
The early deaths of Patrice Lumumba, Franz Fanon and other African revolutionary leaders underline the brutality of imperialism. If a radical appears to lead a people to sovereignty, the radical cannot be allowed to survive.
Egypt’s “democracy movement” largely sided with the military in its brutal coup against an elected Muslim Brotherhood government. But that fateful choice suggests these “moderates” may not understand the grim history of such tradeoffs, says Lawrence Davidson.
The Obama administration is pushing back against pressure to jump into a new “counterterrorism” conflict in northern Africa, with some officials saying an overreaction to unrest in Mali and Algeria could make matters worse. There’s also the danger of over-interpreting isolated events,…