I want to start this chapter with a quote from historian Jeremy Prestholdt, describing an incident in 1998 in Sierra Leone in West Africa. Gunfire woke the residents of Kakuna, a small town in Northwest Sierra Leone. A group of at least 100 young men and women appeared, all wearing t-shirts bearing the image of American rapper Tupac Shakur. There were so many young people wearing Tupac shirts, that some townspeople assumed that Kukuna was hosting a hip hop concert. But as screams filled the night air, and buildings were set ablaze, residents recognized those wearing the t-shirts as the Revolutionary United Front, a rebel group attempting to overthrow the government of Sierra Leone. The questions we'll be asking today are, why Tupac Shakur? How did an image of an American rapper become a symbol for rebel fighters in Sierra Leone? In answering these questions, we'll look at how the themes of Tupac's music and life resonated with young African men, especially those fighting in a brutal and senseless civil war. First, let's talk about Tupac Shakur. He was an American rapper, songwriter, and actor born in 1971 in Harlem in New York City. He rose to fame in the early 1990's with a series of rap albums and films. His music, unapologetically, described the violence and anger of life in American inner cities, directly addressing themes, such as poverty and police brutality, while offering a stark commentary on the social ills that faced African Americans. Tupac was shot to death in a drive by shooting in Las Vegas, Nevada, in September of 1996. Although his murder remains unsolved, many people believe that his death was linked to a rivalry between East and West coast American gangs. Although entire books, films, conferences and courses have been devoted to the life, death and influence of Tupac Shakur, the goal here is to discuss how and why the image of Tupac became so powerful in Africa. The young men wearing Tupac t-Shirts in Sierra Leone were soldiers fighting for the Revolutionary United Front. A rebel group that was attempting to rest control of Sierra Leone from the government of Joseph Momoh. Fighting broke out in 1991, and the resulting civil war lasted 11 years. The origins of the civil war are complicated, but they are related to the illegal mining and smuggling of diamonds and gold, as well as decades of poor governance and rampant poverty and corruption. This was a devastating war for the RUF, the Sierra Leone Army, and especially the inhabitants of Sierra Leone. The RUF fighters were rarely volunteers. Many of the men and boys pressed into service were Liberian refugees living in Sierra Leone. These were already desperate populations living with little food or resources, and the RUF promised food, medical care, and money if they supported the RUF effort. Many others were forced into fighting under threat of death. These were often rural and urban poor young men, with little education or chances for social mobility. Lawlessness and violence were woven into the recruitment and fighting itself, and thus young RUF soldiers began to see violence as their only way for self preservation and empowerment. It is in this context, that the image and words of Tupac Shakur become a powerful force among the RUF fighters in Sierra Leone. Because the civil war in Sierra Leone was generally a war without a guiding ideology, and because many, if not most of the fighters had been forced into service, they actively sought ways to express the passion and pain of fighting and killing. And Tupac, with a message that was both critical of the society he lived in but empathetic to the violence that gave meaning to the people in urban black America, offered a powerful voice for RUF fighters. As Prestholdt argues, he outlined a worldview that both accorded with and helped to articulate the psychological trauma of extreme violence. For young people co-opted to fight and goaded to externalize their pain, Tupac offered motivation and solace in the layered experience of alienation, anger, and brutality. The global reach of Tupac's fame and the way American media was able to transcend national boundaries is of course, the way that RUF soldiers came to know Tupac, but the message that he offered through his life and music, was the reason why he resonated with RUF fighters. He described a world where life was difficult and severe, where death and violence was constantly present. RUF fighters were attracted to Tupac and his music, because they felt what he was describing was what was also happening in their own lives. Many of Tupac's songs resonated with young RUF fighters, because he expressed what Presthold calls righteous violence. The lyrics of his songs offered an expression of how injustice and poverty would lead someone to violent actions. In the context of the civil war in Sierra Leone the music of Tupac, thus provided a soundtrack that seemed to narrate their experiences. RUF fighters also saw in Tupac's actions in music, a hyper masculinity, in what might be seen as a model of manhood, that RUF fighters could emulate, and use to bolster the grim experiences, and lack of control that plagued their daily lives. Therefore, while in many ways RUF fighters used the image and words of Tupac to try and understand and justify the difficult circumstances they were in. They also saw him as an inspiration, a prophetic figure who could help guide them to a better life. There are many analysts who have been confused by the way that RUF fighters embraced and drew upon the image of Tupac. They've argued that in appropriating Tupac, the RUF were simplistically invoking the worst of American culture, which included violence, problematic ideas of masculinity, and drug abuse. This was also the position of the government of Sierra Leone, who actively blamed Tupac for inciting the violence of the civil war, but this assessment assumes a very simplistic view. This is indeed a very particular vision of America through foreign eyes. One which does in fact draw upon a bleak image of America, and the violence and problems that plague urban African American communities. And yet, we can see that there is nothing simplistic about the way that RUF fighters drew upon the image of Tupac. He was not used simply as a justification, or inspiration for violence. The image of Tupac and the understanding of his experiences in the United States, provided a way for RUF fighters to try and make sense of a senseless situation.
