Author: Godfrey Mwakikagile

Publisher: New Africa Press

Published: 2022

Total Pages: 372

ISBN-13:

This work focuses on the tragic murder of Patrick Lyoya, an immigrant from the Democratic Republic of Congo, who was shot and killed by a police officer in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in April 2022. The case attracted national attention and drew reactions from around the world. It was also covered by international media outlets including BBC and Aljazeera. The author looks at the murder in the broader context of race relations and at relations between blacks and the police in Grand Rapids and across the country. He also addresses problems of re-adjustment to a new life in a new country African immigrants face in the United States. Patrick Lyoya faced those problems. He also explains, although only briefly, why the tragedy is inextricably linked with the fate of Lyoya's homeland in a geopolitical context where Western countries have played a critical role in determining the destiny of the country which has earned the unenviable distinction as “the bleeding heart of Africa.” He also briefly examines globalisation which he describes as “a new form of imperialism” in the post-Cold War era and how it is used to justify exploitation of Africa's natural resources including the Democratic Republic of Congo's vast amounts of minerals, and how industrialised nations have helped to impoverish the country and fuel conflict there, resulting in the death of millions of people and forcing countless others to flee and seek refuge in other countries including the United States. Patrick Lyoya and his family, and more than 8,000 other Congolese who settled in Grand Rapids, were some of them. Although the work briefly examines the ties the United States has had with the Democratic Republic of Congo since independence in the sixties when the country was known as Congo-Leopoldville, a relationship inextricably linked with the destiny of Congolese refugees who settled in Grand Rapids and other parts of the country, its main focus is on the murder of Patrick Lyoya, why he was killed, what contributed to his murder, and other factors about the tragedy. The uncertainty of the trial date for this case influenced publication of the book. Both sides, the defence and the prosecution, said they did not know when the trial would take place and implied it would be in 2023 and may be even in the last months of the year. They said in November 2022 that it would be many months before the case goes to court, a factor that played a major role in reaching the decision to have the book published before the trial. It complements the author's forthcoming work, “Shattered Dreams: Race and Justice.”