Manthia Diawara (b. 1953, Bamako, Mali; based in New York) is a writer, filmmaker, cultural theorist and University Professor of Comparative Literature and Film at NYU, where he directs the Institute of African American Affairs. Educated in France and the U.S., his books (African Cinema: Politics and Culture, We Won’t Budge) and films (Sembène: The Making of African Cinema, AI: African Intelligence, Angela Davis: A World of Greater Freedom) critically weave diasporic history, anti‑colonial thought and cinematic narrative.