Ken Saro-Wiwa

Description

Hanged by the Nigerian government on November 10, 1995, Ken Saro-Wiwa became a martyr for the Ogoni people and human rights activists, and a symbol of modern Africans’ struggle against military dictatorship, corporate power, and environmental exploitation. Though he is rightly known for his human rights and environmental activism, he wore many hats: writer, television producer, businessman, and civil servant, among others. While the book sheds light on his many legacies, it is above all about Saro-Wiwa the man, not just Saro-Wiwa the symbol. Roy Doron and Toyin Falola portray a man who not only was formed by the complex forces of ethnicity, race, class, and politics in Nigeria, but who drove change in those same processes. Like others in the Ohio Short Histories of Africa series, Ken Saro-Wiwa is written to be accessible to the casual reader and student, yet indispensable to scholars. Contents Illustrations Preface Introduction 1: Nigeria and Saro-Wiwa’s World to 1960 2: Saro-Wiwa’s Childhood and Education 3: The Nigerian Civil War Years 4: Business, Writing, and Politics 5: Activism and the Politics of Oil, the Environment, and Genocide 6: MOSOP, the Ogoni Bill of Rights, and Saro-Wiwa’s Activism 7: The Trials and Death of Saro-Wiwa 8: The Many Legacies of Ken Saro-Wiwa Notes Bibliography Index