One Zambia, Many Histories: Towards a History of Post-colonial Zambia

by Giacomo Macola, Jan-Bart Gewald (Editor), Director of Research and Programs Marja Hinfelaar (Editor)

In contrast to the rich tradition of academic analysis and understanding of the pre-colonial and colonial history of Zambia, the country s post-colonial trajectory has been all but ignored by historians. The assumptions of developmentalism, the cultural hegemony of the United National Independence Party s orthodoxy and its conflation with national interests, and a narrow focus on Zambia s diplomatic role in Southern African affairs, have all contributed to a dearth of studies centring on the diverse lived experiences of Zambians. Inspired by an international conference held in Lusaka in August 2005, and presenting a broad range of essays on different aspects of Zambia s post-colonial experience, this collection seeks to lay the foundations for a future process of sustained scholarly enquiry into the country s most recent past."

316 pages, Paperback

First published June 25, 2008

About the author

Giacomo Macola is associate professor in African history at Sapienza Università di Roma and research fellow in the Centre for Africa Studies of the University of the Free State.

Reviews

[Robert Jere · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of essays about specific themes in the history of Zambia. All the essays were written by academic historians. It was interesting to notice the difference between history written by an academic and history written by a person who was around when things were happening. When Zambians write their memoirs, the bias is so obvious, it is embarrassing.
There were many different things covered in this collection. I knew some of the things, but a lot of it was totally knew. There was a lot more detail about the 1980 coup 'attempt'. The most educational essay for me personally was the one about how the 'Mulungushi reforms' decimated retail shops in rural areas and started the urbanisation that has come to characterize Zambia.
Even when looked at from the perspective of academics, KK and UNIP are still the worst thing that ever happened to post colonial Zambia. There is one essay that provides details of how bad the repression under KK was.
The biggest take away from reading this is that Zambian political economy has been a mess for decades. Almost every vice that people complain about today has existed since KK's time. That is quite depressing.

[Chimbu Chibangulula]

I found it very vivid and the Lenshina massacre was a little difficult to digest but my country has come a long way and is gong to greater heights