Ideological locus standi of the African archivist

Political ideologies significantly influence all parts of society. During and right after the national liberation wars, African states mostly experimented with socialism, communism, and Marxism. Later, they shifted towards capitalism, which is now the dominant ideology. These ideologies significantly affect how African archivists view their role in international archival discussions. Do they advocate for pan-African ideas in shaping the national archive, or do they follow the Western ideologies common in archival science? Some Western ideologies can be hostile towards people of African descent and indirectly so to the preservation of African stories. For example, far-right, chauvinistic nationalism is growing in the Global North, such as Trumpism in the United States and anti-woke attitudes in several European countries. Given these competing ideologies, this paper aims to explore the African archivist’s position and what that means for the field of archives.