African Book Week: Transition Magazine

Transition Magazine

Transition Magazine was established in 1961 by Rajat Neogy and was published from 1961 to 1976 on the African continent, and since 1991 in the United States. It is published three times per year by Indiana University Press.

History

Upon his 1961 return to Kampala, Uganda, from studies in London, 22-year-old Rajat Neogy established Transition Magazine: An International Review. Unbeknownst and much to the dismay of Neogy, the magazine was partially funded by the Congress for Cultural Freedom, an anti-communist advocacy group tied to the Central Intelligence Agency. It served as a major literary platform of East African writers and intellectuals during the Cold War. In 1962, Christopher Okigbo was appointed as editor of a West African edition.

In 1968, the Ugandan government jailed Neogy for sedition; the magazine had criticized President Milton Obote's proposed constitutional reforms. After Neogy's release, the magazine was revived in Ghana in 1971. Wole Soyinka took over as editor in 1973 until the magazine folded in 1976 for financial reasons.

Current editor

Alejandro de la Fuente

Former editors

• Rajat Neogy
• Wole Soyinka
• Henry Finder
• Michael C. Vazquez
• F. Abiola Irele
• Laurie Calhoun
• Tommie Shelby
• Glenda Carpio
• Vincent Brown

References

·  Julius Sigei and Ciugu Mwagiru, "Humble magazine that nurtured Africa’s thinkers", Daily Nation, 1 December 2012.

·  ·  Origins of the Congress for Cultural Freedom, 1949-50

·  Paul Theroux, "Obituary: Rajat Neogy", The Independent, 15 January 1996