Our History
The living archive of Pan-African resistance and revolutionary rebirth
Our History
Chronicles of Pan-African Liberation
The call for the 8th Pan-African Congress echoes a 500-year legacy of resistance, rooted in the moment the first European slave ships touched Africa’s shores. As Tajudeen Abdul Raheem noted, this movement was born in the holds of slave ships, where enslaved Africans forged bonds as "shipmates"—the earliest Pan-African solidarity.
The formal Pan-African Congress movement began in 1900 when Henry Sylvester-Williams convened the first Congress in London, demanding dignity for Africans globally. This torch was carried by giants like W.E.B. Du Bois, who organized subsequent Congresses, and George Padmore, whose 1945 Manchester Congress birthed Africa’s independence era. Kwame Nkrumah, then a student, absorbed these lessons to lead Ghana’s liberation in 1957, proving Pan-Africanism’s revolutionary potential.
Today, we honor this lineage while confronting neo-colonialism, climate racism, and militarization. The 8th Congress’s theme—"The Pan-African World We Want"—builds on Cheikh Anta Diop’s vision of Africa’s cultural unity and the African Union’s goals of "Peace, Prosperity, Unity." From slave rebellions to #FeesMustFall, our history lives in every act of defiance.
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High Moments of the Global Pan African Liberation Struggles
Below is a list of the major Milestones of Global Africa that GPAM identifies as events which shaped the Pan African movement. We present this list in an attempt to keep with our effort to highlight the activities of the people rather than centralize conferences as the main platform of Pan Africanism.
After 1492
The cementing of the concept of shipmate and revolts on the slave ships. Popularized by the seizing of later slave ship, the Amistad.
1500-1900
Maroonage and the establishment of free communities all across the Americas, from Nanny and Tacky in Jamaica to Accabre in Guyana.
1600s
Quilombos – Pan African communities – fought against enslavement in Brazil and established free communities with three basic forms of active resistance by enslaved Africans. They fought constant battles with Portuguese enslavers, regularly attempted to seize power and conducted armed insurrections at plantations to gain freedom for all enslaved. Palmares was the Most Famous of these Pan African communities in what is now called Brazil.
1626-1628
Nzinga Ana de Sousa Mbande (c. 1583 – 17 December 1663) fighting wars against European slave traders
1763
Berbice Revolution in what is now Guyana. Kofi and the struggle to develop a free and independent state in which they held power for more than a year and predated the Haitian revolution by decades. (see Blood on the River by Marjoleine Kars)
1757
Makandal Revolt in Haiti: prelude to Haitian Revolution and pivotal moment in the Global Pan African Movement
1787
Founding of Sierra Leone
1791
Revolt in San Dominque: a Pan African revolt with statements
1794
Richard Allen and the formation of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the first independent Black-African denomination in the US
1804
Victory of the revolution in the new Republic of Haiti, which overthrew slavery, colonialism and white supremacy. Revolutionary Haiti provided military and political support for Global Africans. Haiti provided assistance for freedom fighters in South America, especially Simon Bolivar. Any African landing in Haiti was also declared free.
1829
“David Walker’s Appeal” – calling for enslaved persons to revolt against their masters – is published in Boston Massachusetts
1831
Nat Turner revolt in the United States. The Christmas Rising/Baptist War in Jamaica was an uprising against slavery.
1848
Driven by revolt, abolition of slavery in French and Danish Caribbean
1804- 1884
Anti-Slavery struggles in all parts of the Americas. Calls for Reparations and Repatriation growing with important examples of repatriation including figures like Edward Blyden and Martin Delaney. Delany is credited with the Pan-African slogan of “Africa for Africans.”
1861-1865
Intense struggles of fighting against enslavement leading to war between states in the United States of America
1863
Emancipation Proclamation is signed, abolishing slavery in the United States – Great moment for Pan Africanists everywhere
1868 – 1878
Ten Years War in Cuba, which resulted in emancipation of majority of the enslaved
1879
Battle of Isandlwana, the defeat of the first major British invasion of the Zulu Kingdom
1884-1885
Wars of Pacification all over Africa and the meeting of Europeans to consolidate Imperialism at the Berlin Conference: regulation of European colonies; the emergence of Germany as an imperial power.
1888
Driven by fear of enslaved uprising, abolition of slavery in Brazil.
1885-1920
Resistance to colonial rule with military struggles in all parts of Africa especially, the revolt of Menelik of Ethiopia in 1896, Yaa Asantewaa of Ghana in 1900, the Bambata Revolt in 1896, Queen Muhumusa of Nyabingi and many others such as John Chilembwe in Nyassaland, Umar Al-Mukhtār in Libya
1897 – 1900
Henry Sylvester Williams and Charlotte Maxeke create the African Association in London, England in order to oppose imperial domination of Africa. 1900 The First Pan African Congress is convened and takes place in London in collaboration with Black intellectuals of different nations. Anna Julia Cooper the anti-lynching campaigner along with by Dr. W.E.B. Du Bois participated in this meeting.
1911
The First Universal Races Conference is held in London.
1912
Formation of the African National Congress of South Africa (signaled its Pan African orientation by admitting members from all over Southern Africa)
1914
Marcus Garvey founds the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in Jamaica. At its height the UNIA was the most vibrant Pan African organization on earth with over 4 million members in over 40 countries.
1915
Chilembwe uprising in Malawi
1919
Red summer
1920
The first UNIA convention adopts The Declaration of Rights of the Negro People of the World. Harlem in New York, USA emerged as the Center of Pan African politics, literature art and music.
1921
The 2nd Pan African Congress takes place in several sessions, London, Paris and Brussels. (very small affairs compared to the UNIA mass outreach).
1923
The 3rd Pan African Congress takes place in sessions in London and Lisbon.
1927
1927 – In New York, a 4th Pan African Congress takes place with few representatives.
1920's
1920’s – Simon Kimbangu founded the Kimbanguist church. A major Pan African force in Central Africa
1029
1929 – Women’s revolt and uprising in Nigeria
1930-1935
Emergence of the Rastafari as a major Pan African force internationally
1935
Italian invasion of Abyssinia led to a global Pan African response with demonstrations, protests and petitions in all parts of Global Africa. Major Pan African writings from the International African Service Bureau (IASB) powered by George Padmore and C.L.R. James and the Council on African Affairs powered by Paul Robeson who served as the CAA’s chairman for most of its existence while W.E.B. Du Bois served as vice-chair and head of the Africa Aid Committee and Alphaeus Hunton, Jr as Executive Director.
1945
The 5th Pan African Congress in Manchester England. Political representatives of Africa and the West Indies are in attendance and urge to end colonialism in Africa. Most important mobilization of ex-soldiers fighting against colonialism.
1945-1951
Pan African Uprisings and resistance of workers in all parts of Global Africa
1948
In response to massive anti colonial upsurge the policy of Apartheid is adopted in South Africa (for the next forty years a major focus of the Global African struggles for freedom).
1952
Kwame Nkrumah becomes Prime Minister of Ghana, and Ghana becomes independent by 1957
1950-1960
Mass opposition to colonial rule with the outbreak of armed struggles for independence in Algeria and Kenya
1955
Bandung Conference and a major platform for Pan African solidarity and Third World Solidarity
1956
First International Congress of Black Writers and Artists was held at the Sorbonne, in Paris, from September 19 to 22, 1956
1957
First Pan African Women’s Association is formulated
1958
Clumsy and contradictory retreat of France from Africa
1958
All African peoples Conference held in Ghana. Patrice Lumumba introduced to the wider Pan African world.
1960
Massive anti racist and anti-colonial struggles in all parts of Global Africa. Many countries accede to independent status. The Belgians launch the destabilization of the Congo and by 1961 Patrice Lumumba is killed in the Congo.
1963
Creation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in Ethiopia with Pan African vision to promote unity and solidarity of African states.
1966
The imperial inspired Coup d etat to overthrow Kwame Nkrumah in Ghana
1966
First World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture in Dakar , Senegal
1967
The launch of the Arusha Declaration in Tanzania
1968
Black Writers Conference in Montreal Canada
1972
The African Liberation Support Committee (ALSC) in North America and the Caribbean coalesce to support liberation and struggles against racism globally.
1974
April Overthrown of Portuguese fascist colonial rule in Africa (open possibilities for independence of Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau and Mozambique)
1974
The 6th Pan African Congress is held in Tanzania and attended by 52 delegations from Africa, the West Indies, America, and the Pacific.
1973
Major non-aligned meeting to support African Liberation
1977
Second World Black and African Festival of Arts and Culture (FESTAC) held in Nigeria
1979-1980
Intensified struggles against settler colonialism. Independence of Zimbabwe. Bob Marley’s dramatic intervention in the Independence celebrations in Zimbabwe in April 1980
1980
OAU launches the Lagos Plan of Action to hasten African Unity. (World Bank responds with the Berg Report)
1980
Revolts across the Caribbean after Walter Rodney is assassinated in Guyana.
1988
Military defeat of the apartheid army at Cuito Cuanavale in Angola by the freedom fighters and Cuban internationalist forces.
1990
Namibia becomes independent. Nelson Mandela is released from prison after 27 years. ANC and PAC unbanned.
1991
Abuja Treaty was signed in Nigeria in order to achieve full continental economic development.
1994
The 7th Pan African Congress takes place in Kampala, Uganda.
1994
Nelson Mandela becomes president of South Africa.
1999
Sirte Declaration with plans for the transition from the OAU to African Union
2001
Third World Conference against Racism (WCAR) in Durban, South Africa. Major coming together of the Reparations Campaign of Global Africa.
2002
African Union officially launches, in order to refocus attention on increased cooperation of African states to promote the development.
2007
Celebration of 50th anniversary of Ghana independence and plans to accelerate the unification of Africa
2011
NATO invasion of Libya and the assassination of President Muamar Gaddafi
2015
African Union signs a Memorandum of Understanding with the Pan African Movement
2015-2016
Launch of the Black Lives Matter Movement internationally, before the lynching of George Floyd in 2020
2017
Second Kwame Cultural and Intellectual Festival – Accra Ghana
The History of the Congresses
Below are the congresses which constitute the traditional view of Pan Africanism.
The Fifth Pan African Congress
During the worse years of the capitalist depression there were many organizational forms of Pan Africanism. The Rastafari movement and the Kimbangist movements were expressions of Pan Africanism at the grassroots. Among intellectuals such as C.L.R James, George Padmore, Kwame Nkrumah, Paul Robeson and W. Alphaeus Hunton, Jr., there were …
Learn MoreThe Road to the Sixth Pan African Congress
Many of the luminaries of the 5th Pan African Congress went home to join the decolonization struggles being borne by market women, students, workers, poor peasants, ex-soldiers and intellectuals. Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana), Jomo Kenyatta (Kenya), Hastings Banda (Malawi) Obafemi Awolowo was among the more famous of the activists of the …
Learn MoreImperial machinations to divide the Pan African Movement
Ghana had become a magnet for Pan Africanism and leaders such as Martin Luther King and Malcolm X made pilgrimages to Accra. Maya Angelou was another of the Pan African forces that moved to live in Ghana. While the Nkrumah forces sought to build a coalition for the total independence …
Learn MoreThe road to the 7th Pan African Congress in Kampala 1994
The defeat of the apartheid army at Cuito Cuanavale in 1988 laid the foundations for a new lease of life in the Global Pan African Movement. In the early 1990s Namibia acceded to its independence and the apartheid regime unbanned the liberation movements (the ANC and PAC) and released Nelson …
Learn MoreThe Pan African Women Liberation Organization and the 7th Pan African Congress
In the meetings of the preparatory Committee there were intense debates about the history of the Pan African Movement and the silencing of women within the movement. Progressive women reminded the participants of the history of women in the movement and the lessons that should be learnt from the book, …
Learn MoreThe Road to the 8th Pan African Congress
The Resolutions and planning from the 7th Pan African Congress reinforced the stand for the full unification of Africa and the end of colonial rule. Apart from the emergence of PAWLO, the other major advance of the 7th Pan African Congress was to place the question of Reparations at the …
Learn MoreThe AU represented the culmination of decades of struggle and work that had gone into plans such as the:
- Lagos Plan of Action (LPA) and the Final Act of Lagos (1980);
- The African Charter on Human and People’s Rights (Nairobi 1981) and the Grand Bay Declaration and Plan of Action on Human rights.
- Africa’s Priority Programme for Economic recovery (APPER) – 1985: an emergency … Learn More
Pressures for clarity of the goals of the Pan African Movement
Just as how at the 7th Pan African Congress in Kampala there were other initiatives such as the Lagos Initiative, so since 2014 there were parallel initiatives for the Pan African Congress movement. The governments of South Africa, Brazil, Nigeria, Ghana, Jamaica and Senegal held numerous meetings that brought together …
Learn MoreThe African Union and the Call for the 8th Pan African Congress.
In 2009, Tajudeen Abdul Raheem, the General Secretary of the Global Pan African Movement passed away. Even before his passing the future of the Pan African Secretariat was in limbo as a result of the nature of the politics of Uganda. This politics polluted the goals of the movement and …
Learn MoreConclusions
After the 1935 invasion of Abyssinia by the Italians, there was urgency within the Pan African Movement to build the independence movement. The 5th Pan African Congress brought an alliance between the differing forces to inspire the decolonization process. Many of the leaders of the 5th Pan African Congress went …
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