy and studies, critical theory, and currently reemerging anticolonial paradigms throughout the academy. A must-have. Summing Up: Essential. Upper-division undergraduates and above. * CHOICE * Reiland Rabaka has brought together a comprehensive review of Amilcar Cabral and his intellectual legacy that will be indispensable for researchers and students alike. Contextualising Cabral's ideas and praxis within the framework of those of Frantz Fanon, and Marxist and Africana critical theory, makes this an extraordinary tour de force. -- Firoze Manji, Director, Pan-African Institute Concepts of Cabralism fills a lacuna in the 21st century black studies archive. It is a book that demands that Amilcar Cabral no longer be a footnote in the scholarship on and about the black radical tradition. Reiland Rabaka clearly and cogently provides a valuable matrix to understand Cabral in relation to other great Africana thinkers. Concepts of Cabralism illustrates that Cabrals ideas are not dead, but of extreme contemporary import. -- P. Khalil Saucier, Rhode Island College After its detailed examination of the intellectual contexts provided by the Negritude Movement and Frantz Fanon, Concepts of Cabralism dives into a masterful reading of works by the important, but currently overlooked, figure of Amilcar Cabral. It is a must read for scholars of Cabral, the larger Black Radical Tradition, and the even larger field of contemporary Africana thought. A timely contribution to all of these fields. -- Paget Henry, Brown University

Reiland Rabaka is professor of African, African American, and Caribbean studies in the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado at Boulder, where he also has affiliations with the Women & Gender Studies Program, Humanities Program, Center for Studies of Ethnicity & Race in America (CSERA), and School of Education. He is the author of twelve books, including Africana Critical Theory, Against Epistemic Apartheid, Forms of Fanonism, and The Negritude Movement.

Introduction: Contours of Cabralism Part I: Return to the Source: The Philosophical Foundations of Cabrals Critical Theory Chapter 1: The Negritude Movement: Cesaire, Senghor, and Critical Social Theory Chapter 2: Fanonism: Fanons Dialectic of Radical Disalienation and Revolutionary Decolonization Part II: The Weapon of Theory: Cabrals Critical Theory and Revolutionary Praxis Chapter 3: Cabrals Critical Theory of Colonialism, Neocolonialism, and Imperialism Chapter 4: Cabrals Critical Theory of Marxism, Nationalism, and Humanism Chapter 5: Cabrals Critical Theory of History, Culture, and National Liberation Part III: The Africana Tradition of Critical Theory: Cabral and the Decolonization and Re-Africanization of Radical Politics, Critical Social Theory, and Revolutionary Praxis Chapter 6: Africana Critical Theory in the Aftermath of Amilcar Cabral and Cabralisms Contributions