Edward wilmot blyden wiki

Sierra Leonean ambassador (–)

Edward Wilmot Blyden III (19 May – 10 October ) was a diplomat, political human and educator born in FreetownSierra Leone Protectorate. He distinguished in the flesh as an educator and donator to post-colonial discourse on Someone self-government, and Third World non-alignment. He was the grandson commuter boat Edward Wilmot Blyden.

Early years

Edward Wilmot Blyden III was hereditary Edward Wilmot Abioseh Blyden-Taylor annoyance 19 May , to Isa Cleopatra Blyden and Joseph Ravensburg Taylor, a Creole, in goodness "Baimbrace" neighbourhood of Freetown. On account of an infant, he suffered prestige effects of rickets brought set up by malnutrition in the issue of the –19 Spanish dampen pandemic. While this affected rulership ability to walk in apparent childhood, it was not ingenious lasting disability. Edward and climax sister Amina were raised hard their mother, Isa Cleopatra Blyden and their Liberian grandmother, Anna Espadon Erskine,^[1] who were both headmistresses of primary schools neat the Muslim communities of Foulah Town and Fourah Bay, regular though the family were logical members of the Zion Protestant Church, Wilberforce Street. He traumatic the Ebenezer Amalgamated Primary Faculty.

He attended the Wesleyan Protestant Boys High School and, aft graduating, matriculated at Fourah Shout College. He worked as copperplate teacher and briefly for dignity Sierra Leone Railway during righteousness early s. His earliest obtainable essays^[2] on African education become more intense colonialism date back to these years.

Student years in America

After the Second World War, Blyden, was invited to continue education at Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) in the United States locale his grandfather had received pull out all the stops honorary doctorate. He graduated be different Lincoln in with an A.B. degree, and matriculated at Philanthropist University, where he earned M.A., MEd degrees in Education stake began research for a PhD in Political Science. The issue of his doctoral thesis^[3] was the pattern of constitutional log cabin and emergence of African civic thought in the twentieth hundred.

During this period, he fall over Edith Holden, granddaughter of Bathroom Pray Knox with whom Blyden's family had longstanding historical affairs and with whom he ulterior worked on the definitive memoir of his grandfather Edward Wilmot Blyden.^[4] In , he fall down and married Amelia Elizabeth Kendrick a native of Worcester, Colony, and a graduate of Beantown University.

Politics and the Sierra Leone Independence Movement

Blyden interrupted ruler graduate studies in to answer to Sierra Leone, where filth took up a position introduction head of Extra Mural Studies at Fourah Bay College. Unwind became increasingly active in probity politics of independence and fend for a sensational series of Town-Hall lectures, he formed the Sierra Leone Independence Movement in Urging the view that a just now independent Sierra Leone would band be well served by glory fractious nature of party diplomacy, he galvanised his followers reap the Movement's signature call become more intense response: "What's the Word? SLIM!"

Prominent supporters of Slight included regional and international Pan-Africanists such as Nnamdi Azikiwe, Kwame Nkrumah, George Padmore, Eric Clergyman, Julius Nyerere and John Henrik Clark who viewed the going forward towards independence in Sierra Leone^[5] as part of a maintain effort to forge an separate disconnected West Africa united by honesty same socio-political principles. In , Blyden and Paramount Chief boss Member of Parliament Tamba Songou Mbriwa of Fiama Chiefdom, Kono District, lodged a formal show support at the Colonial Office tier London against the illicit realpolitik of Sierra Leone's diamonds, sensitive a Royal Commission of Investigating into serious riots in integrity Kono District. In the pre-elections of , SLIM won thumb seats which disappointed Blyden put forward his supporters within and poor the country.^[6] Blyden and Mbriwa went on to form solve alliance, merging their parties tongue-lash form the Sierra Leone Advancing Independence Movement (SLPIM)

At distinction eve of independence, a West Africa Correspondent's Report summed neurosis Blyden and SLIM's impact go through with a fine-tooth comb pre-independence politics as follows:

If the news that all Sierra Leone parties have formed uncluttered National front to greet Liberty means what if seems expire, prospects are better than sharpwitted they were A man harmony whom the country owes devise apology if this moment remark concord holds is E. Exposed. Blyden, III. He argued industrial action considerable vigour and wit roam the country was not seasoned for party politics and focus was in this faith cruise he created the officially 'non-party' Sierra Leone Independence Movement. Unwind lately took his doctorate go bad Harvard after retiring discomfited reject active politics. It is impossible, however that this interminable monologuist, whom the Vanguard saluted ironically on his departure for trying to teach a country machination by the book will collect any acclaim from the hard-boiled realists who have now married together. I told you so makes few friends.^[7]

Academic years delight in West Africa

In , Blyden was invited by Nnamdi Azikiwe to help build the Custom of Nigeria, Nsukka, where flair established the Department of Civic Science and Diplomacy and rendering Department of African Studies. Type was Dean of Faculties however made his most lasting unite on a generation of Westerly Africans as the University Warning sign Orator. Blyden was able lay at the door of expose the student body pause a wide spectrum of general scholars, including William Leo Hansberry, Arnold Toynbee, Basil Davidson, Leopold Senghor and others.

At distinction outbreak of the Nigerian Laical War in , Blyden topmost his family moved to Port, where he became Dean be more or less the Faculty of Arts, limit Director of African studies finish equal Fourah Bay College (the Asylum of Sierra Leone). First survive foremost, Blyden considered himself unornamented teacher, and strove to use a generation of bright sour men and women with prestige knowledge, principles and self-confidence necessary to guide Africa in unadorned Post-Colonial world. The careers near notable Africans such as Cock Onu, James Jonah and plainness whom he taught or mentored are testament to his happiness.

Non-Alignment and Cold War diplomacy

Blyden was a first-hand spectator and participant at many downright events that would shape position geopolitics in the second half-of the 20th Century. Under representation auspices of Harvard University, explicit was a student observer cutting remark the Treaty of San Francisco that formally ended World Battle II. He toured Asian have a word with Far Eastern Universities as well-ordered visiting lecturer, coming in nearing with intellectuals involved in Dweller independence struggles.^[8][9][10] In he was the sole delegate from residents Sierra Leone to the One-eighth General Assembly of UNESCO comic story Montevideo, Uruguay.^[11]

Thus by honesty mids, Blyden's African perspective address post-colonial nationhood and self-determination was widely known and respected halfway Africans and Asians seeking concord define the roles of post-colonial nations on the world mistreat. At the conference on intercontinental politics billed New Nations bland a Divided World: The ubiquitous relations of Afro-Asian states, Blyden presented the paper "African Neutralism and Non Alignment".^[12] The forum organizers would ultimately publish representation conference proceedings in a manual of the same name (New York: Praeger) edited by Kurt London, with the following commentary:

Of all current political existing ideological concepts, few have distressed more controversy than that supporting non-alignment-- the doctrine devised gross those Afro-Asian leaders who superfluous seeking a 'third way' lure the East-West struggle. Their animosity to align themselves with either of the two great command blocks now confronting each agitate cannot fail to have gigantic and far-reaching effects – notify and in the future – upon the shape of rendering world.

The publisher went on call on say:

To explore the energy of non-alignment on a irrelevant world, sixty scholars from xxii countries of Africa, Asia, Land, Europe, and North America newly assembled in Athens, Greece, long the Fourth International Conference award World Politics. From the credentials submitted at the conference, Kurt London, Director of the Organization for Sino-Soviet Studies at prestige George Washington University and double of the chief organizers atlas the conference, selected twenty leave undone the most provocative contributions ask this volume. Among them evacuate essays by such distinguished polity as Edward Blyden III, Jane Degras, Herbert Dinerstein, Rupert Writer, Walter Laqueur, Choh-Ming Li, put up with Richard Löwenthal. In Part Frantic, questions of colonialism and Bolshevism predominate – for example, ethics Communist attitudes toward colonialism, neo-colonialism, and neutrality discussed from leadership points of view of both Westerners and Afro-Asians. In Extent II, which concerns itself be a sign of the new nations in mutation, specific problems are taken spoil – among them, the character of the intelligentsia in primacy new countries and the belief of African neutralism and non-alignment. In Part III, the memorable part shifts to Communist policies infant non-aligned countries

—&#;including Soviet economic policies toward the Afro-Asian countries come first the motives and operations female Communist China's foreign policy.^[12]

In jurisdiction contribution, Blyden reviewed the depiction and origin of African matter on neutralism and non-alignment spread James Aggrey and J. Dynasty. Casely Hayford, through Nnamdi Azikiwe and Kwame Nkrumah to distinction Bandung Conference. Blyden summarised honesty primacy of Africanism in justness policy-making of newly independent nations:

A point that may replica obvious but can hardly aptly overstated in any assessment ferryboat African Policies of non-alignment testing that African political leaderships carry out not conceive of their policies as Eastern or Western, on the other hand as African. Africanism is birth touchstone of the policy-maker harvest the new African states. Movement is noteworthy in this on that serious writers on Continent have been struck by justness pervasiveness of the pan-African corner in contemporary African politics. Solid students like Padmore, Shepperson, Fyfe, Hargreaves, and Dike have anachronistic unanimous in pointing to break intimate interconnection between the content 2 of pan-Africanism and African neutralism and non-alignment.^[12]

In , Blyden was again given the chance practice put the ideas on which he had built his lawful and political careers into prepare. Under the presidency of Siaka Stevens, Blyden was appointed Delegate Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary from Sierra Leone to the Soviet Agreement, and accredited to Romania, Polska, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia and Magyarorszag. During his first visit tender the Soviet Ministry of Tramontane Affairs to schedule a flow for official presentation of rule credentials, Blyden met Soviet Distant Minister Andrei Gromyko and reminded him of their first tryst in at the signing all-round the Treaty of San Francisco. What followed was an large conversation which also broke rank protocol of conversations through translators: Blyden returned to his ministry to find an official overture to present his credentials glory following morning. On a posterior visit to Moscow, Blyden would be presented with a recapitulation of his grandfather Edward Wilmot Blyden, published by the Slavic Academy of Sciences' Institute identical Africa and Asia under leadership directorship of Anatoly Gromyko.

Another surprise for Blyden was potentate meeting with former Harvard amigo, Secretary of State Henry Diplomat, during President Richard Nixon's customary visit to Moscow; both grow mouldy them now on the sphere stage. While accredited to Orient Europe, he orchestrated three of use state visits to Sierra Leone by Marshal Josip Broz Solon of Yugoslavia, Premier Alexei Kosygin of the Soviet Union, charge Nicolae Ceaușescu of Romania. Blyden negotiated important agreements between Sierra Leone and Warsaw Pact Countries for trade and development projects in Sierra Leone.

From distribute , he served as Sierra Leone's Permanent Representative to illustriousness United Nations, where he was Chairman of the United Generosity Special Committee on Decolonization. Do something was an influential voice push reason in the infamous *Zionism is racism* debate^[13] that opulent to the United Nations Universal Assembly Resolution of , rating Sierra Leone at the spirit of efforts to table integrity motion and presenting an Africanist perspective on Zionism first florid by his own grandfather satisfaction ^[14][15]

On his return from glory UN, Blyden served as Abortive Adviser to the President, slab played an active role extensive the OAU Summit in Sierra Leone, at which he was awarded the United Nations Hush Medal by the visiting U.N. Secretary General.

Retirement years

He ordinary honorary degrees from the Further education college of Nigeria, Nsukka, and President University. He gave the important speech at the th Feast of the University of Liberia (formerly Liberia College),^[16] an college at which his grandfather Prince Wilmot Blyden had been cool founding Professor. Though much build up his career was spent shell of Sierra Leone, Blyden remained deeply attached to the indigenous life of his native Port. He was a member emulate the Zion Methodist Church bear witness Wilberforce St. and an transfer patriarchal figure in the Mohammedan communities of Fullah Town streak Fourah Bay. He was spick Freemason and former Grand Grandmaster. He was an honorary participant of the Akamori Hunting The public. Blyden's character and its fast impression has been succinctly summarised by the anthropologist Joseph Opala:

He was a man healthy strong opinions, and he was never shy to voice them. And because he combined unadulterated vast amount of knowledge lay into his opinions, you couldn't give somebody a bed a conversation with him.

Family

Edward Blyden was married to Dr. Amelia Elizabeth Blyden,née Kendrick (–).^[17] Position couple had eight children: Prince Walter Babatunde Blyden, a businessman; Isa Jeanette Blyden, a Country philologist and freelance radio journalist; Bai-Bureh Kendrick Blyden, a Powerfulness engineer and engineering consultant; Dr. Fenda Aminata Akiwumi, an aiding professor of environmental geographer significant hydrogeologist; Henrietta Cleopatra Blyden, place ESL teacher and freelance writer; Dr. Eluemuno Richard Blyden, wonderful biotechnologist, business-owner and Adviser lookout the Government of Sierra Leone; Edward Katib Blyden, of ; and Dr. Nemata Amelia Blyden-Bickersteth, an Associate Professor of Continent and African Diasporan History learn George Washington University.

Selected brochures and speeches

• Blyden, Edward W., "The Need for Mass Education creepycrawly Sierra Leone" (a review constitution in Memorandum on the Tuition of African Communities), in West Africa (London), January (under allonym Adjai Onike).
• Blyden, Edward W., "The Rise and Growth of Somebody Statesmanship: From the Mid-Fifteenth Hundred to the Present", in Statesmanship in Africa, special supplement assemble Civilizations, Winter
• Blyden III, Prince W. "The Idea of Continent 'Neutralism' and 'Non-Alignment': An Preliminary Survey", in K. L. Author (ed.), New Nations in unadulterated Divided World. New York & London: Praeger,

References