Thought Provokers
The Myth of Arab Piracy in the Gulf
In reading books on Qatar (see this section for the list), many of the criticisms I have made of contemporary scholarship is a continuation of colonial attitudes and perspectives. On that note, I was glad to come across the gem of a book, “The Myth of Arab Piracy in the Gulf” (1986), by Sultan Muhammad […]
Tags: #Al-Qasimi #Colonialism #Gulf #History #Myth of Arab Piracy
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Ellen Johnson Sirleaf” (2016), by Pamela Scully. One of the rants that often appear in my classes and in assignment feedback comments relate […]
Tags: #Ellen Johnson Sirleaf #Liberia #Ohio University Press #Short Histories of Africa
Poverty Alleviation (Fiqh of Zakah)
In humanitarian and development activity, in the last two decades more organizations are distributing direct financial transfers. The expansion of mobile banking and cell phone coverage have enabled this to expand in reach and scale. There is a large literature on this subject, looking at efficiency, agency and impact (and relatively less discussion about universal […]
Tags: #Fiqh of Zakah #Lifetime needs #Poverty alleviation #Qaradawi #Zakat
Emperor Haile Selassie
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Emperor Haile Selassie” (2014) by Bereket Habte Selassie. Books usually take more than a year to write, get reviewed, go into publication, and […]
Tags: #Biography #Emperor Haile Selassie #Ethiopia #History #Ohio University Press
Patrice Lumumba
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Patrice Lumumba” (2014) by Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja. This is a great summary, but might have since been overshadowed by a book published the year […]
Tags: #Freedom #Liberty #Patrice Lumumba #Struggle #United Nations
Frantz Fanon
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Frantz Fanon: Toward a Revolutionary Humanism” (2015) by Christopher J. Lee. Unlike other books in this series, this book delves into quite a […]
Ken Saro-Wiwa
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Ken Saro-Wiwa” (2016) by Roy Doron and Toyin Falola. Unlike other books that might gloss over some of the more problematic choices made […]
Tags: #Ken Saro-Wiwa #Nigeria #Ogoni #Roy Doron #Toyin Falola
Chris Hani
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Chris Hani” (2014) by Hugh MacMillan. Like others in this series, this book helps provide accessible and concise materials on leading figures that […]
Tags: #ANC #Apartheid #Chris Hani #South Africa #uMkhonto we Sizwe
Steve Biko
Ohio University Press has a series of “Short Histories of Africa”. I had one book from this series previously, on Thomas Sankara, and recently decided to pick up most of the collection for potential use as reading materials for classes. This post covers “Steve Biko” by Lindy Wilson, published in 2011. I found this book useful […]
Tags: #Apartheid #Lindy Wilson #Ohio Short Histories of Africa #South Africa #Steven Biko
Loss and Recovery of Self Under Colonialism
Ashis Nandy’s “The Intimate Enemy: Loss and Recovery of Self Under Colonialism” (1983) is a classic postcolonial text from the Asian experience. One note I found fascinating was that this author found inspiration in the writings of African revolutionaries, finding little from what he was reading from the region he lived within. Through this we […]
Tags: #Ashis Nandy #Colonialism #Colonization #Conformity #Dissent
About me
Logan Cochrane
Associate Professor at HBKU in the College of Public Policy. He is an Associate Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences and an Adjunct Professor at Hawassa University (Institute for Policy and Development Research). Over the last fifteen years, he has worked in Afghanistan, Benin, Burundi, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. Logan acts as a consultant for governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, seeking to create bridges between research and practice.
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