Date of Award
8-12-2016
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
African-American Studies
First Advisor
Dr. Akinyele Umoja
Second Advisor
Dr. Makungu Akinyela
Third Advisor
Dr. Maurice Hobson
Abstract
The evolution of African stateless societies and the diverse impact of their cultures, on political thought previous to and post-modernity, are not well understood. Scholars acknowledge the varied influence of precolonial African culture on the artistic, spiritual, and linguistic expressions of African-descended populations. However, observations regarding the impact of such acephalous societies on the political thought of the African Diaspora remain obscure. The organizational techniques of such societies are best described as a form of kinship-based anarchism. This study seeks to examine the persistence of such organizational techniques among African-descended populations in the United States. The political life and background of Ella Baker will be used as a historical case study to illustrate the possible strands of continuity that may exist between the organizational habitude of African acephalous societies, and modern African-American grassroots political structures.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.57709/8698309
Recommended Citation
Horhn, John, "They Had No King: Ella Baker and the Politics of Decentralized Organization Among African-Descended Populations." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2016.
doi: https://doi.org/10.57709/8698309