In a life that spanned a little over half a century, Trinidadian George Padmore, the militant revolutionary, political thinker and anti-colonial champion, contributed significantly to laying the foundation of a movement which would act as a catalyst for the independence of states across Africa and the Caribbean.

Arising out of a 2003 conference marking the centenary of Padmore’s birth, the articles in this collection highlight and explore in unique ways, the varying facets of Padmore. His development from student activist to political figure under the watchful eye of C.L.R. James, his role as journalist and organizer and the friendships formed on the path to black liberation, all come under examination. In studying Padmore, the contributions in this volume go further than the individual by contextualizing the struggle of which he was a part and dedicated his life to.

This Pan African legend is still a source of inspiration to students and scholars who continue to organize, debate and vocalize in advancing the interests of the African diaspora.

Contents

Photographs

Introduction– Rupert Lewis 

• The Immoral Batsman: George Padmore the Revolutionary, Writer and Activist – Jerome Teelucksingh

1. George Padmore: Pan-Africanist Par Excellence – Rodney Worrell
2. The African Conference of Governors and Indigenous Collaborators, 1947−1948: A British Strategy to Blunt the 1945 Manchester Pan-African Congress – Fitzroy Baptise
3. George Padmore and the 1954 Manchester Pan-African Congress – Hakim Adi
4. George Padmore’s Use of Periodicals to Build a Movement – Carol Polsgrove
5. George Padmore’s and C.L.R. James’s International African Opinion – Matthew Quest
6. George Padmore: Reconciling Two Phases of Contradictions – Vincent B. Thompson
7. George Padmore: Towards a Political Assessment – Rupert Lewis
8. George Padmore and Kwame Nkrumah: A Tentative Outline of Their Relationship – Marika Sherwood
9. C.L.R. James and George Padmore: The Ties that Bind – Black Radicalism and Political Friendship – Anthony Bogues

Contributors

Index

About The Author

Fitzroy Baptiste (1940-2007)taught African history, Asian and African Diaspora Studies in the Department of History, University of the West Indies, St Augustine. He also taught African History in the Department of History, University of the West Indies, Mona.

Rupert Lewis is Professor of Political Thought and Associate Director of the Centre for Caribbean Thought in the Department of Government, University of the West Indies, Mona.