Thomas Isidore Noël Sankara is one of the most iconic leaders in African history. As the President of Burkina Faso from 1983 to 1987, Sankara spearheaded one of the most ambitious socio-economic and anti-imperialist programs on the continent, prioritizing self-reliance, equality, and dignity for all. Known for his visionary policies, Sankara remains a symbol of resistance against neo-colonialism. Sankara was a Burkinabé military captain, Marxist revolutionary and pan-Africanist theorist. Viewed by supporters as a charismatic and iconic figure of revolution, he is commonly referred to as “Africa’s Che Guevara.” During the course of his presidency, Sankara successfully implemented programs that vastly reduced infant mortality, increased literacy rates and school attendance, and boosted the number of women holding governmental posts. On the environmental front, in the first year of his presidency alone 10 million trees were planted in an effort to combat desertification. On the localized level Sankara also called on every village to build a medical dispensary and had over 350 communities construct schools with their own labour. Moreover, his commitment to women’s rights led him to outlaw female genital mutilation, forced marriages and polygamy, while appointing women to high governmental positions and encouraging them to work outside the home and stay in school even if pregnant. In order to achieve this radical transformation of society, he increasingly exerted authoritarian control over the nation, eventually banning unions and a free press, which he believed could stand in the way of his plans. His revolutionary programs for African self-reliance made him an icon to many of Africa’s poor, but an enemy of the rich. As a result, he was overthrown and assassinated in a coup d’état led by Blaise Compaoré on October 15, 1987. A week before his murder, he declared: “While revolutionaries as individuals can be murdered, you cannot kill ideas.”