Topic: The Western Influences on Asian and African Leaders

Order Description
To prepare for this Discussion:
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• Review Chapter 22 (pp. 344–368) and Chapter 23 (pp. 370–3 83) in the course text.
• Review the articles in this week’s Learning Resources regarding Asian and African thoughts about Western influences and impacts.
• Reflect upon Western political thought and institutions as they appear in the Japanese Constitution of 1946, Mao’s reflections of China’s revolutionary history in 1949, Syngman Rhee’s memoir (in the course text, The Twentieth Century and Beyond: A Global History, p. 362) and Kwame Nkrumah’s analysis of African nationalist movements.
• Think about how African and Asian colonies fought to rebuild a more democratic nation after World War II, and how they struggled to steer clear of building the same institutions their repressors once formed.
• Consider the European and Western leaders’ journey and reflect on how they affected the Asian and African leaders. What do you think Asian and African leaders adopted from the ideas of the European and Western leaders? What do you think they discarded in their move towards independence?
• Draw from the Learning Resources this week. Recall the pressures that the African and Asian nations experienced when adopting and crafting their own policies.
• Reflect upon the African and Asian desire for freedom and what it meant to them as a society as they began to rebuild after World War II.
With these thoughts in mind:

Post a summary (2–3 paragraphs) of the ways that leaders in Asia and Africa thought about, used, or rejected Western institutions and ideas in shaping a post-colonial era. Summarize attitudes towards and influences of:
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• Western political thought and institutions as they appear in the Japanese Constitution of 1946
• Mao’s reflections of China’s revolutionary history in 1949
• Mao’s reflections of China’s revolutionary history in 1949
• Syngman Rhee’s memoir (in the course text, The Twentieth Century and Beyond: A Global History, p. 362)
• Kwame Nkrumah’s analysis of African nationalist movements
Be sure to support your ideas by connecting them to the week’s Learning Resources, or something you have read, heard, seen, or experienced.

• Reading
• Course Text: Goff, R., Moss, W., Terry, J., Upshur, J., & Schroeder, M. (2012). The twentieth century and beyond: A global history (Laureate Education, Inc., custom ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.
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o Chapter 22, “Asia in the Aftermath of World War II” (pp. 334–368)

This chapter discusses the decolonization in Asia post – World War II, as well as the United States’ hand in combating the spread of communism in Asia.
o Chapter 23, “African Struggles for Independence” (pp. 370–3 83)

This chapter examines the decolonization efforts in Africa post – World War II. It covers the peaceful changes, struggles, and violence that ensued during this era.

Articles.
• Reynolds, D. (1997). The European response: Primacy of politics. Foreign Affairs, 76(3), 171–1 84.
Use the ProQuest Central database, and search using the article’s Document ID: 11575386

Note: This article is available from the Walden University Library. It examines the Marshall Plan and reviews why many historians label it as the defining moment of the early Cold War.
• The Constitution of Japan. (1946). Retrieved from http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Japan/English/english-Constitution.html

Readers can explore Japan’s Constitution.
• Tse-tung, M. (1949). On the people’s democratic dictatorship. Retrieved from http://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/selected-works/volume-4/mswv4_65.htm
Readers may browse the contents of Mao Tse-tung’s full text article.
Nkrumah, K. (1960). Address by Kwame Nkrumah at the United Nations. Retrieved from http://www.nkrumah.net/un-1960/index-nkun-1960.htm

This document contains the 1960 speech made by Nkrumah at the United Nations.