The Republic of New Afrika (RNA), founded in 1968 as the Republic of New Africa (RNA), is a black nationalist organization and black separatist movement in the United States popularized by black militant groups. The larger New Afrika movement in particular has three goals:
Creation of an independent black-majority country situated in the Southeastern United States, in the heart of an area of black-majority population.
Payment by the federal government of several billion dollars in reparations to African-American descendants of slaves for the damages inflicted on Africans and their descendants by chattel enslavement, Jim Crow laws, and modern-day forms of racism.
A referendum of all African Americans to determine their desires for citizenship; movement leaders say their ancestors were not offered a choice in this matter after emancipation in 1865 following the American Civil War.
The Republic of New Afrika flag
US States identified as subjugated national territory at the 1968 foundational conference[1]
The proposed territory centers on areas where the highest percentage of the population self-reported as black lives[citation needed] in the US (2000).
The vision for this country was first promulgated by the Malcolm X Society[2] on March 31, 1968, at a Black Government Conference held in Detroit, Michigan. The conference participants drafted a constitution and declaration of independence,[2] and they identified five Southern states Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina (with adjoining areas in East Texas and North Florida) as subjugated national territory.[1]
The Black Government Conference was convened by the Malcolm X Society and the Group on Advanced Leadership (GOAL), two influential Detroit-based black organizations with broad followings. The attendees produced a Declaration of Independence (signed by 100 conferees out of approximately 500), a constitution, and the framework for a provisional government. Robert F. Williams, a human rights advocate then living in exile in China, was chosen as the first president of the provisional government; attorney Milton Henry (a student of Malcolm X's teachings) was named first vice president[3]; and Betty Shabazz, widow of Malcolm X, served as second vice president.
The Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika (PG-RNA) advocated/advocates a form of cooperative economics through the building of New Communities—named after the Ujamaa concept promoted by Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere. It proposed militant self-defense through the building of local people's militias and a standing army to be called the Black Legion; and the building of racially based organizations to champion the right of self-determination for people of black African descent.
The organization was involved in numerous controversial issues. For example, it attempted to assist Oceanhill-Brownsville area in Brooklyn to secede from the United States during the 1968 conflict over control of public schools. Additionally, it was involved with shootouts at New Bethel Baptist Church in 1969 (during the one-year anniversary of the founding) and another in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1971. (It had announced that the capital of the Republic would be in Hinds County, Mississippi, located on a member's farm.) In the confrontations, law-enforcement officials were killed and injured. Organization members were persecuted for the crimes the members claimed was in self defense.[4]
Notable members
Queen Mother Moore was a founding member. She helped found the group and helped out in the group as much as she could.
Robert F. Williams was a black nationalist elected as the first president of the Republic of New Afrika.[3]
Betty Shabazz, widow of Malcolm X, was elected as second vice president of the first administration in 1968, working alongside Williams and Henry.[3]
Chokwe Lumumba, formerly Edwin Finley Taliaferro of Detroit, was elected as second vice president in 1971. He later became an attorney, working in Michigan and Mississippi in public defense. After settling in Jackson, Mississippi, he was elected to the city council there. He was elected as mayor in 2013, dying in office in February 2014 of natural causes.
The Article Three Brief. 1973. (New Afrikans fought U.S. Marshals in an effort to retain control of the independent New Afrikan communities shortly after the U.S. Civil War.)
Obadele, Imari Abubakari. Foundations of the Black Nation, Detroit: House of Songay, 1975.
Brother Imari [Obadele, Imari]. War In America: The Malcolm X Doctrine, Chicago: Ujamaa Distributors, 1977.
Kehinde, Muata. RNA President Imari Obadele is Free After Years of Illegal U.S. Imprisonment. In Burning Spear Louisville: African Peoples Socialist Party, 1980. pp. 4–28
Obadele, Imari Abubakari. The Malcolm Generation & Other Stories, Philadelphia: House of Songhay, 1982.
Taifa, Nkechi, and Lumumba, Chokwe. Reparations Yes! 3rd ed. Baton Rouge: House of Songhay, 1983, 1987, 1993.
Obadele, Imari Abubakari. Free The Land!: The True Story of the Trials of the RNA-11 Washington, D.C. House of Songhay, 1984.
New Afrikan State-Building in North America. Ann Arbor. Univ. of Michigan Microfilm, 1985, pp. 345–357.
"The First New Afrikan States". In The Black Collegian, Jan./Feb. 1986.
A Beginner's Outline of the History of Afrikan People, 1st ed. Washington, D.C. House of Songhay, Commission for Positive Education, 1987.
America The Nation-State. Washington, D.C. and Baton Rouge. House of Songhay, Commission for Positive Education, 1989, 1988.
Walker, Kwaku, and Walker, Abena. Black Genius. Baton Rouge. House of Songhay, Commission for Positive Education, 1991.
Afoh, Kwame, Lumumba, Chokwe, and Obafemi, Ahmed. A Brief History of the Black Struggle in America, With Obadele's Macro-Level Theory of Human Organization. Baton Rouge. House of Songhay, Commission for Positive Education, 1991.
RNA. A People's Struggle. RNA, Box 90604, Washington, D.C. 20090–0604.
The Republic of New Africa New Afrikan Ujamaa: The Economics of the Republic of New Africa. 21p. San Francisco. 1970.
Obadele, Imari Abubakari. The Struggle for Independence and Reparations from the United States 142p. Baton Rouge. House of Songhay, 2004.
Obadele, Imari A., editor De-Colonization U.S.A.: The Independence Struggle of the Black Nation in the United States Centering on the 1996 United Nations Petition 228p. Baton Rouge. The Malcolm Generation, 1997.
Taifa, Nkechi. 'Black Power, Black Lawyer: My Audacious Quest for Justice' 379p. Washington, DC, House of Songhay II, 2020.
^ abTaifa, Nkechi (2015). "Republic of New Afrika". In Shujaa, Mwalimu J.; Shujaa, Kenya J. (eds.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America. SAGE Publications, Inc.doi:10.4135/9781483346373. ISBN9781483346373.
^ abMjagkij, Nina (2013-05-13). Organizing Black America. Routledge. ISBN978-1135581237.
^ abcSalvatore, N. A. (2005). Singing in a Strange Land: C. L. Franklin, the Black Church, and the Transformation of America. New York: Little, Brown and Company.
The Republic of New Africa vs. the United States, 1967–1974, documents on police surveillance and repression of the RNA as well as protest by the organization at the Radical Information Project.
Articles and reports
: The Republic of New Africa] William F. Buckley interviews Milton Henry, President of the Republic of New Afrika. Program number 126. Taped on Nov 18, 1968 (New York City, NY). 50 minutes. Available from the Hoover Institution. The first 5 minutes are accessible in .
by Christian Davenport, Professor of Peace Studies and Political Science at the Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame.
The Real Republic of New Africa By Dennis Smith, News Director. February 3, 2005. Accessed April 1, 2005
Taifa, Nkechi (2015). "Republic of New Afrika". In Shujaa, Mwalimu J.; Shujaa, Kenya J. (eds.). The SAGE Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America. SAGE Publications, Inc.doi:10.4135/9781483346373. ISBN9781483346373.
March 06, 2023
republic, afrika, africa, redirects, here, album, grachan, moncur, africa, album, this, article, multiple, issues, please, help, improve, discuss, these, issues, talk, page, learn, when, remove, these, template, messages, this, article, includes, list, general. New Africa redirects here For for the album by Grachan Moncur III see New Africa album This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations October 2008 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Republic of New Afrika news newspapers books scholar JSTOR November 2018 Learn how and when to remove this template message Learn how and when to remove this template message The Republic of New Afrika RNA founded in 1968 as the Republic of New Africa RNA is a black nationalist organization and black separatist movement in the United States popularized by black militant groups The larger New Afrika movement in particular has three goals Creation of an independent black majority country situated in the Southeastern United States in the heart of an area of black majority population Payment by the federal government of several billion dollars in reparations to African American descendants of slaves for the damages inflicted on Africans and their descendants by chattel enslavement Jim Crow laws and modern day forms of racism A referendum of all African Americans to determine their desires for citizenship movement leaders say their ancestors were not offered a choice in this matter after emancipation in 1865 following the American Civil War The Republic of New Afrika flagUS States identified as subjugated national territory at the 1968 foundational conference 1 The proposed territory centers on areas where the highest percentage of the population self reported as black lives citation needed in the US 2000 The vision for this country was first promulgated by the Malcolm X Society 2 on March 31 1968 at a Black Government Conference held in Detroit Michigan The conference participants drafted a constitution and declaration of independence 2 and they identified five Southern states Louisiana Mississippi Alabama Georgia and South Carolina with adjoining areas in East Texas and North Florida as subjugated national territory 1 Contents 1 History 2 Notable members 2 1 Leaders 3 Publications 4 See also 5 References 6 External links 6 1 RNA links 6 2 Archives 6 3 Articles and reportsHistory EditThe Black Government Conference was convened by the Malcolm X Society and the Group on Advanced Leadership GOAL two influential Detroit based black organizations with broad followings The attendees produced a Declaration of Independence signed by 100 conferees out of approximately 500 a constitution and the framework for a provisional government Robert F Williams a human rights advocate then living in exile in China was chosen as the first president of the provisional government attorney Milton Henry a student of Malcolm X s teachings was named first vice president 3 and Betty Shabazz widow of Malcolm X served as second vice president The Provisional Government of the Republic of New Afrika PG RNA advocated advocates a form of cooperative economics through the building of New Communities named after the Ujamaa concept promoted by Tanzanian President Julius Nyerere It proposed militant self defense through the building of local people s militias and a standing army to be called the Black Legion and the building of racially based organizations to champion the right of self determination for people of black African descent The organization was involved in numerous controversial issues For example it attempted to assist Oceanhill Brownsville area in Brooklyn to secede from the United States during the 1968 conflict over control of public schools Additionally it was involved with shootouts at New Bethel Baptist Church in 1969 during the one year anniversary of the founding and another in Jackson Mississippi in 1971 It had announced that the capital of the Republic would be in Hinds County Mississippi located on a member s farm In the confrontations law enforcement officials were killed and injured Organization members were persecuted for the crimes the members claimed was in self defense 4 Notable members EditQueen Mother Moore was a founding member She helped found the group and helped out in the group as much as she could Robert F Williams was a black nationalist elected as the first president of the Republic of New Afrika 3 Betty Shabazz widow of Malcolm X was elected as second vice president of the first administration in 1968 working alongside Williams and Henry 3 Chokwe Lumumba formerly Edwin Finley Taliaferro of Detroit was elected as second vice president in 1971 He later became an attorney working in Michigan and Mississippi in public defense After settling in Jackson Mississippi he was elected to the city council there He was elected as mayor in 2013 dying in office in February 2014 of natural causes Sanyika Shakur former leader of Eight Tray Gangster Crips and author Monster The Autobiography of an L A Gang Member Leaders Edit Robert F Williams President in Exile 1968 1971 Imari Obadele President 1971 1991 Publications EditThe Article Three Brief 1973 New Afrikans fought U S Marshals in an effort to retain control of the independent New Afrikan communities shortly after the U S Civil War Obadele Imari Abubakari Foundations of the Black Nation Detroit House of Songay 1975 Brother Imari Obadele Imari War In America The Malcolm X Doctrine Chicago Ujamaa Distributors 1977 Kehinde Muata RNA President Imari Obadele is Free After Years of Illegal U S Imprisonment In Burning Spear Louisville African Peoples Socialist Party 1980 pp 4 28 Obadele Imari Abubakari The Malcolm Generation amp Other Stories Philadelphia House of Songhay 1982 Taifa Nkechi and Lumumba Chokwe Reparations Yes 3rd ed Baton Rouge House of Songhay 1983 1987 1993 Obadele Imari Abubakari Free The Land The True Story of the Trials of the RNA 11 Washington D C House of Songhay 1984 New Afrikan State Building in North America Ann Arbor Univ of Michigan Microfilm 1985 pp 345 357 The First New Afrikan States In The Black Collegian Jan Feb 1986 A Beginner s Outline of the History of Afrikan People 1st ed Washington D C House of Songhay Commission for Positive Education 1987 America The Nation State Washington D C and Baton Rouge House of Songhay Commission for Positive Education 1989 1988 Walker Kwaku and Walker Abena Black Genius Baton Rouge House of Songhay Commission for Positive Education 1991 Afoh Kwame Lumumba Chokwe and Obafemi Ahmed A Brief History of the Black Struggle in America With Obadele s Macro Level Theory of Human Organization Baton Rouge House of Songhay Commission for Positive Education 1991 RNA A People s Struggle RNA Box 90604 Washington D C 20090 0604 The Republic of New Africa New Afrikan Ujamaa The Economics of the Republic of New Africa 21p San Francisco 1970 Obadele Imari Abubakari The Struggle for Independence and Reparations from the United States 142p Baton Rouge House of Songhay 2004 Obadele Imari A editor De Colonization U S A The Independence Struggle of the Black Nation in the United States Centering on the 1996 United Nations Petition 228p Baton Rouge The Malcolm Generation 1997 Taifa Nkechi Black Power Black Lawyer My Audacious Quest for Justice 379p Washington DC House of Songhay II 2020 See also EditSecession in the United States Back to Africa movement Bantustan Black Power Deep South Harry Haywood Malcolm X Northwest Territorial Imperative a white nationalist idea involving the creation of a white only state in the Pacific Northwest Mutulu Shakur Liberia and Sierra Leone countries colonized to resettle freed slaves in Africa Aliyah the immigration of Jewish emigrants to Palestine Republic of Texas formed out of Mexican Texas by American pioneersReferences Edit a b Taifa Nkechi 2015 Republic of New Afrika In Shujaa Mwalimu J Shujaa Kenya J eds The SAGE Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America SAGE Publications Inc doi 10 4135 9781483346373 ISBN 9781483346373 a b Mjagkij Nina 2013 05 13 Organizing Black America Routledge ISBN 978 1135581237 a b c Salvatore N A 2005 Singing in a Strange Land C L Franklin the Black Church and the Transformation of America New York Little Brown and Company Brown Tougaloo Project cds library brown edu Retrieved 2020 07 24 External links EditRNA links Edit Provisional Government Republic of New Afrika Official Web Site The Republic of New Afrika New Afrika Online Blog Archives Edit RNA documents in the Freedom Now archival project at Brown University Tougaloo College archives The Republic of New Africa vs the United States 1967 1974 documents on police surveillance and repression of the RNA as well as protest by the organization at the Radical Information Project Articles and reports Edit Firing Line The Republic of New Africa William F Buckley interviews Milton Henry President of the Republic of New Afrika Program number 126 Taped on Nov 18 1968 New York City NY 50 minutes Available from the Hoover Institution The first 5 minutes are accessible in streaming RealAudio Understanding Covert Repressive Action The Case of the US Government Against the Republic of New Africa by Christian Davenport Professor of Peace Studies and Political Science at the Kroc Institute University of Notre Dame The Real Republic of New Africa By Dennis Smith News Director February 3 2005 Accessed April 1 2005 Taifa Nkechi 2015 Republic of New Afrika In Shujaa Mwalimu J Shujaa Kenya J eds The SAGE Encyclopedia of African Cultural Heritage in North America SAGE Publications Inc doi 10 4135 9781483346373 ISBN 9781483346373 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Republic of New Afrika amp oldid 1141976431, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
