Some critics favour the school of thought that claims many African freedom fighters were denied their pages in history as a conscious effort to relegate the Pan-African struggle to the background. Whether or not this is true, one cannot deny that many people did their part - big or small - to ensure the demise of slavery, colonialism, or apartheid. The names of prominent African historical figures like Kwame Nkrumah, Julius Nyerere, Patrice Lumumba, Thomas Sankara, Oliver Tambo, Nelson Mandela, etc. will continue to resound in history, and rightly so. However, we must recognize that there are...

Critics who favor Pan Africanism argue that it is declarations such as this by Patrice Lumumba that cost him his life; they claim that there exists an underground war against African unity which has resulted in the deaths and assassinations of many great Pan African activists. Patrice Lumumba's last words contained in a letter to his wife before he was assassinated, further credits the assertion that the erstwhile colonial masters have set up an organized network to quench the voice of leading figures who favor Pan Africanism by any means possible. A part of his infamous letter reads: _"…But...