A discussion of the process by which some ethnic groups manipulate values, myths, symbols and ceremonials from their traditional culture in order to develop and control an informal political organisation.
This book examines the complex phenomenon of urban ethnicity; including Britain, the USA, Indonesia, Israel and East, West and Central Africa.
Based on Cohen's fieldwork in the 60s among the Hausa migrants, this is a landmark work in urban anthropology and provides a comparative framework for studying political processes in African societies.