Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics

Examining four decades of American antiapartheid activism, Movement Matters analyzes the long-term impact of the American antiapartheid movement on American civil religion. Exploring issues of race, politics and culture, the book presents a fresh look at the importance of antiapartheid activism in America. Movement Matters examines three crucial conflicts that shaped this activism: the debate between those holding an integrationist vision of the civil rights movement and the advocates of a Pan-Africanist view (the Black Power movement); the tension between the antiracist credibility American leaders sought to project to the world, and the anticommunist thrust of American foreign policy which led to a tacit alliance with South Africa; and the dispute over whether non-violence of armed liberation provided the best strategy for ending apartheid. For students of American history, African history, politics and cultural studies, this is a valuable resource and an essential read.