See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/283241926

A critical reading of Blood Diamond (2006) in the context of transnationalism

Article in African Identities · October 2015

DOI: 10.1080/14725843.2015.1087306

CITATIONS READS

3 9,862

1 author:

Uchenna Onuzulike
Bowie State University
26 PUBLICATIONS 162 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Uchenna Onuzulike on 07 January 2016.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 African Identities

ISSN: 1472-5843 (Print) 1472-5851 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cafi20

A critical reading of Blood Diamond (2006) in the

context of transnationalism

Uchenna Onuzulike

To cite this article: Uchenna Onuzulike (2015) A critical reading of Blood Diamond
(2006) in the context of transnationalism, African Identities, 13:4, 297-309, DOI:
10.1080/14725843.2015.1087306

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14725843.2015.1087306

Published online: 16 Oct 2015.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 58

View related articles

View Crossmark data

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=cafi20

Download by: [James Madison University] Date: 07 January 2016, At: 07:37
 African Identities, 2015
Vol. 13, No. 4, 297–309, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14725843.2015.1087306

A critical reading of Blood Diamond (2006) in the context of

transnationalism
Uchenna Onuzulike*

Department of Strategic, Legal & Management Communication, Howard University, Washington,

DC, USA
(Received 12 August 2013; accepted 24 August 2015)
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

Between 1992 and 1999, Sierra Leone was engaged in a civil war which was
blamed primarily on a ‘scramble for diamonds.’ This paper critically analyzes the
related film Blood Diamond (2006) in order to locate the portrayal of Sierra Leone
and of Africa in general in the context of transnationalism. In addition, the analysis
seeks to understand how Africans and Westerners contributed to conflict diamonds.
Reading the film via transnationalism indicates that African environments were
compromised by colonialism. It also shows that transnational forces contributed to
conflict diamonds – which resulted in wars and other atrocities. The implications of
a colonial legacy suggest that Africans and Westerners (in)directly participated in
blood diamonds.
Keywords: blood Diamonds; transnationalism; postcolonialism; Sierra Leone;
conflict diamonds

Introduction
This paper provides a critical reading of Blood Diamond (2006), an Oscar-nominated
Hollywood blockbuster film, directed by Edward Zwick. The film addresses the
diamond trade and the atrocities it caused in Sierra Leone, but the transnational impli-
cations of the movie remain open to discussion. Even though some African stereotypes
are evident in Blood Diamond, the film also reveals that Africans and Westerners
jointly participated in the conflict and atrocities. Blood diamonds have become relevant
again due to the 2012 World Court conviction of the former Liberian president, Charles
Taylor, for aiding and abetting war crimes in Sierra Leone from 1991 to 2002.
Conflict diamonds are diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces or factions
opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and are used to fund
military action in opposition to those governments, or in contravention of the decisions of
the Security Council. (United Nations, 2001, para. 2)
This portrayal of conflict diamonds draws attention to war atrocities in Africa.
According to Cieplak (2010), ‘the 1994 Rwandan genocide has been a subject of
filmic representation in and outside Africa’ (p. 49). The present research uses Cieplak’s
(2010) idea, examining an example ‘of this portrayal and attempts to put … [it] in the
context of western perception of African conflict and suffering and its depiction in
feature-length fictionalized’ film (p. 49). For this critical reading of Blood Diamond,

*Email: uchenna.a.onuzulike@bison.howard.edu

© 2015 Taylor & Francis

 298 U. Onuzulike

the film, interviews with the director, as well as other researchers’ analyses of the film
are used, ‘to examine the mechanism of the representation of “otherness” in a situation
when the term “other” is not a straightforward antonym to “us”’ (Cieplak, 2010, p. 49).
Cieplak notes that relevant debates revolve around the thought that others are con-
stantly ‘a group defined by a common characteristic, the color of their skin, cultural
identity, or suffering), while us consists of individuals whose major qualifying feature
is the fact that he or she is, individually and collectively, not like others’ (p. 49).
Several previous studies have discussed Blood Diamond, including a comparative
reading of Blood Diamond and Ezea (Korman, 2007), and the alienation of Sierra
Leoneans from their natural resources (Kusdantoro, 2010). Other works have utilized
an individual psychological approach (Wahyurini, 2010) or a sociological approach
(Sandika, 2008) to understand the suffering behind the luxury in the film. One study
addressed the negative impact of diamonds on Africa (Dargis, 2006), while another
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

explored the function of diamonds in relation to the war in Sierra Leone (Falls, 2011).
None of these studies examined Blood Diamond within the context of transnationalism.
The purpose of this paper is to examine how Africa and its people are characterized
in Blood Diamond within the context of transnationalism. In addition, it seeks to under-
stand how African and Westerners contributed to conflict diamonds. This study adds to
the existing study of filmic representations of Africa in terms of conflicts, and draws
attention to the complex participation of various international agencies and their roles
in this conflict within the context of transnationalism. The significance of this study lies
in its ability to highlight conflicts in Africa as complex phenomena, and to show how
Africa, transnational forces, and international communities have contributed to these
conflicts.

Conflict diamonds in the context of transnationalism

Transnationalism is a frequent to and fro movement ‘between communities of origin
and destination and the resulting economic and cultural transformation’ (Levitt &
Waters, 2002, p. 5). Some scholars have examined transnationalism in relation to net-
works of conflict, including transnational conflict links and the collapse of any interna-
tional response to conflict (Juma, 2006), international/world terrorism and transnational
criminality in relation to its undermining of security, policies of the USA, and issues
concerning the US Congress (Rollins, Wyler, & Seth, 2010).
This section adds to the existing literature on transnational conflict by considering
the implications of blood diamonds in Sierra Leone. There are several pieces of
evidence linking African blood diamonds with transnational crimes (Farah & Braun,
2007; Rabasa et al., 2006). Hence, ‘the question that has arisen with regard to the
developing world is whether transnational corporations trading with corrupt entities can
be subject to international sanctions’ (Juma, 2006, p. 109). This question has been
answered by the 2012 World Court’s conviction of Charles Taylor for his participation
in the conflict diamonds trade. Farah (2006) notes that Hezbollah connived with
Charles Taylor in the trade and transportation of blood diamonds across several nations.
He further notes that:
In the diamond trade, Hezbollah operates in Sierra Leone, Liberia and the Democratic
Republic of Congo, and possibly Angola. These countries all provided diamonds as a rev-
enue stream to all factions of the Lebanese civil war of the 1980s, although the diamond
trade is now largely controlled by Shi’ite Muslims loyal either to Hezbollah or its political
 African Identities 299

cousins, the Amal party and militia (Although Amal and Hezbollah remain close
politically, and Amal retains an armed wing, it has not been placed on the list of terrorist
organizations). (para. 8)
Farah is basically suggesting that the transnational conflict diamond trade contributed
to the destruction of African communities and heightened global tensions as a result of
the participation of terrorists in the process. Relatedly, conflict diamonds have
contributed to transnational money laundering.
Even though ‘some analysts contend that Hezbollah has made millions off the dia-
mond trade in Sierra Leone, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo through
Lebanese Shia merchants living in those countries’(Rollins et al., 2010, p. 26), obvi-
ously, Westerners made money as well. Other Africans also participated in the blood
diamonds trade. For example, Aziz Nassour, a Hezbollah supporter, was ‘the chief dia-
mond merchant for Zaire’s dictator, Mobutu Sese Seko’ (para. 11), and ‘later bragged
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

that he was illegally moving $25 million a week in diamonds from Africa to Europe
during the height of his efforts in Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo)’
(para. 12). Farah notes that, in late 2000, Nassour started to purchase ‘weapons for
Liberian president Charles Taylor, spending part of his time in Monrovia’ (para. 12).
Nevertheless, ‘guns and weaponry that support war in Africa and other poorer regions
of the world are manufactured in the developed world’ (Juma, 2006, p. 107).
Although the Farah articles are informative because they point out how radical
Islamic groups and Africans contributed to the blood diamond trade, he fails to mention
how the West participated in these conflicts. Overall, the main aim of this section is to
demonstrate how the interplay between transnationalism and blood diamonds has
contributed to depriving the people of Sierra Leone from receiving the benefits of their
natural resources.

Trading conflict diamonds

The title of the film signifies the horrendous actions of the warlords and international
diamond companies who directly or indirectly supported the war in Sierra Leone
through the blood diamond trade. ‘Conflict diamonds’ are also known as blood dia-
monds, which imply death, and these have negatively impacted Africa and its people.
As in other war zones in Africa, the Sierra Leonean rebels, known as the Revolutionary
United Front (RUF), utilized diamonds to finance and overthrow an allegedly corrupt
government. The rebels used amputation as a threat and a weapon against the people.
They ‘forced men, women, and children to dig for diamonds at gun point’ (National
Geographic Podcast, 2007). The diamonds are smuggled into the world market, where
they are cut and polished and transformed into a good that can be sold legally. They
will be sold to consumers who are unaware that they were originally paid for in blood
(National Geographic Podcast, 2007). ‘In Blood Diamond the violence is glorified in
order to create effective action sequences (with excessive bloodshed being another con-
vention of the Hollywood action film)’ (Korman, 2007, para. 15). Despite the fact that
‘the film focuses on the devastation of war, it also deals with reconciliation, rehabilita-
tion, and hope’ (Amnesty International, n.d., p. 5). The film received positive responses
from both Global Witness and Amnesty International (Kusdantoro, 2010, p. 2), human
rights groups. The interplay between transnationalism and blood diamonds has con-
tributed to human rights abuses and wars across the world, especially in the African
nations of the Congo, Angola, and Sierra Leone.
 300 U. Onuzulike

In Sierra Leone, several people contributed directly or indirectly in trading blood

diamonds. One of the most notorious participants was Charles Taylor, the former
Liberian president who supplied arms to the rebels in exchange for blood diamonds.
In Perry’s (2012) piece entitled ‘Global Justice: A Step Forward with the
Conviction of Charles Taylor and Blood Diamonds,’ he notes that:
… an international court’s conviction of former Liberian President Charles Taylor for aid-
ing and abetting war crimes marks the first time in the modern era that a former head of
state has been found guilty of human rights violations and represents an acceleration in the
establishment of global justice. At the Special Court for Sierra Leone in Leidschendam in
the Netherlands on Thursday, Presiding Judge Richard Lussick said the 64-year-old gave
‘sustained and significant’ support to rebels who carried out a series of atrocities during
the 1991–2002 Sierra Leonean civil war in which tens of thousands died. (para. 1)
Even though Taylor supplied arms to the rebels, a question remains as to whether the
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

Western countries ‘knowingly’ sold arms to Taylor, which he turned around and sold to
the rebels for blood diamonds. These types of transnational transactions have con-
tributed to the harvesting of conflict diamonds in Africa, as evidenced in the film Blood
Diamond.

Synopsis of Blood Diamond

The film Blood Diamond (2006) is about atrocities, such as amputation and the recruit-
ment of child solders as a result of ‘Blood’ diamonds, and is set during the Sierra
Leone civil war from 1996 to 1999. The term ‘blood diamonds’ or ‘conflict diamonds’
refer to diamonds that are either extracted or transported through processes involving
violence, theft, or something of that nature.
The film tells the story of a South African mercenary, Danny Archer (Leonardo Di
Caprio), a white-born Rhodesian (Zimbabwean) and South African-based diamond
smuggler, and Solomon Vandy (Djimon Hounsou), a Mende, Sierra Leonean fisherman,
who was sparred amputation due to his strength, and instead was taken to the gold
fields. There is a raid followed by forced labor in digging for diamonds in the field,
during which time Solomon finds a magnificent rough stone. Archer, who is detained
in the jail for diamond smuggling, overhears a wounded soldier yelling at Solomon
about the diamond. Upon their release, Danny approaches Solomon about the stone,
whose existence he denies; rather he tells Archer about his family, which had been kid-
napped by soldiers of the RUF. In order to get to the stone, Archer tells Solomon that
he can help him find his family. Archer turns to Maddy Bowen (Jennifer Connelly), an
American journalist who has been pursuing him for information on the blood diamond
trade, to assist him in finding Solomon’s family. The unrelenting pressure of Maddy on
Archer to provide her with information occurs as she helps Archer. He gives her a
diary containing the secrets of the blood diamond trade, so she helps to find and
relocate Solomon’s family.
Meanwhile, Mr Death holds Solomon’s son at gunpoint and asks Solomon to give
him the stone in question. In the process of obtaining the stone, fights break out, result-
ing in many deaths. Solomon and his son survive, while Archer is badly wounded. As
Solomon helps Archer to find a safer place, Archer cannot move because he has lost
too much blood, and he advises Solomon to leave. Solomon leaves him and eventually
rejoins his family in London where he testifies against and serves as a witness to the
blood diamond trade. Maddy publishes a book exposing the culprits involved in trading
blood diamonds.
 African Identities 301

In placing the background for the current study in the perspective of blood
diamonds and transnational forces, I formulate a problem statement to understand how
Africa in general is portrayed in Blood Diamond. Thus, the following question is
posed: how is Sierra Leone/Africa portrayed in Blood Diamond within the context of
transnationalism/transnational forces?

The study
In order to understand how Africa(ns) are depicted in Blood Diamond within the
context of transnationalism, I employ the spheres of history, politics, economics, soci-
ety, and culture, all within the African environment. The following are the operational
definitions of spheres:
Historical environment covers precolonial, colonial, postcolonial, and neocolonial
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

implications; political environment addresses how politics in Africa and in the west are
a dominant force in Africa; economic environment comprises African mineral resources
in relation to their development as well as the implications for international communi-
ties and stakeholders; social environment reflects the social activities and concerns of
the people of Africa and their relationships to themselves and to the world; and cultural
environment concerns how African culture is portrayed. These factors are not isolated;
they are relatively intertwined as evidenced in the film.
The film Blood Diamond was purposefully selected for this study because of its
cultural implications and Hollywood’s depiction of Africa by a westerner. It is one of
the rare, recent Hollywood productions that focus on Africa. Other recent films in the
same genre are 100 Days (2001), Shooting Dogs (2005), and District 9 (2009). The
documentary Kony (2012), which is about the children of Uganda who are abducted
and turned into child soldiers and sex slaves, has generated a lot of buzz through social
media.
The reading was performed via the lens of transnationalism in order to determine
how Africa is characterized in Blood Diamond. First, the author watched the film to
become familiar with the content. Second, he re-watched it several times while coding
it based on how each scene fits into the five factors described above. I used my judg-
ment and the available literature to identify scenes for analysis. Even though some sce-
nes address more than one factor, I attempt to keep the factors as distinct as possible.

Analysis and interpretations

Several historical moments are reflected in the film. These include a moment when
Archer tells Solomon that he is well connected and privileged even in Africa. ‘I know
people,’ Archer says, and Solomon asks, ‘[w]hat people?’ Archer replies, ‘[w]ithout
me, you are another Black man in Africa.’ Historically, since the arrival of the colonial-
ists and missionaries, the impact of hegemony and superiority of the West over Africa
is evident, and reflected in this scene. The national language of almost every country in
Africa is European. This scene reaffirms the hegemony and Western control of Africa,
even after Europeans have officially left Africa in terms of governance.
The film also showcased a portion of history that is neglected and unknown to
some people. As the director, Edward Zwick, articulates:
When I first read about Sierra Leone, I was shocked. I’d read books about the colonial
‘scramble for Africa,’ about the exploitation of its ivory, rubber and gold, but to learn the
 302 U. Onuzulike

history of diamonds was to learn the story of Africa all over again. (Amnesty
International, n.d. p. 3)

Another deplorable historical event presented in the film involves amputation.

According to Benjamin Magai, the schoolteacher in the film, ‘[t]he Belgians were the
first to chop off limbs in Africa. King Leopold took one hand for every hundredth
slave in the Congo to keep them in line.’ This claim is consistent with Falls (2011),
who notes that ‘though there are few historical examples of mass amputation used as
[a] terror technique, for example, the exceptional Belgian King Leopard is known for
[the] cutting of Congolese hands when his rubber or ivory quotas went unmet’
(p. 449). This statement shows that the act has a long history Africa, which was
eventually and unfortunately repeated by Africans.
The definition of economics used here involves resources – which could be tangible
or intangible. ‘A source is anything that allows one to do something. Land, money,
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

fame, athletic ability, [diamonds], and an attractive face can all be resources in the right
setting’ (Hall, 2005, p. 10). Diamonds in Sierra Leone are part of the culture. It has
transformed the land by which the natives, Africans, the West, and mercenaries use up
the land resources as shown in the film. Historically:
the current state of African political economy is essentially the result of the combined
effect of the legacy of postcolonial structures, the impact of colonial rule, and the pressures
of contemporary global political and economic expectations and the responses at each his-
torical juncture of internal African social forces. (Conteh-Morgan, 2006, p. 94)

This statement indicates that the colonial legacy is still present and complicates current
African development, especially when it comes to political issues.
Although there are a number of issues underlying various conflicts in Africa,
including colonialism, postcolonialism, neocolonialism, imperialism, human right
issues, justice, and property, the director encodes these issues in a hegemonic context
for the audience to decode. For example, a Sierra Leonean rebels known as Captain
Poison ‘becomes the archetypical representative of the maniacal local leadership,
ironically shouting at the enslaved workers,’ (Sterling, 2010, p. 195). Captain Poison
articulates, ‘The Freetown government and their white masters have raped your land to
feed their greed!’
In Kimberly, South Africa, in January 2000, as evidenced in the film, a speaker at a
meeting laments that:
the third world is not a world of park. A witness you will hear today speaks on its behalf
(and) lets us hear the voice of that world. Let us learn from the voice. Let us ignore it no
more.

Zwick uses the film to challenge us, and to remind everyone about the political agenda
behind the conflict diamonds. As he puts it:
But because the story takes place in such a charged political context it is also an
opportunity to evoke the kind of provocative images and complex issues seldom treated in
Hollywood films. It’s always been my belief that entertainment and ideas need not be
mutually exclusive, and that political awareness can be raised as much by narrative as by
rhetoric. (Zwick, p. 3)
Zwick’s utilization of Hollywood connections to narrate and create political
consciousness in Blood Diamond serves as an opening to an honest discussion about
the relationship between ‘blood diamonds and death.’ As a definition of culture sug-
gests, ‘symbolic resources may be tangible, such as a flag, or intangible concepts, such
 African Identities 303

as freedom’ (Hall, 2005, p. 10). In the film, there is no indication of freedom. Even the
people in the city (Freetown) are looking over their shoulders, as Archer showed. Also,
the political system is in crisis since the rebels were fighting the government over
accusations of corruption.
Similarly, in relation to transnationalism, Conteh-Morgan (2006), articulates that
globalization is associated with two trends related to collective violence: on the one hand
are transnational social movements organized around common transnational interests threat-
ened by globalization, and on the other, is collective violence (especially civil war) within
some states linked to state failure triggered by political and economic imposition of
globalization. (p. 89)

This statement shows that the emergence of blood diamonds was triggered by the
forces of transnationalism, which led to an economic, political, cultural, and governance
decline in the African environment.
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

Economics is the primary motivation driving blood diamonds. In the film,

economics is evidenced in several scenes showing that the diamonds are both signifier
and signify (blood diamonds, money, finance, and wealth) conflict, war, and death. As
an example, the most clear moment of economic reasoning in the film is when a G8
conference on diamonds is held in Antwerp, Belgium. The meeting underscores how
mineral resources in a country or a continent may be responsible for the outbreak of
conflicts and wars. For example, in the G8 conference, the following dialog takes
place:
Throughout the history of Africa, whenever a substance of value is found the local die, in
great number and in misery. This is true of ivory, rubber, gold and oil. It is now true of
diamonds. According to a devastating report by Global Witness, these stones are being
used to purchase arms and finance evil war. We must act to prohibit the direct or indirect
of all raw diamonds from war zones. May I remind you the US is responsible of
two-to-three of all diamonds purchased worldwide and I do not anticipate the diamond is
diminishing. We must remember that these stones comprise a small percentage of the
legitimate diamond industry whose trade is crucial to the economies of emerging nations.
This argument is consistent with that of Zwick, who notes that the USA buys ‘about
nine billion dollars’ worth of diamonds every year, more than two-thirds of the world’s
sales. If its consumers insist that each stone be accompanied by a verifiable warranty,
it’s going to have a very powerful effect’ (2006, p. 3). In addition, he notes that ‘this is
one of those rare situations in which an individual can become pro-active by virtue of
nothing more than educating himself. We simply have to take responsibility for our
consumerism’ (p. 3).
Other depictions relevant to economics include a sign for the ‘World Food
Programme,’ which signifies that Sierra Leonean or Africans in general are in need of
the world’s help, even though they produce natural resources that help the world econ-
omy to function. When an old man in the burnt-down village tells Solomon to ask the
‘poomui’ Whiteman (Archer) not to shoot him, Benjamin tells the old man that Archer
‘is crazy for diamonds like everyone else.’ Then, the old man echoes, ‘[l]et’s hope they
don’t discover oil here. Then we’d have real problems.’
This statement signifies that natural resources which should bring economic power,
now bring war and death – diamonds equal death. The old man is saying that it is bet-
ter to live without these discoveries than to live on natural resources without a life. The
diamonds which should be celebrated are in fact responsible for the atrocities in their
society. This statement brings culture to our attention. Diamonds as an element of cul-
ture is communicated through film as negative, because of an association with ‘blood.’
 304 U. Onuzulike

As depicted in the film, in Kimberly, South Africa, in January, 2000, international

stakeholders and government representatives discuss the exploitation of the people,
especially within the nation that has mineral resources. One representative argues that
‘the natural resources of a country are sovereign property of the people. They are not
ours to steal or exploit in the name of our comfort or cooperation, or consumerism.’
This is consistent with Zwick’s argument:
I have nothing against diamonds (or rubies or emeralds or sapphires). Gems are beautiful
and desirable. To buy or not to buy is an individual decision. But it has to be an informed
decision. I do object when their acquisition is complicit in the debasement of children, or
the destruction of a country. I find it unconscionable that the resources of the third world
be exploited for the sake of our vanity, and above all that billions of dollars of corporate
profit are built on the backs of workers paid a dollar a day. The story of Sierra Leone is
not unique. (Amnesty International, n.d., p. 3)
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

Zwick’s statement warns the masses to be proactive in the quest to stop wars and child
labor and abuse when it comes to diamonds in Sierra Leone and other African coun-
tries, such Angola and the Congo. This type of abuse and destruction has negatively
impacted the social environment of these countries.
Even though the film revolves around the social dynamics of Africa, the presenta-
tion is often slanted. This is apparent in the depiction of Freetown and other areas,
where Africans are shown living in squalor – in places that are unclean, unsafe, and
savage. For example, several scenes show African children running around in an open
trash field with pigs. Of course, there are clean and beautiful places in Sierra Leone
and in Africa, but in the film these places are not shown.
Some audiences are likely to believe the images presented to them in the film are
representative. In fact, films can be considered as a tool by which communication is
conveyed. According to Chen and Starosta (1998), ‘communication is social reality
[emphasize original]. Like social phenomena that are created by consensus of people
who collectively agree that those phenomena exist, human communication is based on
the meaning people symbolically assign to verbal and non verbal behaviors’ (p. 22).
By situating Chen and Starosta’s assertion within the film, we understand that Zwick
encodes each scene and leaves it to the audience to decode each scene by assigning
meaning to the images and behaviors shown in the film.
The film highlights the social decadence of Africa in relation to wars. Even though
there is social life, one has to constantly look over one’s shoulder, as Archer does. This
fear exists because Sierra Leone is depicted as a dangerous country in which someone
can be kidnapped or killed in any given moment. Though there are some elements of
truth in terms of social life in war zones as depicted in the film, one might assume and
believe incorrectly that all of social life in Africa is unpredictable and violent.
Because of blood diamonds, the film implies that Sierra Leone is a fractured soci-
ety. Due to the generally negative portrayal of Africa, someone who has only seen the
negative side of Africa or who has never travelled to Africa, or who may be easily
swayed by images in films will not hesitate to believe the images in the film, which
include conflicts, abuse, and murder. This is consistent with Falls’ (2011) assertion that
Africans are ‘at once innocent, murderous, dangerous and victimized. Images like these
horrify Western audiences’ (p. 450). Zwick’s depiction of Africa in a social context
shows that the images in the film are social reality, based on but not limited to each
audience members experience, knowledge, and belief. Film as communication can be
internalized because it is a powerful tool which can affect culture.
 African Identities 305

Culture is the way a group behaves based upon its identity. There is some evidence
of the articulation of beliefs and values in the film, specifically when Archer says ‘that
diamond is my ticket out of this God forsaken continent.’ His statement echoes Afro-
pessimism, which is the belief that Africa will never improve. However, an evolving
concept is Afro-optimism, which suggests that there is hope in the sense that Africa
has come a long way and she is making tremendous strides.
In the film, even though there is evidence of western drinks such as Guinness, tradi-
tional African palm wine also plays an important role. This wine represents nature and
power. Archer tells Maddy about palm wine and Maddy finds it very strong. When
Benjamin, the schoolteacher, is shot, Archer uses palm wine to control the bleeding.
Archer, as an African, knows the cultural solutions to these kinds of problems.
When Solomon is expressing his opinion on why people want the diamonds, he
also says that ‘I know good people who said that there is something wrong with us.
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

Inside our black skin, we are better off when white man ruled.’ Solomon forgets to
mention that Africans were at peace before the white man came to Africa. Of course,
this is not intended to suggest that there were no good aspects of colonialism. Positive
and negative things emerged from colonialism which impacted the African way of life.
These cultural images fit with Zwick’s articulation that Blood Diamond provides an
‘opportunity to evoke the kind of provocative images and complex issues seldom
treated in Hollywood films’ (p. 3). Zwick uses his chance to characterize Africa as a
hot zone.

Discussion and implications

This reading of Blood Diamond via transnationalism indicated that African historical,
political, economic, social, and cultural environments were compromised by colonial-
ism. It also shows how transnational ties contributed to conflict diamonds – which
sometimes resulted in wars. This shows that the global taste and hunger for diamonds
has contributed to the quest for conflict diamonds – diamonds produced by wars. These
wars have affected many generations of African peoples. The images and symbols used
in the characterization of Africans and their inability to control their mineral resources
are evidenced in the film. This is articulated by Susan Falls (2011) in her work,
Picturing Blood Diamond:
[T]he construction of ‘blood diamonds’ to not only reveal the goals of participants engag-
ing in the struggle over diamonds’ meaning, but to clarify how states, corporations and
NGOs strengthen the industry by upholding the diamond as desirable symbol of status,
glamour and romance. This has meant a retrenchment of elite hegemony, greater empower-
ment of several NGOs and continued diamond consumerism- all of which foster an
expanding neo-liberalism. (p. 447)
The above assertion supports the argument that numerous players – Africans and
Westerners – participated in securing conflict diamonds.
Symbolically, Zwick’s filmic representation of Africa is both positive and negative.
In a positive way, he tells the story of a people who have been affected as a result of
the exploitation of their mineral resources. More negatively, he rarely shows a clean or
peaceful environment in Africa. In other words, the film fits the ideological perspective
of the filmmaker. Film as a communication tool reflects a culture and the social realities
of a particular period, each of which are subject to change. This claim is consistent
with Chen and Starosta (1998), who note that ‘communication is a developmental
 306 U. Onuzulike

process. This process implies that the content and social realities communication creates
evolve and change over time’ (p. 23, emphasis in original). Overall, ‘taking a critical
intercultural perspective [in this study] means that I [have] situate[d] my understanding
of and actions regarding intercultural communication within an interconnected web of
social, political, economic, and historical contexts’ (Sorrells, 2010, p. 173) in relation
to transnationalism, as I have attempted to demonstrate above.
In regard to the implications, Nkrumah (1965) contended that colonialists were
heavily involved in the exploitation of African raw materials, including diamonds. Still,
the colonial legacy continues to impact African historical, political, economic, social,
and cultural environments. The implications of the colonial legacy are evident in the
film Blood Diamond (2006). According to Ahiakpor (1985), ‘the historical roots of …
[Africa’s] present state of underdevelopment stem from British colonialism, which
bequeathed a set pattern of economic [environment]’ (pp. 541–542). For Sibanda
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

(1979), colonialism instituted dependency and underdevelopment in northwestern Sierra

Leone. Sibanda’s study ‘is based on a specialized study of colonial policy and develop-
ment in Northwestern Sierra Leone during the period [from] 1896 to 1939’ (p. 481).
The ‘… contemporary political and economic change in the South must be understood
as aspects of imperialism [of] today and yesterday’ (Smith, 1979, p. 248). It is pertinent
to acknowledge the social configurations. Kandeh (1992) notes that:
… whereas the colonial state in Africa was arguably less instrumentally autonomous of the
metropolitan bourgeoisie than of any other class, the post-colonial state has functioned less
(instrumentally) autonomous of the state bourgeoisie than of any other class. The two most
important social categories of which the post-colonial state is autonomous, both instrumen-
tally and antagonistically (i.e., structurally), are the working class and peasantry. The state
in colonial and post-colonial Africa neither sought to embody nor promote the interests
and aspirations of workers and peasants. Rather, the articulation and organization of
populist grievances was discouraged, outlawed, and violently suppressed. (p. 32)
Practically:
the cultural ties established by decades or centuries of colonial rule are said to have left a
new national elite. Unable to identify properly with local customs and values, members of
this elite seek rather to measure their success and status in society by the degree to which
they identify with foreign cultural taste preferences. (Ahiakpor, 1985, p. 537)
The negative results:
… of these cultural ties include a denial of all that is good in local traditions, traditions
that might play an important role in a ‘genuine’ national development, and high import
bills to satisfy the taste of a few while the rest of the population goes without imports
needed for national development. (Ahiakpor, 1985, p. 537)
Overall, Blood Diamond, in the context of the colonial legacy, indicates that conflict
diamonds are the results of seeds planted by colonialists. Some Africans and Western-
ers continue benefiting from and participating in the exploitation of conflict diamonds
in many ways, including physical and structural violence, as evidenced in the film in
the context of transnationalism. These transnational forces may mask themselves under
the colonial legacy.

Concluding thoughts
This reading of Blood Diamond accounted for conflict diamonds in Sierra Leone and
the portrayal of Africa in general by locating them within the context of the following
 African Identities 307

factors: social, historical, cultural, economic, and political environments. Through the
lens of transnationalism, this analysis of Blood Diamond suggests that Africans and the
west both participated in procuring blood diamonds. The film forces us to question our
own role in the dehumanization of people who suffer as a result of the desire to obtain
the mineral resources found in their homeland.
Although Blood Diamond exposes the true nature of conflict diamonds, at the same
time it generalizes Africa as a land of hopelessness, as shown by various speeches and
images in the film. The actors say that Africa was better when white people ruled. The
arrival of colonialists brought both positive and negative things; however, arguably, it
is worth mentioning that Africa was stable based on its traditional political structures.
This claim is consistent with the work of Conteh-Morgan (2006), who states that:
[T]he undemocratic nature of the colonial administration with its use of elite accommoda-
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

tion constitute the longterm causes of state failure, the consequences of misrule during the
independence era constitute the short term factors, and the spillover of the Liberian con-
flict, coupled with the severe suffering caused by IMF and World Bank economic policies,
as well as the further marginalization of poor developing countries constitute the precipitat-
ing factors. (p. 101)

A lasting legacy of colonialism is found in neocolonialism, where the same Western

institutions and agencies along with their African counterparts and saboteurs continue
to undermine the historical, political, economic, social, and cultural environment of
Africa.
This analysis demonstrates that ‘Blood Diamonds Equal Death.’ It also highlights
the ruin of lives and the environment in the scramble for African resources both from
the Africans and the west. Zwick helped to expose both Africans and various interna-
tional communities involved with conflict diamonds. As he articulates, ‘as a filmmaker,
all I can do is to add my voice to the chorus. Eventually the aggregate effect of
movies, songs, documentaries, and editorials are compounded until it reaches a kind of
tipping point. And change happens’ (2006, p. 3). This film opened dialogs for promot-
ing transnational justice, creating awareness of blood diamonds, and making provisions
to help the victims and to make sure these events are not repeated in Africa or
anywhere else in the world.

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

References
Ahiakpor, J. C. W. (1985). The success and failure of dependency theory: The experience of
Ghana. International Organization, 39, 535–552.
Amnesty International USA Human Rights Education Program. (n.d.) Companion curriculum to
blood diamond. Retrieved from http://www.amnestyusa.org/sites/default/files/bd_curricu
lumguide_0.pdf
Belton, D., Cross, P., Meurer, J. (Producers), & Caton-Jones, M. (Director). (2005). Shooting
dogs [Motion picture]. UK/Germany: BBC Films and the UK Film Council.
Chen, G.-M., & Starosta, J. W. (1998). Foundations of intercultural communication. Needham
Height, MA: Allyn and Bacon.
Cieplak, A. P. (2010). The Rwandan genocide and the bestiality of representation in 100 days
(2001) and Shooting Dogs (2005). Journal of African Cinemas, 2, 49–63.
Conteh-Morgan, E. (2006). Globalization, state failure, and collective violence: The case of Sierra
Leone. International Journal of Peace Studies, 11, 87–103.
 308 U. Onuzulike

Dargis, M. (2006, December 8). Diamonds and the devil, amid the anguish of Africa. The New
York Times. Retrieved from http://movies.nytimes.com/2006/12/08/movies/08diam.html
Falls, S. (2011). Picturing blood diamonds. Critical Arts, 25, 441–466.
Farah, D. (2006, August 4). Hezbollah’s external support network in West Africa and Latin
America. International Assessment and Strategy Center. Retrieved from http://www.strategy
center.net/research/pubID.118/pub_detail.asp
Farah, D., & Braun, S. (2007). Merchant of death: Money, guns, planes, and the man who makes
war possible. Somerset, NJ: Wiley.
Hall, J. B. (2005). Among cultures: The challenge of communication. Belmont, CA: Thomson
Wadsworth.
Herskovitz, M., King, G. (Producers), & Zwick, E. (2006). Blood diamond [Motion picture].
USA: The Bedford Falls, Virtual Studios, Initial Entertainment Group and Time Warner.
Hughes, N., Kabera, E., & (Producers), & Hughes, N. (Director). (2001). 100 Days [Motion
picture]. UK/Rwanda: Vivid Features.
Jackson, P., Cunningham, C., (Producers), & Blomkamp, N. (Director). (2009). District 9
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

[Motion picture]. USA: TriStar Pictures.

Juma, L. (2006). The war in Congo: Transnational conflict networks and the failure of
internationalism. Gonzaga Journal of International Law. Retrieved from http://www.gonzaga
jil.org/pdf/volume10/Juma/Juma.pdf
Kandeh, J. D. (1992). Contradictory class functionality of the ‘soft’ state. Review of African
Political Economy, 19, 30–43.
Korman, B. (2007). “African” Cinema: A comparative look at blood diamond and ezra.
Offcreen.com, 11(6). Retrieved from http://www.offscreen.com/index.php/pages/essays/blood_
diamond_and_ezra/
Kusdantoro, F. (2010). Alienation to natural resources in Edward Zwick’s blood diamond (2006):
A Marxist approach (Master’s thesis). Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta. Retrieved from
http://etd.eprints.ums.ac.id/8294/
Levitt, P., & Waters, C. M. (2002). Introduction. In P. Levitt & M. C. Waters (Eds.), The chang-
ing face of home: The transnational lives of the second generation (pp. 1–30). New York,
NY: Russell Sage Foundation.
National Geographic Podcast. (2007, April 2). Blood diamond: Africa (fabirebeque) [Video file].
Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Avv6tF6biI0
Nkrumah, K. (1965). Neo-colonialism: The last state of imperialism. New York, NY: Interna-
tional Publishers.
Perry, A. (2012, April 26). Global justice: A step forward with the conviction of Charles Taylor and
bloods diamonds. Time World. Retrieved from http://world.time.com/2012/04/26/global-justice-
a-step-forward-with-the-conviction-of-charles-taylor-and-blood-diamonds/#ixzz22w9xUxbI
Rabasa, A. M., Benard, C., Chalk, P., Fair, C. C., Karasik, T., Lal, R., ... Thaler, D. (2004).
The Muslim World After 9/11 (Project Air Force). Santa Monica, CA: RAND
Corporation. Retrieved from http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monographs/2004/
RAND_MG246.pdf
Rollins, J., Wyler, L. S., & Seth, R. (2010). International terrorism and transnational crime:
Security threats, U.S. policy, and considerations for congress (Prepared for members and
committees of congress). Retrieved from http://assets.opencrs.com/rpts/R41004_20100105.pdf
Sandika, S. (2008). Suffering behind luxury in Edward Zwicks blood diamond: A sociological
approach (Research paper). School of Teacher Training and Education Muhammadiyah
University of Surakata. Retrieved from http://etd.eprints.ums.ac.id/4035/1/A320040276.pdf
Sibanda, M. J. M. (1979). Dependency and underdevelopment in Northwestern Sierra Leone,
1896–1939. African Affairs, 78, 481–492.
Smith, T. (1979). The underdevelopment of development literature: The case of dependency
theory. World Politics, 31, 247–288.
Sorrells, K. (2010). Re-imagining intercultural communication in the context of globalization. In
T. K. Nakayama & R. T. Halualani (Eds.), The handbook of critical intercultural communica-
tion (pp. 171–189). Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell.
Sterling, C. (2010). Visions of war, testaments of peace: The ‘Burden’ of Sierra Leone. In
T. Falola & H. T. Haar (Eds.), Narrating war and peace in Africa (pp. 195–230). Rochester,
MN: University of Rochester Press.
 African Identities 309

United Nations. (2001, March). Conflict diamonds: Sanctions and war. Retrieved from http://
www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html
Vandivort, K., Longerbeam, H., Clendinen, C., Jouglet, N. (Producers), & Russell, J. (Director).
(2012). Kony 2012 [Documentary film]. USA: Invisible Children.
Wahyurini, E. (2010). Struggle for a better life in blood diamond movie (2006) directed by
Edward Zwick: An individual psychological approach (Research paper). School of Teacher
Training and Education Muhammadiyah University of Surakata. Retrieved from http://etd.
eprints.ums.ac.id/8872/1/A320060189.pdf
Downloaded by [James Madison University] at 07:37 07 January 2016

View publication stats