Obama and Africa — Is this the End of History?

Young African professors speaking out

In what was a vibrant discussion about the fate of Africa in this new era of change and the US presidency, a panel composed of some young and dynamic African professors presented their thoughts on where Africa is headed now that a black man, with African roots, Barack Obama, holds the highest office in the so-called free world.

That office is the presidency of the United States under the command and leadership of Barack Obama.

Assistant professors Dr. Lucas Shamala, Dr. Derrick Hudson, visiting professors Dr. Wonderful Bere and Dr. Hadidja Nyiransekuye all used the opportunity offered by the 26^th Black World conference at Metro State College in Denver to look at post-colonial Africa that is now interspersed with democracy, economic growth, and development, to explain what the continent stands to benefit in the age of Obama.

The theme of the conference was “Celebrating 100 years of the NAACP: A century of Hope, Struggle, and Victory.” The event took place on February 18 and 19. The keynote was offered by Colorado’s new House Speaker, Terrence Carroll. Other discussions, held concurrently as part of the conference, were a student panel and a documentary about the Obama presidency, a community panel about the challenges and opportunities facing people of color, moderated by George Bamu.