Book: Sam Mbah & I.E. Igariwey – “African Anarchism: The History of a Movement” (1997)

Description: “The first book ever written on this subject, African Anarchism traces the origins and development of anarchism in Africa. After dealing with questions such as what anarchism is and isn’t, this groundbreaking book covers the topics of anarchism and African traditional societies, the influence of anarchism on African national liberation struggles, the relationship of anarchism to African marxist movements, “Africa’s angry young generation”, “The ‘New World Order’ and Africa” whether or not there is a specifically African form of anarchism, drawbacks to anarchism in Africa, and the possible influence of anarchism on Africa’s future development.”

PDF: “African Anarchism: The History of a Movement” (1997)

Book: George Woodcock – “Anarchism: A History of Libertarian Ideas & Movements” (1962)

Description: “Woodcock surveys all of the major figures that shaped anarchist thought, from Godwin and Proudhon to Bakunin, Goldman, and Kropotkin, and looks as well at the long-term prospects for anarchism and anarchist thought. In Woodcock’s view “pure” anarchism characterized by “the loose and flexible affinity group which needs no formal organization” was incompatible with mass movements that require stable organizations, that are forced to make compromises in the face of changing circumstances, and that need to maintain the allegiance of a wide range of supporters. Yet Woodcock continued to cherish anarchist ideals; as he said in a 1990 interview, ‘I think anarchism and its teachings of decentralization, of the coordination of rural and industrial societies, and of mutual aid as the foundation of any viable society, have lessons that in the present are especially applicable to industrial societies.'”

PDF: George Woodcock – “Anarchism: A History of Libertarian Ideas & Movements” (1962)

Book: “The Antonio Gramsci Reader: Selected Writings 1916-1935”

Description: “The most complete one-volume collection of writings by one of the most fascinating thinkers in the history of Marxism, The Antonio Gramsci Reader fills the need for a broad and general introduction to this major figure.

Antonio Gramsci was one of the most important theorists of class, culture, and the state since Karl Marx. In the U.S., where his writings were long unavailable, his stature has lately so increased that every serious student of Marxism, political theory, or modern Italian history must now read him.

Imprisoned by the Fascists for much of his adult life, Gramsci wrote brilliantly on a broad range of subjects: from folklore to philosophy, popular culture to political strategy. Still the most comprehensive collection of Gramsci’s writings available in English, it now features a new introduction by leading Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm, in addition to its biographical introduction, informative introductions to each section, and glossary of key terms.”

PDF: “The Antonio Gramsci Reader: Selected Writings 1916-1935”

4 Books: Eric Hobsbawm – Modern History Series (“Revolution”, “Capital”, “Empire”, “Extremes”)

Descriptions:

The Age of Revolution: 1789-1848: “This magisterial volume follows the death of ancient traditions, the triumph of new classes, and the emergence of new technologies, sciences, and ideologies, with vast intellectual daring and aphoristic elegance.”

The Age of Capital: 1848-1875: “In the wake of the French Revolution & the Industrial Revolution, Europe underwent another revolution–this time a revolution of values. The author examines the rise of industrial capitalism and the consolidation of bourgeois culture, exploring the effects of mounting concentration of wealth, population migrations, and the domination of European culture. Integrating economics with political and intellectual developments, this account studies the cycles of boom & slump that characterize capitalist economies, of the victims & victors of the bourgeois ethos.”

The Age of Empire: 1875-1914: “Discusses the evolution of European economics, politics, arts, sciences & cultural life from the height of the industrial revolution to the First World War.”

The Age of Extremes: 1914-1991: “Dividing the century into the Age of Catastrophe, 1914-1950, the Golden Age, 1950-1973, and the Landslide, 1973-1991”

PDFs:

“The Age of Revolution: 1789-1848”

“The Age of Capital: 1848-1875”

“The Age of Empire: 1875-1914”

“The Age of Extremes: 1914-1991”

 

Book: Kwame Nkrumah – “Neo-Colonialism: The Last Stage Of Imperialism” (1965)

 

“This is the book which, when first published in 1965, caused such an uproar in the US State Department that a sharp note of protest was sent to Kwame Nkrumah and the $25million of American “aid” to Ghana was promptly cancelled.”

PDF: Kwame Nkrumah – “Neo-Colonialism: The Last Stage Of Imperialism” (1965)

Pamphlet: Jalil Muntaqim – “On The Black Liberation Army” (1979)

Description: “Originally written in 1979, this is an inside account/critique, from the New York Three Black Panther and BLA political prisoner. This is a chapter from a to-be-published compilation of Jalil’s prison writings – We Are Our Own Liberators.”

PDF: Jalil Muntaqim – “On The Black Liberation Army” (1979)

Book: Barbara Ransby – “Ella Baker & the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision” (2003)

Description: “One of the most important African American leaders of the twentieth century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights movement, Ella Baker (1903-1986) was an activist whose remarkable career spanned fifty years and touched thousands of lives.

A gifted grassroots organizer, Baker shunned the spotlight in favor of vital behind-the-scenes work that helped power the black freedom struggle. She was a national officer and key figure in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, one of the founders of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and a prime mover in the creation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. Baker made a place for herself in predominantly male political circles that included W. E. B. Du Bois, Thurgood Marshall, and Martin Luther King Jr., all the while maintaining relationships with a vibrant group of women, students, and activists both black and white.

In this deeply researched biography, Barbara Ransby chronicles Baker’s long and rich political career as an organizer, an intellectual, and a teacher, from her early experiences in depression-era Harlem to the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Ransby shows Baker to be a complex figure whose radical, democratic worldview, commitment to empowering the black poor, and emphasis on group-centered, grassroots leadership set her apart from most of her political contemporaries. Beyond documenting an extraordinary life, the book paints a vivid picture of the African American fight for justice and its intersections with other progressive struggles worldwide across the twentieth century.

One of the most important African American leaders of the twentieth century and perhaps the most influential woman in the civil rights movement, Ella Baker (1903-1986) was an activist whose remarkable career spanned fifty years and touched thousands of lives. In this deeply researched biography, Barbara Ransby chronicles Baker’s long and rich political career as an organizer, an intellectual, and a teacher, from her early experiences in depression-era Harlem to the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Ransby paints a vivid picture of the African American fight for justice and its intersections with other progressive struggles worldwide across the twentieth century.”

PDF: “Ella Baker & the Black Freedom Movement: A Radical Democratic Vision” (2003)

Book: Akinyele Omowale Umoja – “We Will Shoot Back: Armed Resistance in the Mississippi Freedom Movement” (2013)

Description: “The notion that the civil rights movement in the southern United States was a nonviolent movement remains a dominant theme of civil rights memory and representation in popular culture. Yet in dozens of southern communities, Black people picked up arms to defend their leaders, communities, and lives. In particular, Black people relied on armed self-defense in communities where federal government officials failed to safeguard activists and supporters from the violence of racists and segregationists, who were often supported by local law enforcement.

In We Will Shoot Back: Armed Resistance in the Mississippi Freedom Movement, Akinyele Omowale Umoja argues that armed resistance was critical to the efficacy of the southern freedom struggle and the dismantling of segregation and Black disenfranchisement. Intimidation and fear were central to the system of oppression in Mississippi and most of the Deep South. To overcome the system of segregation, Black people had to overcome fear to present a significant challenge to White domination. Armed self-defense was a major tool of survival in allowing some Black southern communities to maintain their integrity and existence in the face of White supremacist terror. By 1965, armed resistance, particularly self-defense, was a significant factor in the challenge of the descendants of enslaved Africans to overturning fear and intimidation and developing different political and social relationships between Black and White Mississippians.

This riveting historical narrative relies upon oral history, archival material, and scholarly literature to reconstruct the use of armed resistance by Black activists and supporters in Mississippi to challenge racist terrorism, segregation, and fight for human rights and political empowerment from the early 1950s through the late 1970s.”

PDF: Akinyele Omowale Umoja – “We Will Shoot Back” (2013)

Book: Robert F. Williams – “Negroes With Guns” (1962)

Description: “First published in 1962, Negroes with Guns is the story of a southern black community’s struggle to arm itself in self-defense against the Ku Klux Klan and other racist groups. Frustrated and angered by violence condoned or abetted by the local authorities against blacks, the small community of Monroe, North Carolina, brought the issue of armed self-defense to the forefront of the civil rights movement. Under the leadership of Robert F. Williams (1925-1996), Monroe became the test case of the right of blacks to armed self-defense when law and order broke down. The single most important intellectual influence on Huey P. Newton, the founder of the Black Panther Party, Negroes with Guns is a classic story of a man who risked his life for democracy and freedom.” 

PDF: Robert F. Williams – “Negroes With Guns” (1962)

Book: Eric Williams – “Capitalism & Slavery” (1944)

Description: “Slavery helped finance the Industrial Revolution in England. Plantation owners, shipbuilders, and merchants connected with the slave trade accumulated vast fortunes that established banks and heavy industry in Europe and expanded the reach of capitalism worldwide. Eric Williams advanced these powerful ideas in Capitalism and Slavery, published in 1944. Years ahead of its time, his profound critique became the foundation for studies of imperialism and economic development. Binding an economic view of history with strong moral argument, Williams’s study of the role of slavery in financing the Industrial Revolution refuted traditional ideas of economic and moral progress and firmly established the centrality of the African slave trade in European economic development. He also showed that mature industrial capitalism in turn helped destroy the slave system. Establishing the exploitation of commercial capitalism and its link to racial attitudes, Williams employed a historicist vision that set the tone for future studies.”

PDF: Eric Williams – “Capitalism & Slavery” (1944)