UC Merced

African traditional protest repertoires of contention strengthen the trajectories of movements in Africa. The impacts of these indigenous repertoires on social movements have facilitated their inclusion and use in movement actions on the continent. The repertoires date as far back as the existence of African societies. The symbolic resonance and effectiveness of indigenous African repertoires have not only promoted their transfer from one generation to the next, but also their deployment in similar ways across historical contexts. Using the cases of the Nigerian EndSARS and the Cameroon Anglophone movements, the study finds that African traditional repertoires are efficaciousness in movement mobilization and have the ability to constrain the actions of repressive forces and counter-movements. Movement strategy studies may advance by incorporating repertoires beyond the global North model with attention to the dynamics and peculiarities of African repertoires.