Leading Postcolonial Scholar Biodun Jeyifo Dies at 80
Professor Biodun Jeyifo, a Marxist cultural theorist and leading scholar of global post-coloniality, died on February 11th at age 80. The cause was renal failure. Popularly known as BJ, he was an emeritus professor at Harvard University and former president of Nigeria's Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). Born in Ibadan, he earned his First Class honours in English at the University of Ibadan before studying at NYU and teaching at Cornell, Harvard, and other institutions. His work included pathbreaking books on African drama and Wole Soyinka, and he mentored generations of students. Tributes highlight his intellectual depth and commitment to academic unionism.