This book offers telling evidence that not just imperialism and colonialism but also the human race bares the brunt of humiliations beyond imagination in the existence of humans themselves. It is a fine balance between truth and facts. The author makes a clear distinction between truth, which has different perspectives, and facts, which speak by themselves. Every argument made in the book shatters the glory of the developed nations of the “north” being constructed on the graves of the oppressed “south”. In the introduction to the book, the author quotes Kenneth Waltz’s statement that “weakness invites control” (1) and sets the tenor for the intellectual endeavour of his project. The project is simple, yet in-depth, in its analysis on the dehumanising aspects of imperialism that trigger dignitalist politics as a core objective. The author sketches out dealings with Asia, Latin America and Africa, in addition to testing the theories, praxis and institutions that are instrumental to contemporary globalisation. The book’s introduction chapter is one of the best within the intellectual arena of academic writing in recent times. It lays down the preamble of the author’s project and refers to some of the finest works to justify its arguments. This fact justifies the tagline of the book “imperialism-driven globalization” (4).

The subsequent chapter, on Asia, does not hold the same zeal and research rigor as the introductory chapter. It opens with remarks about Japan and then deals with East Asia, China and India with only a few contradictions. The author makes reference to imperialism imposed on Japan by the United States after World War II and, later in the section on China, subtly refers to Japan as (but does not call it) imperialist and justifies that it was due to the European powers that Japan utilised to defeat China (17). The author refers to the resistance by Mao and his followers towards U.S. imperialist tendencies but forgets to critically analyse capitalism existing in present day China in the garb of communism. Since the sections on East Asia and India offer no new revelations and cover facts already often written about, they are not particularly exceptional when compared to this book’s chapters on Latin America and Africa. Nonetheless, some statistics on the economic condition of the Asian counties prior to imperialism and colonialism are of great help to those researching Asia and even to the general public. The chapter on Latin America, though rich in its analysis, lacks coherence as the author tries to profile the countries in a standard comparative approach first proceeding to describe the influence of the U.S. on ten selected countries of Latin America. This approach to the study leaves the readers to think as to what would be the methodological justification the author would give for the selection of these countries and for leaving out other colonisers and imperialists who equally had brutalized Latin America. There are quite a few speculations and conspiracy theories that the author throws at the reader with regard to U.S. assassination and coup attempts, both planned and successful (39). The sections of the book dealing with post-colonial resistance and finding new paths to sustain and reject the world’s gigantic financial institutions by Latin American countries is an eye opener to present day neo-colonised nations. Latin America’s tilt at neoliberalism is a short section but finely written with an excellent analysis. Needless to say, the whole chapter is an outcome of thorough research and this speaks volumes about the experience of an author with astonishing expertise and skill to handle the subject of neo-colonialism and globalisation.

The chapter titled “Africa: Powerlessness and Slavocracy” is the most important, particularly in a world where Africa often does not matter more than what resources it offers and/or as an example for the world’s most undignified matters. The chapter opens with a note on civilisations and the place of Africa in the world history, with exemplary references to works that range from anthropological to ancient history and geography. The revelations made in the book on how a particular race is treated in the history and how it is being treated today has scathing similarities. They remind one that the present state of affairs are not much different from the past when we analyse the world response to the Charlie Hebdo incident in Paris and the brutalities of Boko Haram (which recently killed an estimated 2,000 people in the town of Baga) Nigeria. The author’s definition of “slavocracy” as a “mindset that exudes a conviction about one’s own inferiority … that one’s only purpose in life is to play up sycophantically to non-African ‘human superiors’ in ways that guarantee access to the cherished goods and services produced by their higher culture and civilization” (88) speaks volumes and is a empathetic call for the world to treat race in Africa, the basis for heinous crimes in the name of slavery, with dignity. This part of the book, by one of the finest scholars on African and Pan-African affairs, is nothing but astonishing.

Chapter four, on the claimed Western thoughts of liberalism, realism and farm subsidies, encompasses several summits that range from the Havana Charter, to the first global trade agreement of 2013, is finely analysed to scrutinize the reality, as against the perceived notion, of the Global South. The concluding chapter on the U.S./E.U. conflict of the 1990’s and the role of the WTO in it, critically analyses a conflict that had an impact on the Global South. This conflict not only provoked nations beyond imagination but also reveals a hidden cost on the environment in Latin America. The author could have had a better conclusion to his summing up of thoughts about neo-colonialism through globalisation and how world politics needs to learn to treat countries with dignity rather than treating them as types of economy.

Overall, Agyemen’s book epitomizes a new beginning in the field of power and powerlessness in the present world. The scholarship that the author has exhibited through this work should inspire new generations of scholars to work on highly controversial subjects of great importance, a practice that is becoming increasingly rarity these days. For sure, this work would go a long way in understanding a phenomenon that has invariably affected the lives of each and every one in the global South. The book is rare, daring and perfect in an academia that too often drifts towards choosing subjects of comfort.