Thomas Sankara Assassination
Who was behind the assassination of Burkina Faso’s revolutionary leader?
4.4 (15)
69 mins
Explore how Thomas Sankara’s radical reforms in Burkina Faso created both national admiration and powerful political enemies within his own system.Discover how his 1987 assassination ended a transformative agenda and triggered decades of debate over internal power struggles.
Ep 1:
The Last Fifteen Minutes
From a village boy who refused the priesthood to Africa's youngest president, trace Thomas Sankara's radicalization through Madagascar's uprisings and Upper Volta's crushing poverty, up to his final, unknowing morning.
Ep 2:
A Land of Upright People
Captain turned president, Sankara defies colonels and colonialism alike, renaming his nation and unleashing a whirlwind of literacy, health, land, and women's reforms that stun the world.
Ep 3:
Friendship, Betrayal, and Broken Trust
As Sankara challenges France and apartheid on the world stage, cracks form at home—executions, purges, and a once-loyal friend seduced by wealth and power set the stage for betrayal.
Ep 4:
Fifteen Minutes That Changed Africa
Gunfire erupts at the Conseil de l'Entente as Sankara's final meeting turns to slaughter, followed by a chilling cover-up, unmarked graves, and a revolution swiftly dismantled by its betrayer.
Ep 5:
Twenty-Seven Years of Silence
For twenty-seven years Compaoré's regime crushes dissent and reverses Sankara's reforms, until a new generation rises, forcing him from power and finally opening the door to justice.
Ep 6:
The Idea That Cannot Die
Beyond policy and myth lies the man himself—musician, husband, revolutionary—whose contradictions and courage made him 'Africa's Che,' and whose ideas still refuse to be buried.
Discussions (5)
Bert
Level 7 · 3 mo agocycling to work as president is a massive flex.
Kevin
Level 8 · 3 mo agoMy understanding is literacy only hit 22% by 1987.
Felix
Level 5 · 3 mo agoBro really took a $450 salary and cycled to work to help his country just to get murdered by his best friend. You can never trust greedy politicians.
