Dennis Laumann is an Associate Professor of African history at The University of Memphis. He was born and raised in New York to parents who emigrated from Germany. His interests in politics, history, journalism, and travel were nurtured through public education from elementary school on Long Island to graduate school at UCLA. He is a member of the Communist Party USA and Local 3865 of the United Campus Workers-Communication Workers of America. Dennis mainly writes on Africa for People's World.