[speech writ. 6/14/13] © ’13 Mumia Abu-Jamal
The name Ami︡︡e C︡esaire still rings in the Black world, for the power of his works still resonate with relevance.
In 1955, this son of Martinique published his Discourse on Colonialism a work as bold as it was brief, put out by the celebrated publishing house, Presence Africaine, headed by Alioune Diop.
Still relevant? Monthly Review Press republished it in 2000, and in 2007, scholar Vijay Prashad quoted liberally from it in his work The Darker Nations: A People’s History of the Third World, to show how potent was this anti-colonial period.
Prashad writes:
In the opening pages of Discourse, C︡esaire writes, “Europe is indefensible.” “From the depths of slavery,” millions of people “set themselves up as judges.” The colonizer continues to brutalize the people in Vietnam, Madagascar, West Africa, the West Indies, and elsewhere, but the colonized now have the advantage. “They know their temporary ‘masters’ are lying. Therefore, that their masters are weak” [pp.3-4]
Ami︡︡e C︡esaire remembered.
–© ‘13maj