OMALI YESHITELA: AFRICAN UNION WAS FORMED TO DIVIDE, NOT UNIFY

In 2019, at Oxford Union’s debate society, African People’s Socialist Party (@APSPusa on X) founder and Chairman Omali Yeshitela provided an insightful breakdown of why the African Union—originally the Organisation of African Unity (OAU)—was not formed to unite Africa, but to keep the continent divided.

@OmaliYeshitela (X) asserts Kwame Nkrumah (1909-72), Ghana’s first president and founding father of the OAU, held a vision of a United States of Africa that would be fully integrated—politically, socially and economically. Instead, the OAU formed as a compromise due to the ideological differences between the Casablanca and Monrovia groups. The former sought to dismantle colonial borders, while the latter sought to operate within them.

Unfortunately, the OAU fortified colonial borders that have prevented meaningful progress for Africa, leaving the continent divided and economically vulnerable to continued exploitation, which Nkrumah had warned about.

Video credit: Oxford Union (@OxfordUnion on X)

Sources:

https://au.int/en/overview

https://www.blackagendareport.com/essay-why-africa-must-unite-kwame-nkrumah-1963

https://www.dw.com/en/130-years-ago-carving-up-africa-in-berlin/a-18278894

https://au.int/en/overview

https://www.blackagendareport.com/essay-why-africa-must-unite-kwame-nkrumah-1963

https://www.dw.com/en/130-years-ago-carving-up-africa-in-berlin/a-18278894

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/kwame-nkrumah’s-futuristic-vision-for-africa-hacsa-foundation/2gVxkcFMw9clvA?hl=en#

http://www.jpanafrican.org/docs/vol4no10/4.10KwameNkrumah.pdf