FOREWORD

RYAN ALEXANDER

Dear Readers: In this issue you will, as always, encounter a variety of topics reflecting the enormous range of disciplinary, regional, and topical areas we cover. George Simpson addresses an understudied but instructive episode in the history of colonial Africa—the British transfer of the territory of Jubaland in present-day Somalia to Italy. In doing so, he gives a previously unheard voice to local and colonial authorities in East Africa. Enver Arpa and Murat Bayer employ the relatively uncommon framework in Global South studies of South-South cooperation by looking at Turkish development aid sent to the impoverished African nation of Niger. This case presents some of the possibilities and drawbacks of an alternative development model to the more familiar north-to-south aid transfer trajectory, which has largely failed to remedy mass poverty, inequality, dependency, and external debt. Joseph Lenti examines the political dynamics of mass rural-to-urban migration to shantytowns surrounding Mexico City in the second half of the twentieth century. He contends that Mexico’s government and its ruling party awarded land titles as a way of distributing patronage and extending its base of political support. Ashish Singh and Wakar Amin explore the concept of Kashmiriyat, the notion of coexistence shared among the diverse populations of Kashmir. As they demonstrate, the term, which has ancient roots, has proved to be malleable and has been co-opted for political gain or infused with nationalist meaning to further particular political agendas. Nicole Warmington-Granston and Damion Blake explore the ways in which Jamaica, since its establishment as an independent nation, has developed a reasonably fruitful relationship between a functional civil society and a strong state, in spite of considerable external and internal challenges. Their article, while acknowledging the unique features of Jamaican society, suggests some important possibilities for small, post-colonial nations in the Caribbean region and beyond.

On the surface, there is relatively little that directly links the diverse topics presented in this issue. The common thread through all of them is that they strive to allow the people of the global south, including common people of humble means, to speak for themselves. I consider both the breadth of treatment, and the commitment to conveying (and thus, in some small way, dignifying and empowering) the interests and actions of those in the global south, to be among this journal’s greatest strengths. As I will always do in the foreword, I want to extend a heartfelt thanks to the anonymous peer reviewers who have worked to improve each article, as well as the volunteer associate editors (Fodei Batty for Africa, Srobana Battacharya for Asia, Vaughn Shannon for the Middle East and North Africa, Luis Sierra for the Americas, Jason Strakes for Eurasia, and Michael Hall for book reviews). I should point out that after several years of dedicated service, Jacek Lubecki has left his post as our Middle East editor, and has been replaced by Vaughn Shannon. I thank Jacek for his excellent work, and extend an enthusiastic welcome to Vaughn. Thanks as always to the JGSS editorial assistant, Sara Abernathy, as well as Lauren Phillips, manager of journals at the University of Florida Press and answerer of my constant questions. Be sure to read our extensive book review selection in this and future issues.

Our parent organization, the Association of Global South Studies, was established in order to provide an international structure for the humane and scientific study of peoples, problems, and issues in the world’s developing countries, with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life in those places. The late Dr. Harold Isaacs, professor emeritus of history at Georgia Southwestern State University in Americus, Georgia, founded the Association of Third World Studies (ATWS), Inc., in 1983. The association now has a global membership and chapters in South Asia and Africa. In the summer of 2016, following a vote of the members of the association, ATWS was renamed the Association of Global South Studies (AGSS).

As ATWS, the association began its history as an institution in 1991 when, under the newly ratified ATWS constitution, elected officials assumed responsibility for the management of the organization. Since 1992 the executive headquarters have been located at Georgia Southern University (1992–2003), Mississippi State University (2003–2006), and Louisiana State University-Shreveport (2006–). Due to the dedicated and energetic leadership of Zia H. Hashmi and Paul Rodell at Georgia Southern, Shu-hui Wu at Mississippi State, and William Pederson at LSU-Shreveport, AGSS has made great progress as a global, professional organization. In 1995 the United Nations recognized the success of AGSS by granting it UN “consultative status,” thus enabling the association to increase its direct impact on world development. AGSS has an established and newly revamped website, to be found at http://apps.gsw.edu/atws/.

Membership in AGSS is open to any person interested in studying the developing countries. Yearly membership dues are $60.00, which includes an annual subscription to JGSS. The yearly subscription rate is $60.00; single copies are $30.00. Discounts are available for students and those living in the developing countries. Membership and subscription forms, as well as copies of JTWS/JGSS, may be obtained by writing to the Association of Global South Studies, Inc., care of Ryan Alexander, History Department, SUNY-Plattsburgh, Champlain Valley Hall 224, Plattsburgh, NY 12901. Individuals interested in submitting articles to be considered, or refereed, for publication by the JGSS Board of Editors, should write to the editor, also Ryan Alexander, at the above address. Alternatively, manuscripts may be sent to the editor via email: ralex006@plattsburgh.edu.

Articles appearing in this journal are abstracted and indexed in the International Bibliography of Periodical Literature, the International Bibliography of Book Reviews, the International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, the International Political Science Abstracts, Political Science Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, Linguistics and Language Behavior Abstracts, Historical Abstracts and America: History and Life, Periodica Islamica, A Matter of Fact; Media Review, Consumers Index, Social Sciences Index, University Microfilms, Inc., PAIS Indexes, and CAB International (CABI).

RYAN ALEXANDER, EDITOR

Department of History

State University of New York College at Plattsburgh

Plattsburgh, New York