Reforming Pan-Africanism

The paper examines the concept of Pan-Africanism through the lens of intellectual decoloniality to address recent tensions motivating identity politics within the Pan-African framework. Recently, the Pan-African interpretation of identity politics has led to two significant strands that create tension: the Afrocentrist promotion of complete self-determination and the Afropolitan advocacy for multiculturalism and inclusivity. There is potential for intellectual decoloniality to foster a compromise between these strands of Pan-Africanism, but this has not yet been explored by scholars in the field of African identity politics or the field of decoloniality. Utilizing sources from post-colonial studies, decolonial studies, and contemporary analytic epistemology, I explore the concept of Pan-Africanism in light of contemporary views on intellectual decolonization, advocating for a reformation that balances Afrocentric ideals of intellectual self-worth with Afropolitan inclusivity. This approach aims to cultivate a comprehensive understanding of decolonization that encompasses both continental Africans and the diaspora.