In his book, The Souls of Black Folk, African-American intellectual giant W. E. B. du Bois famously predicted that, "The problem of the Twentieth Century is the problem of the colour-line".History proved him right. The civil rights movement in the US left an indelible mark on the face of the 20th century, and the struggles against colonialism and apartheid in Africa were indeed struggles of the colour line.These struggles were essentially about breaking down the yoke of political and economic subjugation of the black folk — hence Du Bois’s conceptualisation of the colour-line as a problem.Watching us from his grave, Du Bois must be comforted to see that black folk all over Africa have been freed from colonialism and apartheid, and that his country — the US — now has a black president. These things appeared like quixotic dreams when Du Bois was writing in the 19th century.Du Bois must also be heartbroken to see how his black folk on the African continent have squandered the politica...
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