Photographing the Liberation Struggle in Zimbabwe: Politics, Power, and the Images of Zenzo Nkobi

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Lungile Augustine Tshuma

Photographing the Liberation Struggle in Zimbabwe

Politics, Power, and the Images of Zenzo Nkobi

Lungile Augustine Tshuma

$105

Hardback

Forthcoming
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English

Routledge
26 September 2024

Photography & photographs; African history; Colonialism & imperialism; Comparative politics; Political campaigning & advertising

Series: Routledge Studies in the Modern History of Africa

After assuming power in 1980, the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU) has sought to control the narrative of the struggle for liberation from colonialism, to the exclusion of other players such as the Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU). This book investigates the ways in which photographs are being used within Zimbabwe, especially on social media, to challenge the prevailing narrative and reclaim the memories of the subjugated.

The book analyses the photographs produced by Zenzo Nkobi during the struggle against colonialism. Drawing on the memories of veterans from ZAPU and its military wing the Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (ZPRA), the book shows that photographs can both act as a conduit for existing narratives, and as a tool for shaping memory narratives, and evidencing ZPRA military prowess ahead of other movements.

At a time when Zimbabwe is reassessing the legacy of liberation, this book offers a powerful multidisciplinary assessment for researchers across the fields of history, memory, political science, African studies, and media studies.

By: Lungile Augustine Tshuma
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 138mm,
ISBN: 9781032621647
ISBN 10: 1032621648
Series: Routledge Studies in the Modern History of Africa
Pages: 172
Publication Date: 26 September 2024
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Introduction: Remembering Zimbabwe’s Contested Past 1: Boarding Time: ZAPU and its ‘Revolution Within a Revolution’ 2: Rising from the Ashes: Setting the Conventional Army 3: Looking into ZPRA’s Women’s Brigade 4: ZAPU and the Internationalisation of the Struggle 5: False landing: Zimbabwe’s Unfinished Business Conclusion: Photography and Salience(ing) the Past

Tshuma Lungile is a researcher in the Centre for Communication and Culture (CECC), Universidade Católica Portuguesa. He holds a Ph.D. in journalism studies from the University of Johannesburg (UJ), South Africa. Prior to joining Universidade Católica Portuguesa, Lungile was a Senior Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the department of Media and Communication at UJ. Lungile’s research interest are in photography, memory, and journalism. His work has been published in local and international journals such as Journal of Genocide Research, African Journalism Studies, Critical Arts, Nations and Nationalism, Journal of Communication Inquiry, and Media, Culture and Society. He also co-edited Patterns of Harassment in African Journalism (Routledge 2024).

Reviews for Photographing the Liberation Struggle in Zimbabwe: Politics, Power, and the Images of Zenzo Nkobi

A rich, riveting and awe-inspiring account of Zenzo Nkobi’s photographic works, and how they are intertwined with memory politics and the national question. Mphathisi Ndlovu, National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe This book is a tour de force! Well done on powerfully weaving a compelling literary tapestry to Zenzo Nkobi’s photographic archive of one of the most formidable liberation movements in Southern Africa. Siphosami Malunga, Programs Director at Open Society Africa