SHOW SOME RESPECT, AMERICA

It starts with respect, not bullying. South Africa’s foreign minister, while hosting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last year, gave him a masterclass on how international relations are to be conducted. The West had better start getting used to the new reality. Africans won’t be bossed around.

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BOKO’S PATH TO TERROR

Niger’s army says it’s detained almost 1,400 Boko Haram fighters since March. The Islamist militants have been fleeing into the country from neighbouring Nigeria, amid clashes with rival terrorist group ISWAP.

Boko Haram has terrorised north-eastern Nigeria for over a decade. It’s blamed for more than 20,000 civilian deaths and the displacement of some 2-million people. The group gained global notoriety in 2014, when it abducted 276 schoolgirls in Chibok.

We look at the factors that led to Boko Haram’s rise - from colonialism and Nigerian politics, to Western-led wars.

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US MEDIA: MIND CONTROL

Next time Africa’s accused of lacking in the democracy department, think of this clip. It shows what look like scenes from a film set in a dystopian future. In fact, it shows real-world, present-day US presenters reading near-identical noscripts across multiple outlets. The stations belong to the Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns or operates 59 Fox affiliates, 41 ABC affiliates, 30 CBS affiliates, 25 NBC affiliates, nine Univision affiliates, and others. No, democracy does not die in darkness - but in the brightness of American television screens.

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Joel Embiid, the Philadelphia 76ers center, is only the second African-born player to win the NBA’s coveted MVP award. African Stream's Ahmed Ghoneim tells you everything you need to know about his inspiring story to global stardom - all while shooting some hoops in the US!

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MOTHERS OF AFRICA

Many Africans are celebrating Mother’s Day This week. But African countries are also celebrating the women they’ve come to revere as ‘mothers of the nation.’ Today, we look at some of the great African mothers and their different contributions to championing the liberation, development and growth of our motherland. What other African mothers are you celebrating?

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FEARLESS BLM SUPPORTER IN ‘KKK-VILLE’

The African diaspora in the US struggles with immense racism every day. Even Whites showing solidarity can find themselves at the receiving end of vile abuse - as one BLM supporter found out in this viral video filmed in Harrison, Arkansas. The city is a Ku Klux Klan stronghold, and is dubbed the most racist town in America.

Harrison has a history of race riots. In 1905, a mob of 30 White residents set fire to the homes of Black residents, shot at their windows and demanded that all Blacks leave the city. Those who refused were berated, hounded and attacked.

Mob violence erupted again in 1909, when a Black man was accused of raping a White woman and hanged after a hasty trial. This time, the exodus was near total - all but one member of the Black community left the city.

As the video shows, it appears attitudes in Harrison have hardly changed. The brazenness may jolt, but racism itself lies at the foundation of American society: it’s institutionalised and structural.

Racism has been declared a public health crisis in over 100 cities and municipalities across the United States, as revealed by murder rates, disparities in medical treatment and poverty levels.

In the words of Pan-African revolutionary Kwame Ture, “If a White man wants to lynch me, that's his problem. If he's got the power to lynch me, that's my problem. Racism is not a question of attitude, it's a question of power.”

While racist individuals insult and target BLM supporters, the racist power system and institutions of the United States inflict violence against Black people daily.

Video courtesy of Rob Bliss

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RELAX YOUR HAIR TO RELAX YOUR LIFE

OPINION: African women are moving away from their natural hair and it's a source for concern. Do you agree?

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WEST AFRICA: RESOURCE-RICH BUT POOR - WHY?

It makes no sense. West Africa has abundant resources but it’s relatively poor. Ghana, for example, is the world’s 5th-largest gold producer - yet gets only 2% of the profits. Journalist Kwesi Pratt - founder of Ghana’s Pan-African Television network - says enough is enough.

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‘KAREN’ STOLE MY BIKE?

A video’s gone viral of what appears to be a woman in New York trying to steal a pre-paid Citi Bike - and then playing the victim. It’s been flagged by prominent Black civil-rights defenders as another case of a White woman playing the race card in a sinister way, as she seems to make out that she’s being threatened - by the person who’d paid for the bike and his friends, a group of Black men. It’s re-ignited online discussion of so-called ‘Karens’ - a pejorative term that’s gained currency to refer to self-ennoscriptd White women, including those who exploit White privilege or racial stereotyping. A prominent case was a few years back in New York’s Central Park, when a woman was filmed crying out for help, claiming that an African-American man was trying to attack her, when in fact he’d just asked her to put her dog back on the lead.

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KENYAN FURY OVER MASSACRE

Kenyans are demanding tougher laws governing religious organisations after more than 200 people were killed by a religious sect. President Ruto called the massacre an act of terrorism and promised that his administration will not spare those who abuse religion to harm others. Victims starved themselves to death, believing they would meet Jesus. Investigators are still discovering bodies in a forest in what’s dubbed the Shakahola Massacre.

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KUTI'S SON SLAPS COP

Nigerian musician Seun Kuti - son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti - has been arrested after allegedly assaulting a police officer. A viral video shows the 40-year-old pushing and slapping a traffic cop he reportedly accused of trying to ram his family’s car. But the incident has divided opinion and re-ignited debate about police brutality in Nigeria. In 2020, huge protests saw the notorious Special Anti-Robbery Squad disbanded. It had long been accused of extrajudicial killings, extortion, torture, and sexual assault. A special judicial panel was then set up to investigate abuses. However, many believe it’s not independent enough and claim police reform still hasn’t gone far enough. Maybe that explains why Kuti’s actions have split the public, with many showing support for the musician.

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FANGTASTIC CULTURES

Tooth sharpening may look and sound dangerous, but it’s an ancient practice common among African communities. Some do it to make themselves look more attractive, while for others it has deeper meaning.

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AFRICA’S LEADERSHIP CRISIS?

A Nigerian radio host asked a Dubai tour guide what the key to his city’s prosperity and success was. He was told that what differentiates a country like UAE from a resource-rich country like Nigeria - is having the right, non-corrupt leaders. Ouch. But what he forgot to mention is that the UAE’s economy depends on what is tantamount to a slave economy - a huge, low-wage workforce of migrants from Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Many are tricked, trafficked, and mistreated - kept in cramped, unsanitary camps and made to work long hours in dangerous conditions. And once the UAE’s done with them, they’re often simply arrested and deported. If the price of African progress is the exploitation of other peoples, then we say, resolutely, ‘no thank you!’

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WILL RACISM REIGN?

Will King Charles’ reign change anything when it comes to racism at Buckingham Palace?

In the last few months, it’s been rocked by more scandals. Unfortunately, it looks like the new monarch doesn’t have the appetite to really tackle the prejudice under its roof.

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BLOOD ON WESTERN HANDS IN SUDAN

A lot of attention is given to the Sudan crisis being the fault of two power-hungry African generals. But the mainstream narrative wilfully ignores the hand the West has had in making the country’s latest bloody conflict possible. Here’s Irish MEP Clare Daly spelling it out for fellow European parliamentarians. Will they take on board what she’s said?

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FRIENDSHIP FORGED IN PAIN

South Africans feel a deep connection to the Palestinian cause, owing to their own experience of living under an oppressive and racist regime. Hundreds came out across South Africa to show their solidarity on Nakba Day, which remembers the displacement of Palestinians by the Israeli state.

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CHINA EYES AFRICAN MAIZE

South African ties with China have just got a whole lot closer. It’s signed long-term deals to supply corn to Beijing which is looking for new agricultural partners after turning away from the US. In fact, China has become Africa’s second biggest export market for food as economic links deepen.

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AFRICA’S BILLIONS FOR WHITE SETTLER FARMERS

The African Development Bank is promising to find billions fast - wait for it: for white farmers! It wants Zimbabwe to borrow the money to pay compensation to settlers evicted in the early 2000s. But why should the African country pay anything for reclaiming land stolen from its people by the colonial British? Perhaps the new British king wants to reimburse these farmers instead, and let Africa get on with rebuilding itself? In fact, the UK promised it would cover the compensation costs during talks over the issue in 1979 - the only reason Zimbabwe signed up to the resulting Lancaster House Agreement. And on top of that the West imposed economically crippling sanctions on Zimbabwe over its land reform!

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RUTO: THEY BLACKMAIL US

According to Kenyan President William Ruto, Africa’s partners keep the continent weak by blackmailing its heads of state to attend overseas summits. As a result, many turn up, they’re all reduced to making many short speeches, and little gets done. He’s now called on African leaders to pull together as one, and during a rousing speech at the Pan-African Parliament in South Africa, got a standing ovation. Does he have a point or is this just a politician deflecting attention from his own domestic problems and Kenya’s economic crisis?

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INDIA’S KILLER DRUGS DENIAL

India went into denial when toxic cough syrups made by its pharma giants were found to have been responsible for the deaths of dozens of children in The Gambia. But it only withdrew the products once kids started dying in other countries too. New Delhi is now finally mulling tighter checks on exported medicines. Yet it was happy to ignore Banjul when it raised the alarm, so is this just a PR stunt designed to limit the damage to its pharma sector’s rep, now that more countries are affected?

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'WE ARE NOT AMERICAN'

Malcolm X would have turned 98 today. To celebrate, here’s a powerful clip of him explaining the importance of “so-called Negros” in the US identifying as AFRICANS.

It comes from his famous 1964 ‘Ballot or Bullet’ speech, in which he argued that voting rights are a potent weapon if exercised right - and that unity amongst Africans in America could be leveraged to force politicians to accept their demands and agenda once in office.

However, despite his rhetoric, he was also sceptical about how the election process could bring about racial justice for Africans in America. His speech was made in the same year as his trips to Africa, which gave him a greater understanding of the need to internationalise the struggle and connect it to the independence of continental Africans.

In 1964 he also set up the Organization of African Unity to strengthen the Pan-African bonds between Africans and Africans in America.

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