TURNING BLACK PEOPLE AGAINST MIGRANTS

Former US President Donald Trump’s attempt to pit Black and Hispanic people against migrants during the 27 June presidential debate is nothing but a divisive ploy.

African Stream’s Salifu Mack reminds us that migrants seeking a better life are not responsible for the injustices inflicted upon us for centuries. Migrants didn’t enslave us. They didn’t impose Jim Crow laws. They didn’t conduct the Tuskegee Experiment that infected our folks with syphilis. They didn’t destroy Black institutions. They didn’t target our leaders using the FBI’s Counterintelligence Program (COINTELPRO). They didn’t flood our neighbourhoods with drugs. They didn’t unjustly imprison and k*ll our people.

We are stronger together. All of the world’s oppressed people, do not fall for a divisive politician’s ploy to turn us against each other.

Video credits: @CNN and @breakfastclubam

5 WORST U.S. PRESIDENTS FOR AFRICA

When you think of the exploitation of Africans, powers like Britain, France and Germany spring first and foremost to mind. But let’s not forget that America has a longstanding history of meddling and aggression towards our continent. And it’s US presidents who bear the bulk of the blame. Our man Salifu has selected five he thinks should be considered Africa’s biggest OPPs. He’s got clear reasons for each. Hear him out and let us know if you agree. In your book, which American leader was/is Africa’s biggest OPP?

HOW ARGENTINA RED-CARDED BLACK PEOPLE

Argentina has just won the 2024 Copa America trophy after a one-nil victory over Colombia at a match played at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

While the focus should have been on football, many people could not help notice the stark difference in the racial make-up of the two teams. The Colombian side had Black players, while Argentina didn’t have any.

So, why do teams of countries on the same continent look so different? In no small part, it reflects racist policies implemented by Argentina over a century ago.

At one point the country was Blacker than it likes to admit. In 1778, Afro-Argentines formed almost half the population of Argentina. However, anti-Blackness policies succeeded in reducing them to 30% of the population by the time the country gained independence from Spain in 1816. Racial politics and alleged extermination campaigns then saw them steadily wiped out and their rich Black culture erased from the nation’s collective consciousness.

Continued….. Today, statistics show Afro-Argentines form a paltry 0.4% of Argentina’s total population, making it the Whitest country not just in Latin America but the Whitest outside Europe.

The old saying: ‘Mexicans descend from the Aztecs, Peruvians from the Incas, but Argentinians descend from ships from Europe,’ encapsulates Argentina’s perception of itself as a nation of White Europeans that never had Blacks.

Historically, Black people and their culture were shown the red card. Argentina’s football team is evidence of that.

OPPRESSORS DON’T GIFT FREEDOM

Happy 77th birthday Assata Shakur!

The activist was born on July 16th, 1947, in New York, USA, and we salute our sister by sharing her powerful quote. It reminds us freedom is not given on a silver platter, it must be fought for and cherished.

Assata was part of the Black Liberation Army (BLA) and was jailed in 1977 for the murder of a state trooper during a shootout with BLA members. But during her trial, she denied holding or firing a weapon at the police, arguing they had shot her with her hands up, leading to immediate paralysis of her right hand. Two years later, she broke out of prison and fled to Cuba where she was given asylum.

It’s believed she still lives there today and is on the FBI’s most-wanted list with a $1m reward for information leading to her capture.

Assata continues to influence political and social activism in areas of racial and economic justice, immigrant rights and Black youth empowerment.

‘EFFIGY’ LEADERS PUSH THROUGH IMF REFORMS

Africa has leaders that are frontmen for powerful Western financial institutions and corporations. And it’s their unpopular policies that are pushed through, causing protests.

That’s the assessment of Shahid Bolsen, creator of social media channel Middle Nation. He likens recent demonstrations against IMF-backed tax hikes in Kenya, to ones seen in Sudan during the Omar Bashir reign and also Egypt.

President Ruto, he says, is just the fall guy who takes the blame for destructive reforms. Even when he’s gone, the source of the policies, the international private sector, will remain and the dysfunctional cycle will likely continue with another puppet leader.
It’s a bleak critic of what’s happening. Is Mr Bolsen on the money?

@MiddleNation @shahidkbolsen

IMF’S CROCODILE TEARS OVER KENYA

It’s always nice for arsonists to sympathise with fire victims!

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) feels for suffering Kenyans, according to its spokesperson, Julie Kozack. In an 11 July press briefing posted on X, she discussed the Kenyan police crackdown that killed 39 people during recent youth-led protests against proposed IMF-backed tax hikes and described it as “the tragic events in Kenya”.

Kenyan President William Ruto insisted the increases would raise $2.7 billion in revenues for payments on the $80 billion in international and domestic debts and other expenses.

The IMF had predicted protests against controversial tax hikes featured in the now-shelved finance bill but urged Ruto’s administration to stand firm. Street battles, including protesters storming Parliament buildings, forced Ruto on 26 June to scrap the most controversial levies, such as a 16 per cent consumption tax on bread.

Continued….. Still, Kenyans insisted he rejected the proposed budget entirely, and the demonstrations have now morphed into calls for major political reforms, including Ruto’s resignation.

A @jacobin report says the IMF’s austerity programmes, such as the one hoisted on Kenya, transferred $229 billion in debt payments from so-called ‘sub-Saharan Africa’ to the West from 1980 to 2004. By 2004, Africa had paid the wealthiest countries $15 billion annually in debt servicing. According to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, that’s more than the continent received in aid, new loans or investment.

Of course, IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack will refrain from mentioning these inconvenient facts.

What are your thoughts? Will Kenya’s youth revolution help end dependency on foreign money lenders? Or is that wishful thinking? Let us know in the comments.

Video credit: @IMFSpokesperson (X)

IBRAHIM TRAORÉ: ‘BEWARE OF WESTERN MEDIA PROPAGANDA’

Burkina Faso President Ibrahim Traoré held a public meeting on 11 July with various organisations in the capital, Ouagadougou, to detail his plans. In addition to sharing essential goals, he educated Burkinabé people on imperialist tactics, explaining how the Western media—specifically, Hollywood films—are a powerful form of racist propaganda meant to further imperialist objectives.

Continued….. Many have noticed how Traoré’s (@capitaineib226 on X) speeches mirror those of Pan-Africanist Malcolm X (1925-65), who once stated, ‘The press is so powerful in its image-making role, it can make the criminal look like he’s the victim and make the victim look like he’s the criminal... If you aren’t careful, the newspapers will have you hating the people who are being oppressed and loving the people who are doing the oppressing.’

Please share with us some examples of how the Western media does imperialist propaganda.

Video credit: Faso7 TV (@faso7tv on YT, @faso7_bf on X and IG, @faso7bf on TikTok)

Please follow us on Telegram, Link in Bio

A clash on Sunday, 14 July, between the army and militias k*lled more than 50 people in the village of Kinsele in Mai-Ndombe province, in the western part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Reports say 42 Mobondo militiamen lost their lives alongside nine Congolese soldiers and one civilian woman.

The Mobondo militia—comprised of Yaka people—formed in 2022 when their ethnic group revolted against the customary tax system that the Teke people imposed.

NGOs say the conflict is over land rights. However, violence and ethnic tensions across the Congo are linked to and exacerbated by an imperialist resource-extractivist system forming the base of the country’s economy. This has led to increased poverty, resource scarcity, displacement, deaths and the neglect of social services for the Congolese majority.

GAMBIANS ANGRY OVER POLITICIANS' WAGE BOOST

Youth-led protests in The Gambia are demanding plans to boost salaries for politicians and the judiciary are scrapped.

They’re against the unpopular Judiciary Officers Bill and National Assembly Remuneration Bill and voiced their anger in the capital, Banjul. Calling themselves ‘Concerned Gambians’ demonstrators chanted ‘reject the bill, we are tired’

They've put forward an eight-point list of demands to authorities including better compensation for public servants and equitable allocation of natural resources.

It comes at a time of high inflation which topped 18 per cent last September, and follows protests in Kenya that saw IMF tax-hikes abandoned.

Video credit @cecild84 @EYEAFRICA TV

SHAKUR: 2PAC’S REVOLUTIONARY GODMOTHER

Today (July 16th) we’re marking the 77th birthday of Assata Shakur. You may know her as the former member of the Black Liberation Army who’s on the FBI’s most-wanted list. However, did you know she was also the revolutionary godmother of legendary rapper 2PAC and is often referenced in hip-hop lyrics?

Our quick look at her life, resistance and persecution will help you understand her cause celebre status. She was controversially convicted of the m*rder of a US policeman, broke out of jail and escaped to Cuba, where it’s thought she’s still living. In 2013, she wrote an open letter in Havana, describing the flaws in her trial. You can read it @https://hoodcommunist.org/2024/03/07/an-open-letter-from-assata-shakur/

GAMBIA UPHOLDS FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION BAN

In a major win for women’s rights. Gambia’s parliament has rejected calls to decriminalise female genital mutilation (FGM).

It was made illegal in 2015, but earlier this year a male MP tabled a bill to lift the ban, amid claims it was an attack on the country’s culture. However, parliamentarians overwhelmingly voted against his proposal on July 15th.

The result’s been welcomed by rights activists who say FGM violates the dignity of women, although it’s still practiced widely across the country. According to UNICEF, about 73 percent of Gambian girls and women between the ages of 15 and 49 have undergone FGM.

FORMER OPPRESSORS ‘TAKING BACK’ SOUTH AFRICA

It’s a well-known fact that South Africa has the world’s most unequal society.
There’s a massive wealth gap between the rich, who are mostly White, and the poor, who are mostly Black.

According to a report by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), as of 2021, 64 per cent of Black South Africans were living in poverty compared to only one per cent of White citizens.

This is not a coincidence but a result of the failure by post-apartheid leaders to fully transform the country’s social and economic systems.

It’s a point driven home in this clip by Professor Bonang Mohale, the Chancellor of South Africa’s Free State University.

He also accuses the ruling African National Congress (ANC) of bringing back the ‘oppressors’ by forming a unity government with the White-led Democratic Alliance (DA) party.

Listen in and tell us what you think.

THE ALLIANCE OF SAHEL STATES: REVOLUTIONARY DEMOCRACY OR DICTATORSHIP?

You’ve probably seen the headlines, ‘Democracy is crumbling in the Sahel.’ But what exactly is democracy, and who gets to define it? In the West, the term refers to participation in an electoral system that brings forward new presidential candidates every several years. However, outside of the occasional election, many citizens are disengaged, having no way to be involved in decision-making processes regarding the economy, foreign policy, domestic security and other concerns.

Continued….. The Sahel is different. Three countries in this arid region south of the Sahara Desert, known as Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, have formed a confederation under the newly established Alliance of Sahel States (AES). They have embarked on an alternative path where they share a common economy and foreign policy. Military leaders govern the three countries, but this is not the repressive, brutal military rule we sometimes see. Instead, this is closer to former Burkina Faso President Thomas Sankara’s (1949-87) style of ‘coup governance,’ which he referred to as a popular and democratic revolution.

African Stream journalist Inemesit Richardson went to all three AES countries to hear directly from the mouths of the people: What is democracy, and are these Sahelian states currently democratic?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

‘IF YOU WANT TO LEAD US, YOU MUST LISTEN TO US’ - KENYAN YOUTH

Kenya’s youth-led anti-government protests have made global headlines, inspiring calls for mass action over shoddy governance in several African countries.

Booker Ngesa Omole (@bookerbiro on IG and X), national vice-chair of the Communist Party of Kenya (@communistske on IG, X and TikTok) reckons the heart of the issue is President William Ruto’s failure to acknowledge that sovereign power resides in the people who elected him.

Ruto has come under fire for brutally cracking down on nationwide demonstrations over a now-shelved International Monetary Fund-backed finance bill. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights says police have k*lled at least 50 Kenyans and arbitrarily detained 682. Further, 413 people were injured, and 59 were reported abducted or missing in connection with the protests.

Continued….. With a median age of 18.8 years, Africa has the world’s youngest population. But many of its leaders abide by a withering system of taking orders—and perhaps bribes—from Western imperialist powers and saying it is their God-given right to do so.

Check out this clip from ‘Pan-African Attitude’ podcast episode 11, and let us know what you think.