Prof. Mamadou Diouf, the Leitner Family Professor of African Studies and former Director of the Institute of African Studies, was recently quoted in a New York Times article, "80 Years After Killings, Senegal Wants the Facts From France." The article discusses a 1944 massacre of West African soldiers by French forces in Thiaroye, Senegal and the efforts to uncover the full history of the killings. Prof. Diouf was appointed by the Senegalese government earlier this year to be the lead researcher working to reveal more details about the massacre.
Excerpt from the article:
“Thiaroye could be the foundation for a Pan-African consciousness shared by all African countries who have lost citizens in the tragedy,” said Mamadou Diouf, a Senegalese historian and director of Columbia University’s Institute for African Studies.
Mr. Diouf, who was appointed by the Senegalese government this summer to lead a research committee on Thiaroye, called Senegal’s new attitude “indicative of a breakaway, a strong assertion of sovereignty.”
