Cabral, Amilcar
[key], 1924–73, revolutionary leader of Guinea-Bissau. Returning
from Angolan exile (1956), he founded Guinea-Bissau's nationalist movement
(PAIGC). By 1959, Portuguese repression prompted Cabral to adopt guerrilla
tactics. By 1973 when he was assassinated, the PAIGC controlled half of
Portuguese Guinea. When Guinea-Bissau became independent (1974), Cabral's
brother, Luis, became president (1974–80). An adept military
strategist and shrewd diplomat, Cabral was also a skilled essayist,
theorist, and public thinker. His articulation of pan-Africanist solidarity
would inspire numerous global freedom struggles.
See A. F. Peterson, Dubois, Fanon, Cabral: The Margins of Elite Anti-colonial
Leadership (2007); C. Lopes, ed., Africa's Contemporary
Challenges: The Legacy of Amilcar Cabral (2013); R. Rabaka,
Concepts of Cabralism: Amilcar Cabral and Africana Critical
Theory (2014); P. K. Mendy, Amílcar Cabral: A
Nationalist and Pan-Africanist Revolutionary (2019); A. Tomás,
Amílcar Cabral: The Life of a Reluctant Nationalist
(2021).
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