The Africans: A Triple Heritage is a documentary history produced by the BBC and written and narrated by Dr. Ali Mazrui in the early 1980s. The program explores the influence of indigenous, Western, and Islamic factors on contemporary African lifestyles, as well as the role of women and families in various African societies. Dr. Ali Mazrui was a Kenyan American political scientist and the son of a prominent Islamic scholar. He had a profound intellect and passionate commitment to the development of Africa.
The program explores the role of women and the family in various African societies, comparing simple African societies with more complex ones. The book explores the intellectual legacy of Professor Ali Mazrui, who died on October 12, 2014, at the age of 81. The book compares simple African societies with more complex ones, highlighting the importance of understanding the interplay between these factors in shaping African societies.
Ali Mazrui was a powerful academic, teacher, and simple man who lived by the Islamic creed. He was known for his profound intellect and passionate commitment to the development of Africa. The Africans: A Triple Heritage is a companion book to Muzuri, a documentary about the nature of a continent and the influence of indigenous, Islamic, and Western factors on African societies.
📹 The Africans: A Triple Heritage -Program 2: A Legacy of Lifestyles
In this program, Dr. Ali Mazrui explores identity, family ties, tradition, and modernity. In Nigeria, a baby has three badges of …
What was the achievement of Al Amin Mazrui?
Mazrui, a renowned scholar, held faculty positions at various universities and was a consultant to international organizations. He wrote over 30 books on African politics, society, and postcolonial development patterns. His notable works include Towards a Pax Africana, The African Condition: A Political Diagnosis, Black Reparations in the Era of Globalization, and The African Predicament and the American Experience. He also wrote and presented the BBC-PBS TV coproduction The Africans and was featured in the documentary Motherland.
What were the views of Ali Mazrui about Africa?
Mazrui’s six paradoxes are central to understanding Africa: it was the birthplace of humankind but the last continent to be habitable in a modern sense, Africans have been the most humiliated group in modern history, Africa is the most different from the West culturally but is westernizing very quickly, Africa possesses extreme natural wealth but its people are very poor, Africa is huge but very fragmented, and Africa is geographically central but politically marginal.
Mazrui argued that a relationship between the developed world and Africa would not be beneficial to Africa if it remained dependent on the developed world. He believed the greatest resource Africa possessed was the African people, particularly African Americans, who must remember their African heritage and exert influence over U. S. foreign policy if Africa hopes to climb out of its marginal position.
What is the triple heritage theory?
The triple heritage refers to the three main cultural influences on Africa: traditional African culture, Islamic culture, and Western culture. This book explores the key dimensions of Africa’s existential predicament and provides an intellectual response to the “African situation”. It addresses emergent issues shaping the situation, focusing on the problems in traditional African religion and material culture that define African communality, polities, and destinies vis-à-vis the cosmos and nature.
African religion and communities operate via adaptation rather than critical engagement with larger issues of society and civilization, especially those shaped by the advent of post-modernity. The communal drive for natural and social harmony inevitably produces a preservationist view of culture. This study takes an integrative approach to religion, society, and civilization, eschewing dichotomies, broadly defines and resignifies life and wholeness as a true end of Africans’ quest today.
The book has received numerous endorsements, including from Niimi Waribok, Katherine B. Stuart Professor and Chair of Christian Ethics at Andover Newton Theological School, and Knut Holter, Professor of Old Testament studies at MHS School of Mission and Theology in Norway. Dr. Daniel Etounga-Manguelle, Chairman and CEO of SADEG Consulting Group, Yaoundé, Cameroon, and former member of the World Bank’s Council of African Advisors, praised the book as a must-read document for every African citizen and a benchmark for the new African project.
The Making of a Diasporic Muslim Family in East Africa is another notable work in this area.
What is the African Triple Heritage summary?
This documentary project by Ali Mazrui explores Africa’s triple heritage, which is a product of three major influences: indigenous heritage, eurocentric capitalism forced on Africans by European colonialism, and the spread of Islam through jihad and evangelism. Mazrui argues that the negative effects of this history have not been addressed by independent African leaders, and the West has tended to view Africa as a recipient rather than a transmitter of effects.
However, Africa has transformed Europe and America in the past, and the current economic dependency, cultural mixedness, and political instability is the result of Western development. The series is divided into nine parts, with Mazrui questioning the positionality of Africa, which is the most central continent in the world, and blames European ethnocentrism, reflected in contemporary maps like the Mercator projection, which portrays North America as one and a half times the size of Africa. He suggests that Arno Peters’ 1967 Peter’s Projection Map could help rectify this distortion and accurately measure the respective surface areas of the continents.
What are the 3 types of cultural identity?
Cultural identity is comprised of three components: cultural knowledge, category label, and social connections. Cultural knowledge involves understanding the core characteristics of a culture, while category label refers to the indirect membership of that culture. Social connections involve the development of social relationships within a community. Cultural identity is developed through immersion in values, beliefs, and practices, identifying as a member based on one’s rank within the community, and developing relationships with family, friends, coworkers, and neighbors.
Culture is a complex and often contested term, with around 160 variations in meaning. It is dynamic and changes over time, leading to many people identifying with one or more cultures in various ways. Cultural identity is a defining feature of a person’s identity, contributing to their self-perception and identification with groups. It develops from birth and is shaped by values and attitudes at home and in the community.
What was the achievement of Caliph Aliyu?
ʿAlī, born around 600 in Mecca, Arabia, was the cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, and the fourth of the “rightly guided” caliphs. He ruled from 656 to 661 and was the first imam of Shiʿism in all its forms. His right to the caliphate led to the split in Islam into the Sunni and Shiʿi branches. ʿAlī is known by various titles, including Abū al-Ḥasan, Abū Turāb, Murtaḍā, Asad Allāh, Ḥaydar, and among the Shiʿah, Amīr al-Muʾminīn, and Mawlāy-i Muttaqiyān.
Except for Muhammad, there is no one in Islamic history who has written as much about his life as ʿAlī. Primary sources for scholarship on ʿAlī’s life include Hadith, sīrah literature, and other biographical sources. Secondary sources include works by Sunni and Shiʿi Muslims, Christian Arabs, Hindus, and other non-Muslims from the Middle East and Asia, and a few works by modern Western scholars. However, many early Islamic sources are influenced by a bias towards ʿAlī.
What is the African heritage summary?
The term “African culture” is used to describe the traditions and practices of the African people, which have been passed down through generations and which they are proud to maintain. This is due to the significant role that these traditions and practices have played in the development of African civilization, and their ongoing influence on contemporary society.
What is the synopsis of the Africans Ali Mazrui?
Kenyan political scientist, Mazrui, has written a book that offers a unique perspective on Africa’s peoples and problems. The book, which is set to air on PBS, traces the country’s indigenous, Islamic, and Western heritages in various aspects such as religions, the slave trade, modern technology, civil-military pendulum, “capitalism without winter”, language, cultural change, and sports participation. Mazrui argues that the concept of Africa was created by Western geographers, and white foreigners unintentionally gave the continent the idea of Africanness and identity.
He suggests remedies for Africa’s malaise and emphasizes the unique culture resulting from these influences. Mazrui argues that the West has viewed Africa as a recipient rather than a transmitter of effects, but Africa has transformed Europe and America in the past. The book is filled with information, unique ideas, and beautiful pictures, and is recommended for both experts and laypeople.
What is the triple helix theory?
The triple helix model of innovation, proposed by Etzkowitz and Leydesdorff, consists of three elements: universities, industries producing commercial goods, and governments regulating markets. As interactions increase, each component evolves to adopt characteristics of the other institution, leading to hybrid institutions. Universities initially provide education and basic research, with interactions between university and industry focusing on these elements.
Industry managers and university faculty participate in both sectors, transferring knowledge and influencing the direction of innovation. However, consulting activities of faculty members can have drawbacks, such as a reduced focus on education and potential conflicts of interest.
Additional knowledge transfer occurs through informal communication, conferences, and industrial interest in university publications. Co-op programs, such as the MIT-General Electric course, aim to integrate an industry approach into students’ curricula. However, some scholars argue that consulting activities may have drawbacks, such as a reduced focus on education and potential conflicts of interest. Overall, the triple helix model of innovation highlights the importance of collaboration and knowledge transfer between universities, industries, and governments.
What is the history of Mazrui?
The Mazrui were an Omani Arab clan that ruled East Africa, particularly Kenya, from the 18th to the 20th century. They governed Mombasa and other coastal areas and opposed the Omani Al Bu Sa’id Dynasty, which ruled over Zanzibar. They attacked Stone Town and allied with the Portuguese. When the British East Africa Protectorate was established in the late 19th century, the Mazrui were one of the most actively resisted British rule, along with the Kikuyu and Kamba people.
What are the classes of Africans according to Mazrui?
In a December 2009 article in the Daily Monitor, Mazrui posits a dichotomy between two typologies of Africans: Mazrui distinguishes between two categories of Africans: Africans of the blood and Africans of the soil. The former refers to those with a racial and genealogical connection to the continent of Africa, whereas the latter encompasses those with a more tenuous or indirect link to the continent.
📹 The Africans: A Triple Heritage – Program 1: The Nature of a Continent
Dr. Ali Mazrui explains how African geography has been the mother of its history. The open eastern seabord allowed the entrance …
41:17 “On the other hand, the African woman under Western influence has been relegated to less fundamental roles in society. The cosmetics of women’s liberation in Africa are profoundly misleading about real progress. Secretarial work is less basic for human survival than cultivation; typing is less fundamental than drawing water; office work less central to the human condition than firewood and energy. The typewriter now threatens the dual fertility of African woman.” Ali Mazrui is making a controversial statement here but I believe he is right about the cosmetics of women’s liberation being profoundly misleading about real progress. The West is paying for this by an aging and dying society by plummeting birth rates across Europe. Africa should not make the same mistake by letting the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation sterilize the African woman with birth control under the guise of progress.
It is very strange that only 3 universities in the whole of Africa gives Bachelor, Master and PhD in African studies. The University of Ghana (but it is a kind of hoax), the University of Kenya (but the first courses started in 2022 and the price was 7.000 euros per year) and the University of Johannesburg (but you need to know one local language). Now I study African studies in Istanbul. It seems that Europe and the US cares more about Africa then Africans themselves.
Afro-consciousness ——————💥 DR. ALI MAZRUI: the triple heritage of Africa Dr. Ali Mazrui, was a Kenyan American based scholar, prolific author, and a critic of Cheikh Anta Diop. He advances the theory: “The Africans: A Triple Heritage as opposed to African Renaissance through its classical culture. According to Mazrui, Africa is the home of traditional religion, Islam, and western Jeudeo-christianity. And that these three values systems must be celebrated as the triple heritage of African people forever. But Diop, who was also born in a Muslim family like Mazrui insist on authentic African civilization, history and culture unique to itself. Analysts believe that Mazrui was a great teacher, but no match for Anta Diop. It was also believed that he was speaking from a biased perspective as a believer and not scholarship. Look, Europe was once ruled by Islam but no one talks about the triple heritage of Europe today. Imagine a China or India with triple heritage? The fact of the matter is that Africa has one classical heritage: KUSH-KEMET. Islam and Christianity remain colonial legacies which have no future in a united Africa. Rest in power Dr. Mazrui. But we prefer the Diopian school of thought which takes us to our classical past (Kush-Kemet ) and to begin a cultural revolution.
Have been thinking about this doc since last year. It had been years since I seen it and always thought it came out earlier but see that it originally aired in 1986 so I had to be 12/13 thinking I was younger when I first watched this. The series definitely left an impact on me and peaked my interest in Africa as a whole as well as wanting to travel there someday. I always wished that PBS would have rebroadcast this, do a follow-up to this. Henry Louis Gates series was good also but this one had a big impact on me
This is my first time perusal this excellent documentary, delivered from a different (non-European) perspective. It’s evident that wherever the European goes, he creates a problem, then proposes a solution to that problem that he created in first place. Wherever he goes he wants to subjugate, demean and destroy. Africa, the Americas – it’s the same story.
A shame this series has not been digitally re-mastered and re-released on DVD. I would have purchased a copy. Also it is shame that Dr. Mazrui was not asked to re-do and update the series prior to his death in 2014. A new version of this series, with all the changes that have taken place in Africa and the world since 1986 would have been very interesting.
It’s one of the very best TV series of documentaries on Africa and its history-if, not the very best ever! All thanks to the familiar voice and face of Prof. Ali Mazrui. This brings back a lot of childhood memories, growing back in my parents’ house we never used to skip a single episode of this amazing documentary. It is without a doubt my hope and prayer that this goes down to the generations to come and to come.
I remember when this 9-part series was first aired in the US by PBS stations (after its showing on the BBC which produced it). Three people too out a full-page ad in the New York Times, warning Americans NOT to watch, because they were going to hear the history, geography, culture of Africa as told by AN AFRICAN! (Masuri woud become Albert Schwietzer Chair at NYU). Lynne Cheney (Sr.) was then the head of the National Endowment for the Humanities, William Bennet was the Secretary of Education, and Diane Ravitch. . .well, she was Diane Ravitch who believed that “multi-culturalism” was about learning all the good and patriotic things about our own country – and our friends – but about the rest of the world we only needed to know where they are. These are the triumvirate that took out that full-page ad warning us not to watch it. Mazuri. . . brilliant.
I watched this documentary in the late 1980’s on one of the pbs stations in Chicago when I was a teenager.it does show it’s age today- the referances to Mobutu,Nyere Raylings,and other African leaders who were in power at the time but no longer are and some them now long deceased but it is still a show to watch and I had been looking for it for some time and I was happy to find it on YouTube recently.
Saw this originally on PBS awhile ago, always hoped they would air it again as they do all the same Ken Burns pieces. This was so informative and well explained, this educators account is still the most enlightening elegant and informative vs those I’ve view even just today. They should update it and optimize it’s output for today. Thank you! Ah! I did not know he had passed. What a work you did here! You will always have my admiration and thankfulness. What a wonderfully articulate elegant educator! R.I.P Dr. Mazrui🙏🏽❤️
I am happy, that I relocated at 79 to Queretaro, Mexico, where I am safer, and it is $850 dollars less per month, and I can order all I want from the grocery here, and shelves are full, and not any limits. The people are super nice and have much respect for everyone, but especially the elderly. Please move to a less expensive country, and open 2 different Charles Schwab debit cards to avoid ATM fees, and foreign transactions. You must always notify them,before you travel. Local friends have ordered from the Argentina’s Mercado Libre for me, when they pretended to not find my apartment, and gave me a credit. My friends have told them to send the packages to them. Old fashion Quaker Grits, and Louisiana hot sauce. La Comer Estudio does an excellent job delivering my groceries etc. in my Corregidora neighborhood. I have an excellent tour guide and lawyer.
About 30 years ago I was going to work in Ivory Coast and my work involved travelling throughout the continent of Africa. To prepare, I read Dr. Mazrui’s materials and watched this documentary series which was so helpful. From Ivory Coast I moved to South Africa before coming back to Europe. I have really loved the years I lived on the continent, there is something which pulls you towards Africa.
A more accurate perspective of the continent in Genesis 2:9-14, “8 And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. 9 And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10 And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. 11 The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12 And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. 13 And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. 14 And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates.”
I like and enjoy Professor Ali Mazrui’s lecture for its depth of knowledge, but I detest the fact that his narrative tacitly tried to undermine Christianity and to promote Islam in some way. He called the cross “detachable”; a word he couldn’t have used for the crescent which he held sacred as a Muslim.