3 Books Published by Zed Books on AALBC — Book Cover Collage

The Black Lives Matter movement reinvigorated Black political movements around the globe. People who never thought of themselves as activists are on the march, while groups that struggled to be heard are finding themselves with a megaphone and an audience. But with this renewed energy also comes renewed questions: How far have we really come? And what’s the best way to keep moving forward?

In Back to Black, Kehinde Andrews argues that racism is inexorably embedded in the fabric of society, and that it can never be overcome unless by enacting change outside of this suffocating system. The book traces the long and eminent history of Black radical politics. It is an appeal to reclaim Black radicalism, a movement that has been diluted and moderated over time, willfully misrepresented and caricatured by others, and divested of its potency and potential for global change. Through chapters that center on topics such as cultural nationalism, black Marxism, and black survival, and including Black feminist and LGBTQ perspectives, Andrews explores the true roots of this tradition. He shows how its rich past encompasses figures such as Marcus Garvey, Angela Davis, and the Black Panthers, and then connects the dots to today’s struggles by showing what the politics of Black radicalism might look like in the twenty-first century.

Andrews maintains there is hope that revolutionary change is possible. But he warns there can be no hesitation or excuses: “It’s already too late to be standing on the side-lines waiting to see whether you should commit.” Back to Black is the definitive book on the roots and evolution of Black radicalism. It is a radiant call-to-action from one of the world’s most daring Black political voices.

Not so long ago, many spoke of a ’post-racial’ era, claiming that advances made by people of color showed that racial divisions were becoming a thing of the past. But the hollowness of such claims has been exposed by the rise of Trump and Brexit, both of which have revealed deep seated white resentment, and have been attended by a resurgence in hate crime and overt racial hatred on both sides of the Atlantic.

At a time when progress towards equality is not only stalling, but being actively reversed, how should anti-racist scholars respond? This collection carries on James Baldwin’s legacy of bearing witness to racial violence in its many forms. Its authors address how we got to this particular moment, arguing that it can only be truly understood by placing it within the wider historical and structural contexts that normalize racism and white supremacy. Its chapters engage with a wide range of contemporary issues and debates, from the whiteness of the recent women’s marches, to anti-racist education, to the question of Black resistance and intersectionality. Mapping out the problems we face, and the solutions we need, the book considers how anti-racist scholarship and activism can overcome the setbacks posed by the resurgence of white supremacy.

There is a growing sense that existing media have failed to serve the purposes of development, and in particular have not reflected either the concerns or the needs of the rural majority in Third World countries. Theatre, however, is now being used as a way of increasing popular participation in the development process. This book examines these experiences of training extension workers in the use of theatre-for-development, and explores the author’s own attempts - notable with the Marotholi Travelling Theatre in Lesotho - to develop a new model of theatrical communication. The structures of communication, Mda argues, should be democratized. They ought to increase participation, promote equity and self-reliance, and close the gap between people and government. Theatre in Africa has potential as a democratic medium for it can enable audience participation, integrate indigenous an popular systems of communicaiton and use whatever local resources are to hand. But he stresses it is important not to romanticise the democratic dimension of theatre-for-development. Intervention is also required as a technique. And not for all its forms - agitprop, forum theatre - have been successful. If theatre is to play a role in the expression of the development problems faced by people who are marginalized, then a more carefully thought out methodology combining intervention and participation is needed - to mobilize, provide a genuine two-way communication, and revitalize people’s own forms of cultural expression. A realistic awareness of the financial and political constraints that can undermine even the best-conceived projects is also vital.