Difference between revisions of "Black Consciousness"

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== Black Consciousness as international movement==
  
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== Black Consciousness ==
 
  
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The notion of black consciousness as a means of identity, pride and self-empowerment gradually developed into an enormously influential imperative in the cultural struggle of the 1970’s and 1980’s in South Africa – yet it is exceedingly difficult to define and explain.
  
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The notion of black consciousness as a means of identity, pride and self-empowerment gradually developed into an enormously influential imperative in the cultural struggle of the 1970’s and 1980’s – yet it is exceedingly difficult to define and explain. Besides being a direct response to centuries’ long  privations and frustrations and a rejection of hard-line white attitudes and actions, it clearly it derives from a wide range of sources. These include such diverse matters as  Frantz Fanon’s analysis of the colonial mentality, Paolo Freire’s pedagogy of the oppressed, concepts of ''negritude'' as outlined by Léopold Senghor, Aimé Césaire and ***, the Africanist ideas of African leaders (such as Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana ) as well as the various concepts of black consciousness, black empowerment, black theology and black power generated by the American racial struggles. The names of Stokely Carmichael and Malcolm X are particularly significant of course, as are the writings of Ngugi wa Thiongo and ****.  
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Besides being a direct response to centuries' long  privations and frustrations and a rejection of hard-line white attitudes and actions, it clearly it derives from a wide range of sources and an international movement dating as far back as the 1880's. These include such diverse matters as  the writings of Frantz Fanon (an analysis of the colonial mentality) and Paolo Freire (the notion of the pedagogy of the oppressed); concepts of ''Négritude'' as outlined by Léopold Senghor, Aimé Césaire and Léon Damas;  the Pan-Africanist ideas of African leaders such as Ahmed Sekou Toure, Kwame Nkrumah and Muammar Gaddafi,  and various writers and academics; as well as the various concepts of black consciousness, black empowerment, black theology and black power generated by the American racial struggles. The names of individuals such as Stokely Carmichael, Malcolm X,  Maya Angelou, Leroi Jones, and Mae Mallory are particularly significant of course, as are the writings of Ngugi wa Thiongo, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka,  and others.
  
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== Black Consciousness in South Africa ==
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In South Africa many of these ideas were drawn together in a specific action programme,  generally referred to as the [[Black Consciousness Movement]] (or [[BCM]]) in the 1960s. Specific interpretation of the notions "black" and "the community" were defined by this movement, with the most prominent spokesman, Steve Biko, arguing for an inclusive definition of "blackness", based not on pigmentation so much as mental attitude and thus a defining characteristic of a large and widely spread "community" with shared needs and ideals. The [[BCM]] stressed black independence of white collusion and  conscientization became a central tenet of their cultural political programme.
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'''For the role of Black Consciousness in South African theatre, see  the entry on the [[Black Consciousness Movement]]'''
  
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== Black Consciousness in South Africa ==
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== Sources ==
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Boonzaier and Sharp, 1988: 35
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-Africanism
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%A9gritude
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http://www.sahistory.org.za/black-consciousness-movement-south-africa
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http://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/defining-black-consciousness
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Consciousness_Movement
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Go to [[South African Theatre/Bibliography]]]
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== Return to ==
  
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Return to [[The South African Context/General Terminology and Thematic Entries]]
  
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Return to [[South African Film /Terminology and Thematic Entries]]
  
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== The Black Consciousness Movement ==
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Return to [[South African Media/Terminology and Thematic Entries]]
  
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Return to [[The ESAT Entries]]
  
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As a movement in South Africa much of this was drawn together in a specific programme generally referred to as the [[Black Consciousness Movement]] (BCM), formed by Steve Biko as its charismatic leader and prominent spokesman in the 1960’s, and gaining concrete manifestation in such Organisations as the  Black Community Programmes (late 1960’s), the [[Black People’s Convention]] (BPC – founded 1972)  and the Black Allied Worker’s Union, which were all intended to co-ordinate the movement on the political, social and cultural fronts. Specific interpretation of the notions “black” and “the community” were defined by this movement, where Biko argued for an inclusive definition of “blackness”, based not on pigmentation so much as mental attitude and thus a defining characteristic of a large and widely spread “community” with shared needs and ideals. The BCM stressed black independence of white collusion and  conscientization became a central tenet of their cultural political programme. Much of the more “radical” and influential theatre produced between 1976 and 1986 thus relied heavily on the ideas of such activist writers as Berthold Brecht, Paolo Freire and Augusto Boal,  and appeared to respond to and/or be in accord with the tenets of the BCM. A great deal of the critical writing of the time also utilized the BCM ideology as a basis for its classification, analysis and criticism. The impact of the BCM and the intellectuals who articulated it on theatre was storngly felt in the late 1960’s and 1970’s with the founding of PET, TECON, MDALI, FUBA, SASO, Mihloti, the Soweto Ensemble,  and other Organisations, as well as journals such as Black Review and S’ketsh. Among the influential cultural leaders and artists involved were Mafika Gwala, Lewis Nkosi, Sipho Sepamla, Mthuli Shezi, and  Molefe Pheto.
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Return to [[Main Page]]
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[Kruger, 1999: 129-142; Boonzaier and Sharp, 1988: 35]
 

Latest revision as of 12:25, 15 May 2014

Black Consciousness as international movement

The notion of black consciousness as a means of identity, pride and self-empowerment gradually developed into an enormously influential imperative in the cultural struggle of the 1970’s and 1980’s in South Africa – yet it is exceedingly difficult to define and explain.

Besides being a direct response to centuries' long privations and frustrations and a rejection of hard-line white attitudes and actions, it clearly it derives from a wide range of sources and an international movement dating as far back as the 1880's. These include such diverse matters as the writings of Frantz Fanon (an analysis of the colonial mentality) and Paolo Freire (the notion of the pedagogy of the oppressed); concepts of Négritude as outlined by Léopold Senghor, Aimé Césaire and Léon Damas; the Pan-Africanist ideas of African leaders such as Ahmed Sekou Toure, Kwame Nkrumah and Muammar Gaddafi, and various writers and academics; as well as the various concepts of black consciousness, black empowerment, black theology and black power generated by the American racial struggles. The names of individuals such as Stokely Carmichael, Malcolm X, Maya Angelou, Leroi Jones, and Mae Mallory are particularly significant of course, as are the writings of Ngugi wa Thiongo, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, and others.

Black Consciousness in South Africa

In South Africa many of these ideas were drawn together in a specific action programme, generally referred to as the Black Consciousness Movement (or BCM) in the 1960s. Specific interpretation of the notions "black" and "the community" were defined by this movement, with the most prominent spokesman, Steve Biko, arguing for an inclusive definition of "blackness", based not on pigmentation so much as mental attitude and thus a defining characteristic of a large and widely spread "community" with shared needs and ideals. The BCM stressed black independence of white collusion and conscientization became a central tenet of their cultural political programme.

For the role of Black Consciousness in South African theatre, see the entry on the Black Consciousness Movement

Sources

Boonzaier and Sharp, 1988: 35

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pan-Africanism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%A9gritude

http://www.sahistory.org.za/black-consciousness-movement-south-africa

http://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/defining-black-consciousness

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Consciousness_Movement

Go to South African Theatre/Bibliography]

Return to

Return to The South African Context/General Terminology and Thematic Entries

Return to South African Film /Terminology and Thematic Entries

Return to South African Media/Terminology and Thematic Entries

Return to The ESAT Entries

Return to Main Page

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