Shango Baku

Beacons of Liberation was first published in 1995 and was themed on a mural at the Yaa Asantewaa Arts Centre in Paddington, London, depicting twelve historical Black leaders: six men and six women who had advanced the cause of African liberty by their heroic efforts to better the conditions of their people. The list included freedom fighters and activists from a range of backgrounds in Africa and the Diaspora – from Queen Nzinga in 16th century Angola to Queen Mother Moore in 20th century USA. Their brief biographies were collated in order to highlight the ongoing struggle for equality and freedom that still resonates in the 21st century.

This new edition has been extended to include three other achievers: Mary Prince, Robert Wedderburn and Ira Aldridge. Their considerable impact on the abolitionist movement in Britain determines their inclusion. Prince became the featured icon of the abolitionist movement; Wedderburn linked class oppression in Britain to slavery in the West Indies; and through his stagecraft, Aldridge dispelled the myth of Black inferiority that fuelled the powerful British pro-slavery lobby. The resurrection of these role-models will serve to fill a gap in the story of emancipation from a Black perspective.

• 216 x 138 mm
• 70 pages
• Paperback