Pan-Africanism: A History
Speaker
Chair
Join us for this Black History Month event featuring award winning academic and activist, Professor Hakim Adi.
Pan-Africanism is again in the news as a result of the recent UN resolution backed by the states of Africa and the Caribbean declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans and enslavement the gravest crime against humanity and demanding the need for full reparation.
Such demands are a key feature of Pan-Africanism and the Pan-African movement and date back to at least the late 17th century. In this presentation Hakim Adi surveys the centuries long struggles for the rights of Africa and its diaspora and highlights the important role that those in Britain have played in this history.
To attend this event please ensure you register via the link provided.
Meet our speaker:
Professor Hakim Adi is currently a Visiting Research Fellow at the Department of International History. Hakim was the first historian of African heritage to become a professor of history in Britain. In August 2024 he was the recipient of the ‘Outstanding African Studies Award’ by the African Studies Association (UK) in recognition of his ‘exceptional contribution to the field of African Studies, for expanding and disseminating knowledge on Africa.’ In April 2025 he was awarded the Amilcar Cabral Centenary Medallion by the Fundação Amilcar Cabral (Cape Verde) for his work honoring the memory of Amilcar Cabral.
He has appeared in many documentary films, on TV and on radio and has written widely on the history of Africa and the African Diaspora, including three history books for children. His publications include: West Africans in Britain 1900-60: Nationalism, Pan-Africanism and Communism (Lawrence and Wishart, 1998); (with M. Sherwood) The 1945 Manchester Pan-African Congress Revisited (New Beacon, 1995) and Pan-African History: Political Figures from Africa and the Diaspora since 1787 (Routledge, 2003).
His most recent books are Pan-Africanism and Communism: The Communist International, Africa and the Diaspora, 1919-1939 (Africa World Press, 2013), Pan-Africanism: A History (1804 Books, 2023), and, as editor Black British History: New Perspectives (Zed, 2019), Black Voices on Britain (Macmillan, 2022) and Many Struggles: New Histories of African and Caribbean People in Britain (Pluto, 2023). His most recent publication, Africa and Caribbean People in Britain: A History (Allen Lane, 2023) was shortlisted for the prestigious Wolfson History Prize in Britain in September 2023.
Meet our chair:
Dr Alex Mayhew is an historian of modern conflict whose work uses interdisciplinary methods to explore how individuals and communities make sense of crisis, violence, and upheaval. His research centres on ‘sensemaking’ – the ways people make meaning from their experiences – and speaks to questions of resilience, morale, and the dynamics of violence. His first book, Making Sense of the Great War: Crisis, Englishness, and Morale on the Western Front (Cambridge University Press, 2024), received an Honourable Mention for the WW1 Historical Association's Tomlinson Prize.
Alex’s work has appeared in journals including The English Historical Review, The Historical Journal, War in History, and First World War Studies, and has featured in The Times and on Times Radio. He is keen to share his research with public audiences. He appeared as an expert on the BBC’s Who Do You Think You Are?, has spoken at numerous public events, and contributed to several history podcasts. He also advised on a BBC Bitesize game introducing the First World War to younger audiences.
From time to time there are changes to event details so we strongly recommend that if you plan to attend this event you check back on this listing on the day of the event.
Whilst we are hosting this listing, LSE Events does not take responsibility for the running and administration of this event. While we take responsible measures to ensure that accurate information is given here this event is ultimately the responsibility of the organisation presenting the event.
LSE holds a wide range of events, covering many of the most controversial issues of the day, and speakers at our events may express views that cause offence. The views expressed by speakers at LSE events do not reflect the position or views of the London School of Economics and Political Science.