Overview

This book offers an insightful analysis of presidential policy towards Rhodesia during the UDI era of 1965-1979. Michel provides an informative account of the stance adopted by the differing presidential administrations towards Salisbury and highlights the shifting alignment of the global and domestic dynamics that shaped decision-making. The book also explores the complex relationship between pragmatism and morality in formulating policy, and Michel considers intriguing questions over the competing visions within Washington of what constituted pragmatism or morality during the era of decolonization.

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9780367588526

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Reviews

"""An invaluable narrative of the contrasting approaches of a series of White House administrations on the Rhodesian question, caught as they were between often conflicting international and domestic imperatives, including geopolitical concerns, economic interests, race relations and the rise of Human Rights... an indispensable account of U.S. policy towards Africa during the Cold War era."" -Dr. Thula Simpson, author of Umkhonto we Sizwe: The ANC's Armed Struggle. ""The White House and Africa is a welcome addition to the flourishing literature on the history of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI). Eddie Michel's analysis of presidential decision-making highlights one of the key determinants of Rhodesia's varying fortunes during the UDI period."" -Dr. Carl Peter Watts, author of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence: An International History. ""Michel’s work is a welcome addition to the field of US-Southern relations and the study of the Cold War on the periphery. It enriches the historiography by illuminating the contested nature of the Rhodesian questions across multiple presidential administrations, emphasizing the issues of natural resources and the impact of the US civil rights movement on the conduct of foreign policy toward Rhodesia, and southern Africa more broadly. Its methodological approach and multi-archival research can serve as a building block for further studies of southern Africa."" - Julianne H. Haefner, H-Net"

An invaluable narrative of the contrasting approaches of a series of White House administrations on the Rhodesian question, caught as they were between often conflicting international and domestic imperatives, including geopolitical concerns, economic interests, race relations and the rise of Human Rights... an indispensable account of U.S. policy towards Africa during the Cold War era. -Dr. Thula Simpson, author of Umkhonto we Sizwe: The ANC's Armed Struggle. The White House and Africa is a welcome addition to the flourishing literature on the history of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI). Eddie Michel's analysis of presidential decision-making highlights one of the key determinants of Rhodesia's varying fortunes during the UDI period. -Dr. Carl Peter Watts, author of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence: An International History. Michel's work is a welcome addition to the field of US-Southern relations and the study of the Cold War on the periphery. It enriches the historiography by illuminating the contested nature of the Rhodesian questions across multiple presidential administrations, emphasizing the issues of natural resources and the impact of the US civil rights movement on the conduct of foreign policy toward Rhodesia, and southern Africa more broadly. Its methodological approach and multi-archival research can serve as a building block for further studies of southern Africa. - Julianne H. Haefner, H-Net

Author Information

Eddie Michel is a Research Fellow in the Department of Historical and Heritage Studies at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.

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