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Yorùbá Elites and Ethnic Politics in Nigeria investigates the dynamics and challenges of ethnicity and elite politics in Nigeria, Africa's largest democracy. Wale Adebanwi demonstrates how the corporate agency of the elite transformed the modern history and politics of one of Africa's largest ethnic groups, the Yorùbá. The argument is organized around the ideas and cultural representations of Ọbáfemi Awólowo, the central signifier of modern Yorùbá culture. Through the narration and analysis of material, non-material and interactional phenomena - such as political party and ethnic group organization, cultural politics, democratic struggle, personal ambitions, group solidarity, death, memory and commemoration - this book examines the foundations of the legitimacy of the Yorùbá political elite. Using historical sociology and ethnographic research, Adebanwi takes readers into the hitherto unexplored undercurrents of one of the most powerful and progressive elite groups in Africa, tracing its internal and external struggles for power.

Yoruba (African people) --- Yariba (African people) --- Yooba (African people) --- Yorubas --- Ethnology --- Politics and government. --- Political activity --- Ethnic identity. --- Awolowo, Obafemi, --- Avolovo, Obafemi, --- Awo, --- Awolowo, Jeremiah Oyeniyi Obafemi, --- Influence. --- Nigeria --- Bundesrepublik Nigeria --- Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria --- Federal Military Government (Nigeria) --- Federal Republic of Nigeria --- Federation of Nigeria --- Jamhuriyar Taraiyar Nijeriya --- Nai-chi-li-ya --- Naijeria --- Nigeria (Federation) --- Nigerii︠a︡ --- Nigerija --- Nigeryah --- Ọ̀hàńjíkọ̀ Ọ̀hànézè Naìjíríyà --- Orílẹ̀-èdè Olómìniira Àpapọ̀ Nàìjíríà --- Republic of Nigeria --- ניגריה --- ナイジェリア --- Politics and government --- Ethnic relations --- Political aspects.

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""This book ... fits into a tradition (even if not fully acknowledged) of biographical studies as a way of elucidating the nature and practice of power in Nigeria. It's also by far the most comprehensive history of the OPC that would be widely available in the US/UK. ... It's absolutely original work that doesn't simply tread well-known ground." - Brandon Kendhammer, author of Muslims Talking Politics: Islam, Democracy and Law in Northern Nigeria. Can subalterns transform themselves into members of the elite, and what does it take to do so? And how do those efforts reveal the nature of ethnic politics in postcolonial Africa? How to Become a Big Man in Africa: Subalternity, Elites and Ethnic Politics in Contemporary Nigeria answers these questions by revealing how, using violence and cultural activities, carpenter and okada (motorcycle taxi) operator Gani Adams (trans)formed himself into the holder of the most prestigious chieftaincy title among the Yoruba. Addressing persistent gaps in anthropological studies of the subaltern and of "big men" in politics, Wale Adebanwi follows Adams and other major figures in Nigeria's Oodua People's Congress (OPC) over two decades of ethnographic study and visual representations. Challenging existing models of African political mobility by leveraging his lack of formal education into a position of power, Adams moved from a "radical lumpen" and "area boy" to a "big man" who continues to struggle-and reflect-over the significance of his role as a cultural subject. Blurring the lines between tradition and modernity, Adams and his faction have used Yoruba rituals to simultaneously claim authenticity and champion new movements for democracy and self-determination. In similar fashion, they have also mobilized violence-especially youth violence-to acquire power, but also to claim peaceful intentions. Their success has, in turn, inspired others to utilize the same fluid strategies as they attempt to join, counter, or supplant Adams and the OPC. Using biography as a means of political, historical, and ethnographic analysis, How to Be a Big Man in Africa encourages us to understand the full complexity of Adams's political trajectory, and how it reflects the structural and personal realities of becoming a "Big Man" in the contemporary postcolony"-- "Can subalterns transform themselves into members of the elite, and what does it take to do so? And how do those efforts reveal the nature of ethnic politics in postcolonial Africa? How to Become a Big Man in Africa: Subalternity, Elites, and Ethnic Politics in Contemporary Nigeria examines these questions by revealing how, through ethno-regional conflict, violence and cultural activities, an artisan, Gani Adams, transformed himself into the holder of the most prestigious chieftaincy title among the Yoruba. Addressing persistent gaps in anthropological studies of the subaltern and of "big men" in politics through in-depth biography and rich social history, Wale Adebanwi follows Adams and other major figures in Nigeria's Oodua People's Congress (OPC) over two decades of ethnographic study and visual representations. Challenging existing models of African political mobility by leveraging his initial lack of formal education into a position of power, Adams moved from a "radical lumpen" and "area boy" to a "big man" who continues to struggle-and reflect-over the significance of his role as a cultural subject. Blurring the lines between tradition and modernity, Adams and his group have used Yoruba rituals to simultaneously claim authenticity and champion new movements for democracy and self-determination.How to Become a Big Man in Africa encourages us to understand the full complexity of Adams's political trajectory and how it reflects the structural and personal realities of becoming a "Big Man" in the contemporary postcolony"--

Power (Social sciences) --- Adams, Gani, --- O'odua People's Congress --- History. --- Nigeria --- Politics and government

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This scholarly work by Wale Adebanwi explores the dynamics of political mobility and ethnic politics in contemporary Nigeria through the lens of Gani Adams, an artisan who ascended to one of the most prestigious chieftaincy titles among the Yoruba people. The book delves into the transformative journey from subaltern to elite status, highlighting the interplay between tradition and modernity. Adebanwi provides an in-depth ethnographic study of Adams and the Oodua People’s Congress over two decades, examining cultural activities, ethnographic history, and political strategies in Nigeria. The book offers critical insights into class mobility, elite aspirations, and political dynamics, making it a significant contribution to African Studies, anthropology, and political science.

Yoruba (African people) --- Social mobility --- Politics and government --- Adams, Gani, --- O'odua People's Congress --- History. --- Nigeria --- Nigeria --- Politics and government --- Politics and government

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What are the fundamental issues, processes, agency and dynamics that shape the political economy of life in modern Africa? In this book, the contributors - experts in anthropology, history, political science, economics, conflict and peace studies, philosophy and language - examine the opportunities and constraints placed on living, livelihoods and sustainable life on the continent. Reflecting on why and how the political economy of life approach is essential for understanding the social process in modern Africa, they engage with the intellectual oeuvre of the influential Africanist economic anthropologist Jane Guyer, who provides an Afterword. The contributors analyse the political economy of everyday life as it relates to money and currency; migrant labour forces and informal and formal economies; dispossession of land; debt and indebtedness; socio-economic marginality; and the entrenchment of colonial and apartheid pasts. Wale Adebanwi is the Rhodes Professor of Race Relations at the University of Oxford. He is author of Nation as Grand Narrative: The Nigerian Press and the Politics of Meaning (University of Rochester Press).

Economic development --- Development, Economic --- Economic growth --- Growth, Economic --- Economic policy --- Economics --- Statics and dynamics (Social sciences) --- Development economics --- Resource curse --- Africa --- Economic conditions. --- Politics and government. --- Africa. --- African people. --- Economic Anthropology. --- Everyday Life. --- History. --- Jane Guyer. --- Livelihoods. --- Margins. --- Political Economy. --- Political economy. --- Social Process. --- Society. --- Sustainability. --- Well-being. --- anthropology. --- apartheid legacies. --- apartheid. --- colonial past. --- colonialism. --- conflict and peace studies. --- economics. --- everyday life. --- geography. --- history. --- language. --- modern Africa. --- multi-disciplinary examination. --- philosophy. --- political science. --- race relations. --- socio-economic marginality. --- sustainable life. --- well-being.