By Jeffery Kazembe Batts
A recent NY Times article entitled “What to Know About Kamala Harris’s Foreign Policy Positions” contained sub-titles “The War in Gaza,” “The War in Ukraine,” “Migration,” “Indo-Pacific,” and, at the very end, “Africa.” It was not surprising that the second largest continent and home to a billion plus people was last as opposed to a small area in the Middle East, a mid-sized country in Europe, an important domestic policy issue, and a vaguely defined region. In the minds of many policymakers and people who set the general discussion, African and Black people’s interests always come last.

This must change. The article reaffirms the general media and United States political establishment bias against the foreign policy interests of Africa and Black people in general. The article did not even mention Haiti, where there is an America-facilitated chaotic reality in some parts of the nation.

The article mentioned that Vice President Harris traveled to Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia recently. Nothing about the socio-economic situations of those nations was included, nor was it how the U.S. could help with development. Only the desire to encourage respect for L.G.B.T.Q. persons in those sovereign African countries was mentioned.

Although I believe the rights of all people should be respected, the U.S. should not have a policy of attempting to force African countries to change their value systems, especially when they don’t do that in other countries like Saudi Arabia. Other issues such as health, fair trade, infrastructure construction, climate change, and security are far higher on the priority list for these and other African countries and people.

Beyond the NY Times article, I urge African American leaders to encourage Democratic Presidential candidate Kamala Harris to embrace and widen her engagement with Africa and African people. Whether in Columbia, where similar to her, there is a current Black Vice President Francia Marquez, or in Brazil and the Dominican Republic, where historical anti-Blackness continues to be covert and often overt state policy that undermines Black people’s dignity.

Africa has the world’s youngest population and plenty of minerals needed for the technological economy and lifestyle of the present and future world. What is needed is for the American government to radically shift from undermining African development to encouraging the upliftment of the masses of African / Black people.

This would be a historic recalculation of American interests and role on the global stage, like how American domestic policy has evolved, because of struggle, from chattel slavery to where we are now. American foreign policy can evolve! By intensifying the movement for international justice, let us convince the next president of the United States, Kamala Harris, to buy into such a vision and to prioritize making it happen.
IG: @kazbatts