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

Abstract

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

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.