Discussing Nigeria’s National Assembly at AU – (Healthy?) Intellectual Tensions

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American University, Arsenio Hall, Bridgewater State University, Carl Levan, Joseph Fashagba, Landmark University, Nigeria, Nigeria Legislature, Nigeria Politics, PDP, Shaheen Mozaffar, Tea Party, Yvonne Captain-Hidalgo

From L: Fashagba, Mozaffar, LeVan

My last event of a very busy Tuesday (other posts to follow) brought me to American University, where the energetic Carl LeVan had convened Dr. Joseph Fashagba of Landmark University, Nigeria to speak on ‘Politics and Parties in the Nigerian National Assembly’. Serving as discussant was Shaheen Mozaffar of Bridgewater State University, who bluntly noted that he did not find Fashagba’s analysis ‘very useful.’  All three are scheduled to speak at the National Endowment for Democracy tomorrow on ‘African State Legislatures & Democratic Development: Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia & South Africa.’  I wonder if Mozaffar will be so direct at a more high stakes venue (over half those in attendance were GWU students from a class of Yvonne Captain – Hidalgo).

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A GWU Primer on African Development with NDI and Vital Voices Staffers

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Africa Rising, AU, Christiane Yelibi, DRC, George Washington University, Gina Chirillo, National Democratic Institute, OAU, technology in Africa, Vital Voices, Yvonne Captain-Hidalgo

From L to R: Captain – Hidalgo, Chirillo, Yelibi

George Washington University’s Honor Society for International Studies held an event last night on ‘Trade, Gender, and Politics: An Introduction to African Development.’  Panelists included GW’s Professor Yvonne Captain – Hidalgo, Christian Yelibi, a Vital Voices staffer of Ivorian origin, and Gina Chirillo, who supports programs in Mali and Burkina Faso at the National Democratic Institute.

What GWU Didn’t Tell Me About African/Latin American Relations

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ASWAD, Dominican Republic, GWU, Haiti, Latin America African Relations, Yvonne Captain-Hidalgo

I had the day off yesterday and the blog of the Wilson Center’s Africa Program informed me that there would be a lecture at GWU on ‘Latin-America-Africa Relations: A Dominican Model?’ by a literature professor on the faculty there.

This seemed like a suitably interesting topic.  Unfortunately, the discussion never got to where the lecture title suggested.  The Professor, Yvonne Captain-Hidalgo, has recently shifted from her Latin Afro-diaspora literature focus to politics, enrolling in an international policy graduate program.  Her presentation resembled one of the classes I’d expect she’d be taking.  I got a brief primer on the history of the non-aligned movement, the UN Security Council, and the BRICS.

As far as I could tell, Captain-Hidalgo, had devised her topic in an attempt to ingratiate herself with the hosts of the 7th meeting of the Association for the Study of the Worldwide African Diaspora, which was held in the Dominican Republic.  However, with the recent news that the Dominican Republic would revoke all claims to citizenship for anyone of Haitian descent whose roots in the country do not predate 1929, Captain-Hidalgo was apparently not willing to discuss her original thesis in the face of such blatant discrimination.

Approaching scholarship in such a manner does not seem to demonstrate much foresight.