Walter Rodney...part deux

So obviously we all know at least a little something about Walter Rodney from the essay last week, but that was just hitting the tip of the iceberg. Walter Rodney was a prominent figure in numerous parts of the world and stood for unity among Africans regardless of where they lived.

Born in Guyana in 1942, Rodney attended Queen's College in Guyana and continued by attending university on a scholarship at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica, graduating in 1963. By 1966 Rodney had earned his PhD at the School of Oriental Studies in London, England. His dissertation was published in 1970, entitled "A History of the Upper Guinea Coast" focused on the slave trade throughout Guinea, and characteristic of Rodney the essay operated as a way of informing about a part of history that even the locals weren't aware of.

Throughout his life he travelled worldwide and became increasingly popular, teaching in both Tanzania and Jamaica (which eventually led to him being banned from the country for being overly critical of the middle class and its role in post independence). By 1968, Rodney has something else to add to his record, a riot bearing his name. The "Rodney Riots" broke out as a result of his radical advocacy for the working poor that ended in his banishment. On a bigger scale, these riots forced the rest of the world to look and pay attention to the Caribbean, Rodney became transformed into an important face of the Black Power movement as well as an activist for Rasta, and an integral part of the development of a new centre for African discussion and learning.

On a side note I also found it interesting to note that out of all of Rodney's publications, How Europe Underdeveloped Africa is his most well known work, it took him to a new iconic level of activism and controversy. In 1974 Rodney returned to Guyana from Tanzania as he was supposed to take a position as a professor at the University of Guyana but the government prevented his appointment. As he became increasingly active in politics, forming the Working People's Alliance, against the PNC government he was arrested and charged with arson after two government offices were burned in 1979.

Of course, there is an end to all things, and in the words of Wayne "you know what they say, when you great, its not murder its assassinate"; which is precisely what happened to Walter Rodney in 1980. Rodney was killed in a bomb explosion while running for office in Guyanese elections. The bomb was disguised as a two way radio transmitter and was planted by a CIA agent. The perpetrator fled and was never prosecuted. By the end of his life he had established a family of his own; a wife, Pat, and three children who were now forced to grow up without a father. Clearly Rodney was a huge part in achieving equality and awareness, and I don't think I need to bother redundantly fawning over his life and achievements...the impact he has indelibly left on society speaks for itself.