6 March 2013 – 31 March 2013

 We Are Africa

Bernard Akoi-Jackson 
Adwoa Amoah 
Ato Annan 
Serge Clottey 
Kelvin Haizel 
Kwesi Ohene-Ayeh 
Mawuli Tofah 
Yibor Kojo Yibor
“If we are to remain free, if we are to enjoy the full benefits of Africa’s enormous wealth, we must unite to plan for the full exploitation of our human and material resources, in the interest of all our people.”

—Kwame Nkrumah, President of Ghana (1957–1966)

56 years and counting! Ghana, under the leadership of its first president, Kwame Nkrumah, started the sweeping change on the African continent—fighting for self-rule, emancipation from the colonialists, and, overall, to attain a continental union. This movement saw the forming of allies with civil rights activists, freedom fighters, and other political leaders. The capital city of Accra became a safe haven for freedom fighters from FRELIMO, SWAPO, ZANU, ANC, MPLA, and others, inspired by Kwame Nkrumah.

Leaders spent a large part of their young years in Accra consolidating efforts and preparing to take on the might of the colonial powers. Kwame Nkrumah formed various alliances, notably with Julius Nyerere, Kenneth Kaunda, Jomo Kenyatta, Modibo Keïta, and Sékou Touré. These alliances led to policies and treaties allowing for the free movement of people between nations, the first steps towards a continental union.

In envisioning ‘One Africa,’ a strong continental union was to:

  • Project the African personality.
  • Overcome the destructive forces of neo-colonialism.
  • Enhance the security and cohesion of African states.
  • Transform the political map of Africa.
  • Overcome the problem of cultural divisions in Africa.
  • Put an end to European exploitation of Africa.
  • Effectively utilize and coordinate Africa’s resources for sustainable development.
  • Promote world peace and security.
Dance


To this end, ‘loose’ treaties and protocols were signed under the Organisation of African Unity to allow Africans to travel freely between nations.

While some countries still honor bonds formed between their leaders many years ago, others strive to see themselves as Francophone, Anglophone, or Lusophone. Our borders are tapestries of how we see ourselves—as different people. Insouciant border guards have become the sentinels of the artificial boundaries that map Africa, enforcing this colonial vestige with pride.

Despite the formation of the Organisation of African Unity and even economic regional bodies such as ECOWAS, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the East African Community (EAC) to facilitate the free movement of people and trade, we still remain divided and seemingly far from the united Africa that was dreamt of and tirelessly pursued by Kwame Nkrumah—some say to the detriment of his home nation, Ghana.

“Nkrumah’s greatest bequest to Africa was the agenda of continental unification. No one else has made the case for continental integration more forcefully, or with a greater sense of drama than Nkrumah. Although most African leaders regard the whole idea of a United States of Africa as wholly unattainable in the foreseeable future, Nkrumah, even after death, has kept the debate alive through his books and through the continuing influence of his ideas.”

—Ali Mazrui

Eight Ghanaian artists—Bernard Akoi-Jackson, Adwoa Amoah, Ato Annan, Serge Clottey, Kelvin Haizel, Kwesi Ohene-Ayeh, Mawuli Tofah, and Yibor Kojo Yibor—have spent four months exploring the meaning of Ghana’s independence from the viewpoint of other African countries.

Gadi Ramadhani, an artist and printmaker from Tanzania, is visiting and working with young students and artists, exploring the concept of the exhibition through print workshops.

What does independence mean to Ghanaians today? What does it mean to other African countries?

Come and continue the interrogation of our consciousness.
Artwork


Bernard Akoi-Jackson Performance


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