AFRICA ZIMBABWE

Zimbabwe’s history is full of high highs, such as that of gaining independence, and low lows, such as unfathomable inflation, all set to the bounding musical soundtrack of an ancient thumb piano, a man nicknamed Tuku and some guys who used to tend chickens. 

The Shona people of Southern Africa successfully fought off invasion of its profitable gold, ivory and copper-trading routes for a thousand years until the late 19th century, when the British took colonial control. The British called the land surrounding the massive and mysterious stone structures of Great Zimbabwe “Rhodesia,” after Cecil Rhodes, whose British South Africa Company dominated the region for decades while mining its precious metals and other natural resources.

“Rhodesians” rebelled in the ’60s and ’70s, led in part by the fiery Robert Mugabe, who became president in 1980 soon after Zimbabwe won its independence and stayed in power all the way until 2017. Zimbabwe’s economy boomed for the last two decades of the 20th century but took an abrupt turn in 2000 when “land reform” promised since independence confiscated commercial farmland from white farmers but failed to maintain sustainable levels of food production. Zimbabwe’s economy spiraled out of control  and for years seemed on the verge of collapse…though, in no small part due to the creativity, optimism and strong community-based traditions of Zimbabwean peoples, the country keeps on keepin’ on.