A Critical Analysis of the Contributions of Notable Black Economists

Kojo A. Quartey

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781351962629
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

This book introduces and critically analyzes the achievements of major black economists and their contributions to the realm of economic thought. The book begins with a brief overview of the contribution of Africans to philosophy and economic thought and goes on to discuss individuals who have made the most significant contributions to this field. There is particular reference to their background and influences including a critical analysis of individual thought. Kojo Quartey's book provides an essential supplement to any economic history text.

1 The Nature of Economics

What is economics? This is a question that many individuals have a difficult time answering. Indeed, even some professional economists tend to narrowly define economics. That being the case, how would one expect a young student to understand economics or aspire to become an economist? If one were to ask youngsters if they want to grow up to be an economist, how many of them would even understand the question?

More often than not, the concept of economics is linked to money and to various quantitative analyses. For the purpose of this book, economics is defined much more broadly to include the various areas of philosophy, social science and business, as well as mathematical and quantitative analyses. We begin by providing various definitions of economics to give the reader a better understanding of the nature of economics en route to understanding what it is that economists do and why certain individuals have been included in this book.

Definitions of Economics

Most, if not all, economics textbooks begin by defining economics. In that sense, this text is no different.

Michael Parkin defines economics simply as ‘the science of choice,’ the science that explains the choices we make and how those choices change as we cope with scarcity (Parkin, 1998).

Paul Samuelson and William Nordhaus define economics as ‘the study of how society uses scarce resources to produce valuable commodities and distribute them among different people’ (Samuelson and Nordhaus, 1998).

Karl Case and Ray Fair define economics as ‘the study of how individuals and societies choose to use the scarce resources that nature and previous generations have provided’ (Case and Fair, 1999).

Other definitions of economics include the following:

•The science or study of wealth (welfare) and its production, applicable either to the individual, the family, the state, or in the widest sense, the world (Hewins, 1910).

•Mainly concerned with…such human activities as are directed towards the production, appropriation, and application of the material means of satisfying human desires, so far as such means are capable of being exchanged.¹

•The study of the allocation of scarce resources among unlimited and competing uses. It is the social science that deals with the ways in which men and societies seek to satisfy their material needs and desires, since the means at their disposal do not permit them to do so completely (Rees, 1968).

Yet other definitions involve the use of words such as production, distribution and consumption of goods and services.

The common theme in all of these definitions involves scarcity and choices. Simply put, economics deals with the choices we are forced to make because of scarcity, which arises from our inability to satisfy our unlimited wants.

That being said, everything we do in our daily lives involves economics to some degree; consequently, economics is a science, an art, a social science, and a field of business. Indeed, economics is imbued in art, music, finance, marketing, philosophy, physics, mathematics, etc. Perhaps Alfred Marshall put it best when he wrote that economics is a study of mankind in the ordinary business of life (Marshall, 1920).

What Do Economists Do?

Now that we understand the nature of economics, just what do economists do?

Essentially, economists are involved in numerous activities, including but not limited to the following:

•Study the behavior of labor, capital and other factors of production, and set their prices.

•Study the behavior of financial markets.

•Study the distribution of income.

•Study the roles of households, firms, and the government.

•Study production distribution and consumption of goods and services.

•Study unemployment and price level changes.

•Study international trade and its impact on the economy.

•Study the growth of the economy and fluctuations in the business cycle.

•Study the impact of environmental factors on economic conditions.

•Study the impact of discrimination on the economy.

•Study the impact of poverty and inequality on the economy.

•Shape government policy.

•Provide advice on how individuals and businesses can be improved.

•Provide advice on how to make the world a better place in which to live.

The common thread, as stated earlier, has to do with scarcity. Economists deal with society’s problems; they are social commentators, theorists, pragmatists and leaders. All the scholars included in this text were or are involved in one or more of these areas.

Note

¹ Henry Sedgwick in The New Palgrave: A Dictionary of Economics, vol. 2, edited by John Eatwell, Murray Milgate, and Peter Newman (London: The Macmillan Press Limited, 1987), p. 59: reprinted from Palgrave’s Dictionary of Political Economy, vol. 1, edited by Henry Higgs (London: Macmillan and Company Limited, 1926), p. 679.

2 The Ancient African Scholars

It is impossible to discuss economic history without discussing philosophy and mathematics. The very history of economic thought begins with the ancient philosophers, such as Plato and Aristotle, and then goes on to deal with the Christian Economists. This text is no different; however, it focuses on the Black/African contribution. Prior to discussing the individual contributors, a general discussion and exposition of early contributors are provided. Indeed, economic thought has been shaped by philosophy and mathematics.

Giving Credit Where it is Due

Very little, if any, credit is given to Africans for their contributions. This is because African peoples have typically been viewed as inferior or lacking the wherewithal to produce anything of significance. As a consequence, there has been some attempt to disparage African achievement; thus, many great achievements have not been recognized. It is these very thoughts that gave rise to mercantilism, which led eventually to slavery and colonialism in Africa. This kind of thinking was further perpetuated by economists such as Friedrich List, who made the pronouncement that manufacturing could only develop in the temperate zone because only that climate would foster the necessary intellectual and physical effort (List, 1966). In essence, tropical areas such as Africa should supply raw materials in exchange for manufactured goods from Europe.

We examine the roles of several black economists in this book. Some of the individuals would readily be recognized as economists, yet others may not easily be viewed as such, perhaps because of a varied career or lack of any groundbreaking theory. This, however, does not preclude the individual from being considered as an economist.

The focus is on black economists because little, if any, significant work has been produced on black economists. Economic theory shapes every aspect of our lives, yet it seems so esoteric, abstract, and far-removed from our everyday lives.

A Review of the Literature on Ancient Greek Scholarship

This section sheds more light on Africa’s contribution to economic theory and is intended to highlight the achievements of African scholars who have received little credit for their work, and to highlight the significant scholarly role that Africa played in the birth of economic science. It is not intended to claim the birth of economics for Africa, cast aspersion or demonize Europeans for depriving Africa of its history, or to fuel the flames or fan the fires of the Eurocentric versus Afrocentric debate.

Akomolafe correctly states that because Europe receives so much credit for numerous major achievements, Europeans have a great amount of racial pride (Akomolafe, 1998). By the same token, because Africans have been taught that they have made no or few contributions to humanity, they have much self-contempt. While Europe and Greece have celebrated their numerous achievements, Africans have lamented their ‘unachievements.’

G. M. James, in his classic work Stolen Legacy, states that Greek philosophy was stolen from Egyptian philosophy (Akomolafe, 1998). To prove this point, he describes the Egyptian Mystery System secret order. This system, he claims, was unavailable to outsiders and was only developed when Alexander invaded Egypt and plundered the temples and libraries. He states that it was based upon those books that Aristotle built many of his theories. Pythagoras was a student in Egypt for many years, and Plato and Aristotle, in essence, violated the teachings of the Mystery System by writing books about what they had learned.

Professor Lefkowitz of Wellesley College attempts to put to rest some of these Afrocentric c...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Dedication
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Preface
• Series Editor’s Preface
• Acknowledgements
• 1 The Nature of Economics
• 2 The Ancient African Scholars
• 3 William Edward Burghardt Du Bois – The Multi-disciplinary Scholar (1868–1963)
• 4 Sir W. Arthur Lewis – Development Economist and Nobel Laureate (1915–1990)
• 5 Kwame Nkrumah – The African Socialist (1909–1972)
• 6 Thomas Sowell – A Neoclassical Thinker (1930–)
• 7 Walter E. Williams – Free Enterprise Champion (1936–)
• 8 Glenn Loury – Self-Help Advocate (1948–)
• 9 William Darity, Jr. – Contemporary Ethnic Researcher (1953–)
• 10 Andrew F. Brimmer – The Business Consultant (1926–)
• 11 Phyllis Ann Wallace – A Female Pioneer (1920?–1993)
• 12 Clifton R. Wharton, Jr. – A Trailblazer (1926–)
• 13 Concluding Comments
• Bibliography
• Index