Exporting Repression: Haitians And Kenyans Are Both Fighting Neo-colonial Representatives of U.S.-led Imperialism

Exporting Repression: Haitians And Kenyans Are Both Fighting Neo-colonial Representatives of U.S.-led Imperialism

Since 2021, the Black Alliance for Peace Haiti/Americas Team has tracked the deepening crisis of imperialism in Haiti, in particular how imperialist forces and neocolonial puppets have worked to suppress and eliminate the organizing of popular movements and the will of the Haitian people. Over the last four years, this crisis has impacted nations around the globe, in particular Kenya. 

This summer marks the one-year anniversary of Kenya’s youth-led uprising against the IMF-backed Finance Bill of 2024. Instead of reckoning with the demands of a generation that has endured skyrocketing inflation, police violence, and mass unemployment, President William Ruto has once again unleashed the full force of state repression. Live ammunition, abductions, and curfews have become routine tactics to crush dissent and left at least 50 protesters dead. As BAP’s Africa Team stated last week, these protests are not isolated and reflect a broader generational rejection of IMF-dictated austerity and repressive consolidation by neocolonial governance. 

Thousands of miles away in revolutionary Haiti, Kenyan boots are still on the ground. Following the July 2021 assassination of Jovenel Moïise and installment of Ariel Henry, by the Core Group, troops were dispatched under the so-called Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission, which was renewed in October 2024 despite consistent opposition from civil society and popular movements throughout the Americas. These same violent police were sent to “restore order” in a country ravaged by decades of foreign intervention and neocolonial policies. The order that these forces represent is not one of peace, but of the continuation of imperialist domination and neocolonial subversion. The same regime that brutalizes its youth domestically claims to bring “security” to Haitians abroad.  These militarized responses do not provide security for the majority of people in Haiti or Kenya, but for the multinational corporations, imperialist bureaucrats, and neocolonial oligarchs and elites.

Neocolonialism in Haiti: Outsourcing Imperialist Occupation

The MSS has failed to curb violence, but not because it lacks force, but because it was never designed to resolve the root causes. Since the Kenya-led MSS mission was formally launched in 2024 under U.S. sponsorship, it has remained strategically vague, militarily ineffective, and politically illegitimate. As grassroots activists have recently shared, the MSS and their masters in the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) have not been publicizing their activities because the paramilitary armed groups they were dispatched to combat have only continued to gain ground in and outside of Port-au-Prince. This includes the towns of La Chapelle, Artibonite, and Lascaobas in the Centre department

This is not because the intervention isn’t strong enough, it is by design. The MSS’s presence functions as a placeholder for deeper U.S. reoccupation and a justification for the continual militarization of Haiti’s political crisis, which has been, and remains, a crisis of imperialism. The failures of the MSS showcase, not just the failure of foreign intervention to resolve the crisis in Haiti, but exposes these interventions as tools to keep Haiti trapped under a neocolonial subjugation.

Life, Culture, and Sovereignty Under Siege

Earlier this week, paramilitary armed groups set arson to Hotel Oloffson, a historic site in Port-au-Prince known for its significance to Haitian art, journalism, refuge, and resistance. This was not just an attack on infrastructure, but an assault on the cultural memory and political soul of Haiti. At the same time, government forces under the illegitimate Transitional Presidential Council (CPT) increase ‘kamikaze drone’ attacks that have already resulted in the murder of at least 300 people in poor and working class neighborhoods, under the justification of striking at “terrorist gangs”. Now with the agreement between the CPT and Erik Prince’s U.S.-backed mercenaries, the militarization and violence only promises to deepen. As violence spreads beyond Port-au-Prince, both lives and symbolic spaces of Haitian resistance are being engulfed in the imperialist-fueled violence.

However, this month has also brought signs of resistance and solidarity. On July 13, displaced residents from the neighborhood of Solino in Port-au-Prince mobilized in the streets to protest for their survival and against the oligarchs and neocolonial state that are destroying their lives and livelihoods. On July 6, the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) sent a delegation to Haiti in a clear rejection of U.S.-backed intervention. The delegation, comprising representatives from Venezuela, Brazil, and Argentina, denounced foreign interventionism and called for “respect for Haiti’s sovereignty, urging solutions based on mutual cooperation, not military occupation…Behind the violence, corruption, and food shortages, is the same United States imperialism that oppresses all the peoples of the Global South.”  

In stark contrast to Kenya’s role as a proxy enforcer for the U.S.-led Core Group politically and SOUTHCOM militarily, ALBA’s statement reframes possible solutions to the crisis in Haiti through regional solidarity, not Western mandates. This focus on solidarity is a core function of the development of the Campaign for a Zone of Peace in Our Americas, which has as a primary objective ending military intervention into Haiti and supporting peoples-centered movements that emphasize self-determination and dignity for the Haitian masses.

As anti-imperialists in solidarity with the masses of Haitians and Kenyans, we must remain clear. Whether in Nairobi or Port-au-Prince, the playbook is the same: suppress resistance at home, legitimize occupation abroad. But today’s African youth are not confused. They see the global connections. The same forces imposing debt and repression in Kenya are funding foreign domination in Haiti. The violence is not an accident, it is the enforcement arm of a neocolonial system. As the MSS flounders in Haiti and Kenyan youth continue to rise against domestic repression, the crumbling empire behind both is in much clearer focus. 

The Black Alliance for Peace stands in solidarity with those surviving and resisting both of the comprador regimes in Kenya and Haiti as they collaborate with U.S.-led Western imperialism to oppress and exploit Africans in both nations.

Hands Off Haiti!

U.S. Out of Africa!

Make Our Americas a Zone of Peace!

References: 

Fighting Words, “Kenyan Police Attack Youth-Led Demonstrations Against Brutality”

Haitian Times, “Port-au-Prince mourns Hotel Oloffson, LGBTQ+ refuge and majestic landmark, lost to criminal fire”

HaitiLibre, “Haiti - Politic : ALBA stands in solidarity with Haiti faced with foreign interference”: 

TeleSUR English-Haiti, “Militant members of ALBA met with Haitian organizations to reaffirm solidarity”

Al Jazeera, ‘Kenya is not asleep anymore’: Why young protesters are not backing down

Banner photo: Kenya and Haiti sign agreement on the deployment of 1,000 police officers to the Multi-National Security Support Mission in Haiti

Exportando represión: Haitianos y kenianos luchan contra los representantes neocoloniales del imperialismo liderado por EE.UU.

Desde 2021, el equipo Haití/Américas de la Alianza Negra por la Paz ha documentado la profundización de la crisis del imperialismo en Haití, en particular cómo las fuerzas imperialistas y sus títeres neocoloniales han trabajado para suprimir y eliminar la organización de los movimientos populares y la voluntad del pueblo haitiano. En los últimos cuatro años, esta crisis ha impactado a naciones de todo el mundo, especialmente a Kenia.

Este verano se cumple un año del levantamiento liderado por la juventud keniana contra la Ley Financiera de 2024, respaldada por el FMI. En lugar de atender las demandas de una generación que ha sufrido una inflación descontrolada, violencia policial y desempleo masivo, el presidente William Ruto ha desatado una vez más toda la fuerza represiva del Estado. Balas reales, secuestros y toques de queda se han convertido en tácticas rutinarias para aplastar la disidencia, dejando al menos 50 manifestantes muertos. Como señaló el equipo de África de BAP la semana pasada, estas protestas no son aisladas, sino que reflejan un rechazo generacional más amplio a la austeridad impuesta por el FMI y a la consolidación represiva de un gobierno neocolonial.

A millas de distancia, en Haití revolucionaria, las botas kenianas siguen pisando su suelo. Tras el asesinato de Jovenel Moïse en julio de 2021 y la imposición de Ariel Henry por parte del Core Group, tropas fueron desplegadas bajo la misión denominada Apoyo Multinacional de Seguridad (MSS), renovada en octubre de 2024 pese a la oposición constante de la sociedad civil y los movimientos populares en las Américas. Los mismos policías violentos que reprimen en Kenia fueron enviados a "restablecer el orden" en un país devastado por décadas de intervención extranjera y políticas neocoloniales.

El "orden" que representan estas fuerzas no es el de la paz, sino el de la continuidad de la dominación imperialista y la subversión neocolonial. El mismo régimen que brutaliza a su juventud en casa ahora pretende llevar "seguridad" a los haitianos en el extranjero. Estas respuestas militarizadas no protegen a la mayoría del pueblo en Haití o Kenia, sino a las corporaciones multinacionales, los burócratas imperialistas y las oligarquías y élites neocoloniales.

Neocolonialismo en Haití: La externalización de la ocupación imperialista

La MSS no ha logrado frenar la violencia, pero no por falta de fuerza, sino porque nunca fue diseñada para resolver las causas profundas del conflicto. Desde que la misión liderada por Kenia se lanzó formalmente en 2024 bajo el patrocinio de EE.UU., ha sido estratégicamente ambigua, militarmente ineficaz y políticamente ilegítima.

Como han denunciado recientemente activistas de base, la MSS y sus amos del Comando Sur de EE.UU. (Southcom) ocultan sus actividades, pues los grupos paramilitares que supuestamente debían combatir no han hecho más que expandir su control dentro y fuera de Puerto Príncipe. Esto incluye localidades como La Chapelle, Artibonite y Lascaobas, en el departamento del Centro.

Esto no se debe a que la intervención sea "débil", sino que está planeado así. La presencia de la MSS funciona como un escalón para una reocupación estadounidense más profunda y como excusa para militarizar aún más la crisis política de Haití, que siempre ha sido —y sigue siendo— una crisis del imperialismo.

El fracaso de la MSS no solo demuestra la inutilidad de la intervención extranjera para resolver la crisis haitiana, sino que revela su verdadero propósito: mantener a Haití bajo un yugo neocolonial.

Vida, cultura y soberanía bajo asedio

A principios de esta semana, grupos armados paramilitares incendiaron el Hotel Oloffson, un sitio histórico en Puerto Príncipe conocido por su importancia para el arte, el periodismo, el refugio y la resistencia haitianos. Esto no fue solo un ataque a la infraestructura, sino un asalto a la memoria cultural y al alma política de Haití. Al mismo tiempo, las fuerzas gubernamentales bajo el ilegítimo Consejo Presidencial de Transición (CPT) intensifican los ataques con "drones kamikaze" que ya han resultado en el asesinato de al menos 300 personas en barrios pobres y de clase trabajadora, bajo la justificación de atacar a "pandillas terroristas". Ahora, con el acuerdo entre el CPT y los mercenarios respaldados por Estados Unidos de Erik Prince, la militarización y la violencia solo prometen profundizarse. A medida que la violencia se extiende más allá de Puerto Príncipe, tanto vidas como espacios simbólicos de resistencia haitiana están siendo consumidos por la violencia alimentada por el imperialismo.

Sin embargo, este mes también ha traído signos de resistencia y solidaridad. El 13 de julio, residentes desplazados del barrio de Solino en Puerto Príncipe se movilizaron en las calles para protestar por su supervivencia y contra los oligarcas y el estado neocolonial que están destruyendo sus vidas y medios de subsistencia. El 6 de julio, la Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América (ALBA) envió una delegación a Haití en un claro rechazo a la intervención respaldada por Estados Unidos. La delegación, compuesta por representantes de Venezuela, Brasil y Argentina, denunció el intervencionismo extranjero y pidió "respeto a la soberanía de Haití, instando a soluciones basadas en la cooperación mutua, no en la ocupación militar... Detrás de la violencia, la corrupción y la escasez de alimentos, está el mismo imperialismo de Estados Unidos que oprime a todos los pueblos del Sur Global".

En marcado contraste con el papel de Kenia como ejecutor proxy del Core Group liderado por Estados Unidos políticamente y del Comando Sur militarmente, la declaración de ALBA replantea posibles soluciones a la crisis en Haití a través de la solidaridad regional, no de mandatos occidentales. Este enfoque en la solidaridad es una función central del desarrollo de la Campaña por una Zona de Paz en Nuestra América, que tiene como objetivo principal terminar con la intervención militar en Haití y apoyar movimientos centrados en los pueblos que enfatizan la autodeterminación y la dignidad para las masas haitianas.

Como antiimperialistas en solidaridad con las masas de haitianos y kenianos, debemos mantenernos claros. Ya sea en Nairobi o en Puerto Príncipe, el manual es el mismo: suprimir la resistencia en casa, legitimar la ocupación en el extranjero. Pero la juventud africana de hoy no está confundida. Ellos ven las conexiones globales. Las mismas fuerzas que imponen deuda y represión en Kenia están financiando la dominación extranjera en Haití. La violencia no es un accidente, es el brazo ejecutor de un sistema neocolonial. Mientras la MSS fracasa en Haití y la juventud keniana sigue alzándose contra la represión doméstica, el imperio en decadencia detrás de ambos está mucho más claro.

La Alianza Negra por la Paz se solidariza con aquellos que sobreviven y resisten a ambos regímenes compradores en Kenia y Haití mientras colaboran con el imperialismo occidental liderado por Estados Unidos para oprimir y explotar a los africanos en ambas naciones.

¡Fuera las manos de Haití!

¡EE.UU. fuera de África!

¡Hagamos de Nuestra América una Zona de Paz!

References: 

Fighting Words, “Kenyan Police Attack Youth-Led Demonstrations Against Brutality”

Haitian Times, “Port-au-Prince mourns Hotel Oloffson, LGBTQ+ refuge and majestic landmark, lost to criminal fire”

HaitiLibre, “Haiti - Politic : ALBA stands in solidarity with Haiti faced with foreign interference”: 

TeleSUR English-Haiti, “Militant members of ALBA met with Haitian organizations to reaffirm solidarity”

Al Jazeera, ‘Kenya is not asleep anymore’: Why young protesters are not backing down

The Black Alliance for Peace Stands Unequivocally Behind Kenya’s Youth Upholding Resistance Against U.S. Puppet State Imperialism and Neo-Liberalism

The Black Alliance for Peace Stands Unequivocally Behind Kenya’s Youth Upholding Resistance Against U.S. Puppet State Imperialism and Neo-Liberalism

In June 2024, Kenya was racked by youth mobilizations, referred to as the Gen Z Movement protests, as that nation’s young people rose up against the neo-liberal austerity measures enacted by the U.S. lackey president William Ruto. In typical fashion, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had demanded increased taxation and funding cuts to a country whose leadership has privileged the dictates of imperialism over its own people. Kenya’s police killed 60 people during those 2024 actions but the popular struggle resulted in the plans for taxation being cancelled.

On the first anniversary of these actions, the young people rose up again in opposition to the Ruto government, which sent its troops to Haiti at the behest of the U.S. government, and which was designated a major non-NATO ally in gratitude for its posture as a vassal state. Kenya’s police state is again killing those who oppose, including journalist Albert Ojwang, who died in police custody, and more recently Boniface Kariuki, ostensibly for protesting Ojwang’s assassination.

The Africa Team of the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) and the organizing arm of the U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) once again stands in solidarity with the masses of Kenyans fighting against the neo-liberal austerity schemes and obedience to U.S. imperialism. Despite the fascist repression, the youth of Kenya are fearless in their resolve and persist in declaring and exposing the illegitimacy of the compradors of neo-colonialism.

The Gen-Z Movement represents the offspring or torch bearers of the unfinished revolution of the Kenya Land and Freedom Army (KLFA), known also as the Mau Mau, whose valiant fight paved the path toward the defeat of their British colonizers in 1960. Gen-Z are the political cubs of their predecessors: Comrades Dedan Kimathi, Mzalendo Bildad Kaggia, Wasonga Sijeyo, Pio Gama Pinto, and Mzalendo Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, true revolutionary heroes who stood firm in the fight for the genuine independence of Kenya.

BAP and the USOAN are clear that for the movement to decolonize Kenya to be complete, the running dogs of imperialism must be driven from office and the neo-colonial economic structures must be dismantled, allowing a truly sovereign Kenya to be established, untethered to the U.S.-EU-NATO Axis of Domination.

BAP remains unequivocal in the demand for U.S. imperialism to cease propping up the Ruto regime, for the unconditional and immediate release of our Kenyan family detained and jailed during these protests, and for reparations to be dispensed to the family and loved ones of those killed by the state and their goons.

Forward to expelling AFRICOM from the entire continent!

Forward to dethroning the comprador class in Africa!

Forward to one united, socialist Africa!

No Compromise!

No Retreat!

Banner photo: Kenyan youths carry flags during the candle light vigil in memory of dead protesters on June 30, 2024, (courtesy. SIMON MAINA/AFP via Getty Images)

Now is the Time for All Anti-Imperialists and Justice Loving People to Stand Unequivocally in Defense of Burkina Faso

Une version traduite en français est disponible ci-dessous

Now is the Time for All Anti-Imperialists and All Justice Loving People to Stand Unequivocally in Defense of Burkina Faso

It is no surprise to the Black Alliance for Peace’s (BAP) Africa Team and U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) that aggression is stepping up against the countries in the anti-imperialist Alliance of Sahel States. This was reflected in the flagrantly baseless accusations against Burkina Faso’s leader Ibrahim Traoré. On April 3, 2025, U.S. AFRICOM Commander Michael Langley testified to the Senate Armed Services Committee and claimed without evidence that interim President Traoré is misusing the country's gold mineral wealth in exchange for protection. Langley provided no details on how these supposed exchanges are carried out or from what Traoré needs protection.

The imperialist modus operandi is at play here and starts with demonizing and criminalizing the leader of a country as the war propaganda pretext for more direct intervention. We have seen this script before. Commander-In-Chief of Economic Fighters League of Ghana and Steering Committee member of the USOAN, Ernesto Yeboah refutes the liberal framing meant to arrest dissent against what is at stake:

“This is not about military vs. civilian rule. This is about imperialism vs. liberation. This is about Africans standing up — finally — and saying: Hands off Africa." 

The BAP Africa Team and USOAN are heeding the call emanating across Africa to unite in defense of Burkina Faso. And we further call on all anti-imperialist forces around the world, especially Black forces, to sound the alarm and publicly denounce these designs before this all too familiar strategy takes root. In 2011, Black anti-imperialist forces were unable to effectively counter the heinous plan of the U.S./EU/NATO Axis of Domination to destroy the revolutionary Pan-Africanist nation of Libya. BAP’s USOAN refuses to allow this fatal mistake to be repeated.

This time the complicity of silence by ECOWAS, the African Union, the Congressional Black Caucus, and the African (Black) comprador class around the world must be exposed.

This is a pivotal time for the struggle against imperialism in Africa. The emergence of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) and the revolutionary example of self-determination being set by the people of Burkina Faso represents a historic breakthrough for Pan-Africanism that the U.S. and NATO have been eager to eliminate. The U.S./EU/NATO axis is desperate to re-colonize Burkina Faso and to halt any further influence across Africa set by the example of the Alliance of Sahel States. What the U.S is angling to undermine is a popular process of decolonization.

Under President Traoré’s leadership, Burkina Faso has advanced toward food sovereignty, established a national gold refinery, and taken critical steps to reclaim its resources for the benefit of its people. The vague and opportunistic accusations issued by AFRICOM are designed to undermine these gains and set the stage for imperialist subversion. When U.S. officials speak of “strategic interests,” they mean the unfettered right to plunder Africa’s mineral wealth, dominate markets, and exploit African labor, all without the consent of African peoples. We must not allow the absurdity of the U.S. and NATO, currently complicit in the genocide of Palestinians, to pose as moral arbiters in Africa.

BAP and USOAN call on all anti-imperialist forces to join in active defense of Burkina Faso, demand the expulsion of AFRICOM from the continent, and ensure that no African nation suffers the fate that befell Libya in 2011.

The time to act is now!

Le moment est venu pour tous les anti-impérialistes et toutes les personnes éprises de justice défendre sans équivoque le Burkina Faso

L'equipe Afrique de l'Alliance Noire Pour la Paix (Black Alliance for Peace-BAP) ainsi que la coalition USA Hors d'Afrique! (USOAN) ne sont pas surpris de constater que l'agression s'intensifie contre les pays de l'Alliance anti-impérialiste des États du Sahel. Cela s'est traduit par des accusations flagrantes et sans fondement contre le dirigeant du Burkina Faso, le capitaine Ibrahim Traoré. En effet, le 3 avril 2025, Michael Langley, chef du commandement américain pour l'Afrique (AFRICOM) livrait devant la commission des forces armées du Sénat américain un témoignage dans lequel il affirmait, sans fournir la moindre preuve, que le président par intérim du Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Traoré, utilisait abusivement les richesses en or du pays en échange de protection. M. Langley n'a fourni aucun détail sur la manière dont ces prétendus échanges sont effectués ni sur les raisons pour lesquelles M. Traoré a besoin de protection.

Ce faisant, Langley reproduit le modus operandi classique des impérialistes: la diabolisation et la criminalisation d'un dirigeant étranger s'inscrit dans la campagne de propagande de guerre visant à justifier une intervention plus directe. 

Ce scénario, c'est du déjà-vu. Comme l'explique Ernesto Yeboah, président de la Ligue des combattants économiques (League of Economic Fighters) du Ghana, et membre du comité directeur de la coalition USA Hors d'Afrique! :

"Ce qui est en jeu, ce n'est pas l'opposition entre un régime militaire et un régime civil. Il s'agit d'une lutte de libération contre l'impérialisme. Il s'agit, pour les Africains, de se lever - enfin - et de dire : "Ne touchez pas à l'Afrique!"

L'équipe Afrique de la BAP et l'USOAN entendent l'appel émanant de toute l'Afrique à s'unir pour défendre le Burkina Faso. Nous appelons également toutes les forces anti-impérialistes dans le monde, en particulier les forces noires, à tirer la sonnette d'alarme et à dénoncer publiquement ces projets avant que cette stratégie trop familière ne prenne racine. En 2011, les forces anti-impérialistes noires ont été incapables de contrer efficacement l'odieux plan de l'Axe de domination États-Unis/UE/OTAN visant à détruire la nation révolutionnaire panafricaniste de Libye. L'USOAN et BAP refusent que cette erreur fatale se répète.

Cette fois-ci, la complicité, par le silence, de la CEDEAO, de l'Union africaine, du Caucus noir du congrès américain et de la classe compradore africaine (noire) dans le monde entier, doit être exposée.

La lutte contre l'impérialisme en Afrique se trouve à une période charnière. L'émergence de l'Alliance des États du Sahel (AES) et l'exemple révolutionnaire d'autodétermination donné par le peuple du Burkina Faso représentent une avancée historique pour le panafricanisme que les États-Unis et l'OTAN cherchent à éliminer. L'axe États-Unis/UE/OTAN cherche désespérément à recoloniser le Burkina Faso et à mettre un terme à l'influence exercée par l'Alliance des États du Sahel sur l'ensemble de l'Afrique. Ce que les États-Unis cherchent à saper, c'est un processus populaire de décolonisation.

Sous la direction du président Traoré, le Burkina Faso a progressé vers la souveraineté alimentaire, a créé une raffinerie nationale d'or et a pris des mesures cruciales pour récupérer ses ressources au profit de son peuple. Les accusations vagues et opportunistes lancées par l'AFRICOM visent à saper ces progrès et à préparer le terrain pour la subversion impérialiste. Lorsque les responsables américains parlent d'"intérêts stratégiques", ils entendent par là le droit absolu de piller les richesses minérales de l'Afrique, de dominer les marchés et d'exploiter la main-d'œuvre africaine; le tout sans le consentement des peuples africains. Nous ne devons pas permettre l'absurdité des Etats-Unis et de l'OTAN, actuellement complices du génocide des Palestiniens, de se poser en arbitres moraux en Afrique.

La BAP et l'USOAN appellent toutes les forces anti-impérialistes à se joindre à la défense active du Burkina Faso, à exiger l'expulsion de l'AFRICOM du continent, et à s'assurer qu'aucune nation africaine ne subisse le sort qui a frappé la Libye en 2011.

Il est temps d'agir, maintenant !

##

Banner photo: BAP demonstration in Washington DC gathered outside the Embassy of Burkina Faso, in defense of the Alliance for Sahel States, October 2024.

U.S. War on Africa Rages on with Somalia in the Crosshairs

U.S. War on Africa Rages on with Somalia in the Crosshairs

February 10, 2025 — The new Trump administration has wasted no time continuing the U.S. war on Africa. Just one month into his second term, the U.S. has launched at least six airstrikes in Somalia’s Puntland region. While AFRICOM and the Somali government claim these strikes are “authorized” and therefore legal under international law, this so-called authorization is nothing more than a hallmark of neo-colonial governance. Comprador regimes installed and maintained by Western imperialism do not exercise genuine sovereignty but instead serve as facilitators of foreign domination.

The Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) Africa Team and the U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) unequivocally condemn this renewed aggression. These strikes, backed by the Puntland regional government, have nothing to do with “security.” They serve U.S. neo-colonial domination, enforcing foreign control and keeping Somalia divided.

Under Trump’s first term, the U.S. launched over 200 airstrikes in Somalia—more than Bush, Obama, and Biden combined—fueling instability and strengthening al-Shabaab. The 2020 troop withdrawal was a reorganization of imperial strategy, ensuring AFRICOM continued operations through drone warfare and proxies.

For decades, the U.S. has worked to keep Somalia in crisis. It has exploited divisions between Somalia and Somaliland, manipulated conflicts in the Horn, and propped up corrupt regimes. The Somali government, like all comprador regimes, trades sovereignty for military aid, including its recent $600,000 contract with BGR Group, a Washington lobbying firm.

BAP previously warned that Trump’s second term would bring a more aggressive U.S. posture in Africa. As BAP Africa Team Co-Coordinator Netfa Freeman stated:

“The Trump administration enters office at a time when China and Russia have significantly deepened their strategic partnerships across the continent and with the continent no longer in the same position of weakness as before. The rise of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) has shown the world that African nations can reject Western domination and military occupation. These factors mean that the U.S. will likely pursue a much more aggressive military strategy in Africa, being that all they know is drone warfare, proxy militias, and strategic partnerships with neo-colonial regimes to maintain its grip.” 

This attack is part of a broader U.S. offensive against the growing movement in Africa for self-determination. Trump has already moved against South Africa, cutting aid under the racist pretext of defending white Afrikaners while punishing the country for challenging U.S. and Israeli settler-colonialism. The same empire that protects apartheid landowners in South Africa continues to wage war on Somalia and militarize the continent. Meanwhile, AFRICOM’s role in destabilizing Africa extends beyond Somalia. In Libya, U.S. military forces are deepening their partnership with the comprador regime in Tripoli, strengthening military ties under the tired pretext of “security cooperation.” AFRICOM’s continued presence in Libya, where U.S. and NATO forces devastated a prosperous country in 2011, ensures that Libya remains fractured, occupied by competing factions, and is a staging ground for imperialist military operations across North Africa and the Sahel.

The U.S. and its allies have turned Somalia into a perpetual warzone, a playground for private mercenaries, and a military testing ground for AFRICOM’s latest weapons and drone technology. They have done so under the guise of “fighting terrorism,” when in reality, they have created the very conditions that allow groups like al-Shabaab to thrive. BAP rejects the false choice between U.S. military occupation and endless war. The Somali people have the right to build their own future, without Washington’s bombs, without AFRICOM’s presence, and without the interference of Gulf States acting as Western proxies.

Shutdown AFRICOM!

U.S. Out of Africa!

No Compromise! No Retreat!

Banner image: photo of Trump pointing up superimposed on photo of military aircraft and pilot with jihadist rebels in background; courtesy @middayindia.

U.S.-led Imperialism Is Directly Responsible for Turmoil in the Democratic Republic of Congo

U.S.-led Imperialism Is Directly Responsible for Turmoil in the Democratic Republic of Congo

The Black Alliance for Peace Africa Team (BAP) and U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) stands in unwavering solidarity with the Congolese People as they endure yet another chapter of violence, exploitation, and masked imperialist aggression in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The ongoing conflict, fueled by Rwanda’s role as an imperialist foot soldier, is not merely a regional dispute but a manifestation of global capitalism’s insatiable desire for Africa’s resources. As the transnational capitalist class fight for dominance in the global clean energy, artificial intelligence, and technology markets, the Congo has been and stands to remain the battleground as a cornerstone of systemic plunder for over a century.

Rwanda, backed by Western powers such as the United States, the European Union (EU), Canada, Israel, etc, has consistently acted as a destabilizing force in the region, providing material support to proxy militias like the M23 to undermine Congolese sovereignty and facilitate the extraction of resources. Much like the sub-imperialist relationship between the United Arab Emirates and Sudan, Rwanda has no significant mineral reserves of its own yet has become one of the world’s leading exporters of critical minerals like coltan. The recent escalation in Goma, where Rwanda Defense Forces (RDF) and M23 have seized strategic areas, is a direct result of this imperialist agenda.

In stark and revolting contrast to what is professed by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to serve as the “Conscience of the Congress,” by “uplifting the voices of the voiceless and fighting for the most vulnerable… ” there is always a deafening silence concerning the role of U.S. imperialism in the Congo and in Africa at large. In fact CBC members have more so served as lap dogs for U.S. imperialism and willing servants for its policies of intervention.

The responsibility of those outside of the DRC is to heed the acts of the People reflecting the unheard, to unconditionally support their path toward self-determination and right to defend their land and sovereignty. This is the only way to sustainable peace in the Congo.

The conflict in the DRC is not an isolated event but a direct consequence of the global capitalist system in crisis. The so-called “Green Corridor” initiative, promoted by President Felix Tshisekedi at the World Economic Forum in Davos, is a stark example of how imperialist powers and their local compradors, seek to legitimize their pillaging under the guise of development. This initiative, funded primarily by the United States and EU, aims to secure access to the Congo’s cobalt, copper, and lithium — resources essential for the global transition to renewable energy and digital technologies. Yet, this so-called “development” comes at the direct expense of the Congolese People, who continue to suffer from violence, displacement, and poverty. 

The Congolese people, however, continue to resist valiantly. The recent attacks on the embassies of Belgium, France, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and the United States, chanting “down with imperialism” and widespread protests across the DRC, from Goma to Kinshasa, make clear the frustration of the Congolese with a government that has failed to protect them, and a global system that exploits them. The uprising reflects a growing consciousness among the Congolese masses, who are demanding accountability, liberation, and an end to decades of suffering. The Black Alliance for Peace recognizes these protests as part of a broader struggle across the African continent. As Che Guevara said, “all free people of the world be prepared to avenge the crime of the Congo.”

We understand that the liberation of the Congo is inseparable from the liberation of Africa as a whole. The Congo’s land, energy, and resources have fueled the wealth of imperialist powers for generations, while its people have been subjected to unimaginable violence and exploitation. The current crisis is a stark reminder that the struggle for African sovereignty is a struggle against the global capitalist system. We must reject the false narratives that frame this conflict as a regional or ethnic issue and instead recognize it as a fight against imperialism and for self-determination. 

The Black Alliance for Peace calls on all progressive forces, both across the African continent and around the world, to stand in solidarity with the Congolese People. Demand an immediate end to Rwanda’s aggression and the withdrawal of all foreign forces from the DRC. We call for Congo’s resources to be under the democratic control of its People. We call on all anti-imperialist forces across the world to expose the puppeteer role of the U.S.-EU-NATO Axis of Domination in fueling this crisis and to support the Congolese People’s right to life.

The struggle of the Congolese People is our struggle. Their victory is our victory. Let us unite in solidarity to end the centuries-long suffering in the Congo and to build a world free from imperialism, capitalism, and exploitation. The Congo is not for sale—it belongs to its People.

Free the Congo! 

Patrice Lumumba Lives!

Unite Africa under Socialism!

No Compromise!

No Retreat!

Banner photo: Security forces clash with protesters attacking the French embassy in Kinshasa, DR Congo, on January 28, 2025. (Courtesy Reuters)

Organizations Globally Condemn the Fascism of the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM): Launch of A Month of Action

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

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Organizations Globally Condemn the Fascism of the 

U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) 

Launch Annual Month of Action to Shut Down AFRICOM

SEPTEMBER 26, 2024 — October 1, 2024, marks the start of the 4th International Month of Action Against AFRICOM (U.S. Africa Command), organized by the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP). Every year, hundreds of organizations around the world endorse and participate in this Month of Action, standing united against the United States’ ongoing military presence in African nations across the continent.

International Month of Action Against AFRICOM will kick off with an international webinar featuring voices from the African continent and diaspora expressing the need for the complete withdrawal of U.S. troops and a complete end to the combatant command. Following the webinar individuals and organizations will engage in a month of autonomous and semi-autonomous actions and events designed to elevate this issue in the public consciousness around the world and encourage the continuation of the resistance against U.S. imperialism.

AFRICOM is the brainchild of the Heritage Foundation, the think tank also known for the creation of Project 2025. The plan was incubated twenty-one years ago, with an eye towards low-priced natural resources and control over African security affairs under the guise of the “Global War on Terror.” Launched by the George W. Bush administration and brought to full operation by the Barack Obama administration, AFRICOM is most known for the destruction of Libya resulting in tens of thousands dead, and millions displaced. The U.S. continues to refine and expand the tactics employed in Libya across the continent.

This year’s Month of Action Against AFRICOM comes at a pivotal geopolitical moment for Africa. The continent is experiencing widespread anti-neocolonialist movements including: (1) the successful expelling of AFRICOM from Niger, (2) admission and evidence that U.S. ally Ukraine has supported terrorism in Mali, and (3) popular mass mobilizations against governments propped up by the U.S. that are facing state repression, ie. Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda etc.

The Month of Action Against AFRICOM does not represent the full extent of BAP’s work against the neocolonial occupation of Africa. BAP continues to call for the dismantling of NATO, AFRICOM and all imperialist structures. Africa and the rest of the world cannot be free until all Peoples can exercise their sovereignty and the right to live free of domination.

BAP’s Demands include:

• The complete withdrawal of U.S. forces from Africa;

• The demilitarization of the African Continent;

• The closure of U.S. bases throughout the world; and

• The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) oppose the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) and conduct hearings on AFRICOM’s impact on the African continent, with the full participation of members of U.S. and African civil society.

To learn more about BAP’s International Month of Action Against AFRICOM, please visit our web page. You can also see informational materials about the Month of Action in our media kit.

Responsibility for the Kenya Crisis Lies At the Feet of US Neo-Colonialism

Responsibility for the Kenya Crisis Lies At the Feet of US Neo-Colonialism

The excessive support and public adoration the U.S. government has given to Kenya’s President William Ruto represents the racist contempt this settler state has for all of Africa and for the domestic population of descendants from the continent. Two days before African Liberation Day on May 25th and one month before the Kenyan police’s brutal crackdown on protests against the US-IMF backed Finance Act that increases taxes up to 35% on essential goods, U.S. President Biden rolled out a red carpet for Ruto at a White House state dinner.

The debt that this bill is supposed to address only exists because of the incessant and indiscriminate borrowing by the previous government of Kenya, for which Ruto was vice-president. Ruto is a Grade A lackey for U.S. interests reminiscent of the dictator Mobutu of the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire) who U.S. imperialism supported for 32 years in order to plunder the Congo.

U.S. neo-colonialism praised as an “endearing” and “enduring” democracy, the Ruto presidency, a puppet government that unleashed its notoriously vicious police to reportedly arrest more than 300, kill as many as 23 and injure dozens of Kenyan citizens in the demonstrations over the past week. These police are the same force U.S. imperialism has maneuvered into being dispatched to Haiti to contain the people’s resistance against imperialism in that Caribbean nation.

An elevation in the parlance of U.S. statecraft is the paternalistic promise of granting Kenya the status of a “Major Non-NATO Ally,” a role granted to the African Union’s African Standby Force. This designation is in sharp contrast to the Alliance of Sahel States newly formed confederation which is a declaration of African self-determination.

The Africa Team of the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) and the organizing arm U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) stands in uncompromising solidarity with the masses of Kenyans fighting against the proposed Finance Bill 2024. We denounce in the strongest terms the complicity of the U.S., especially its Black misleaders in Congress, in passing this legislation. In fact the day the bill was introduced in the Kenyan parliament, members of the  U.S congress were present including Barbara Lee. 

Ruto must go! U.S. Out of Africa! BAP and USOAN salute the courage and determination of the masses of youth throughout Kenya "Gen Z"! The blood spilled will not be in vain. Our martyrs are alive along-side of the living. We stand unwaveringly with the Gen Z Movement, our people of Kenya!

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Banner photo: A police officer with a walkie-talkie confronting a protest against the Finance Bill 2024. courtesy: Mathare Justice Center

BAP’s Africa Team and U.S. Out of Africa Network Applauds Niger’s Move to Expel AFRICOM

—La traduction en français se trouve ci-dessous

The Black Alliance for Peace’s Africa Team and U.S. Out of Africa Network Applauds Niger’s Move to Expel AFRICOM

The Black Alliance for Peace’s (BAP) Africa Team and U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) commend Niger for its decision to expel the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM). We urge all African nations to reject U.S. neo-colonialism and remove AFRICOM from their territories. AFRICOM's presence has led to an exponential increase in terrorism, with more civilian casualties resulting from AFRICOM strikes.

Niger's National Council for the Safeguarding of Our Homeland (CNSP) has declared the U.S. presence in their territory illegal, highlighting the erosion of Niger's sovereignty since the establishment of U.S. military bases in 2014. Despite Niger’s declaration, the U.S. refuses to leave, dismissing Niger’s position as Russian influence. Local organizations in Niger have openly denounced U.S. interference in the country's ongoing transition process and the people have demonstrated in front of the U.S. embassy in Niamey to demand the immediate departure of AFRICOM.

BAP and the USOAN emphasize the need for African people to control their continent's destiny and we oppose all foreign military and all forms of imperialist intervention in Africa. BAP also expresses concern over AFRICOM's plans to expand by placing new drone bases in Benin, Ivory Coast, and Ghana. We denounce such expansions and call for an end to all military agreements between African nations and the U.S.

BAP's Africa Team and USOAN will closely monitor the unfolding situation in Niger.
 

U.S. Out of Africa! Shut Down AFRICOM!

Traduction en français

L'équipe Afrique de l'Alliance Noire pour la Paix (BAP) et le réseau U.S.A. dégage!(USAON) saluent la décision du Niger d'expulser l'AFRICOM

L'équipe Afrique de l'Alliance Noire pour la Paix (ou BAP en anglais) et le réseau U.S.A. Dégage! (ou USOAN en anglais) félicitent le Niger pour sa décision d'expulser le Commandement américain pour l'Afrique (AFRICOM). Nous exhortons toutes les nations africaines à rejeter le néocolonialisme américain et à expulser l'AFRICOM de leur territoire. La présence de l'AFRICOM a conduit à une augmentation exponentielle du terrorisme, avec plus de victimes civiles résultant des frappes de l'AFRICOM.

Le Conseil national pour la sauvegarde de la patrie (CNSP) du Niger a déclaré illégale la présence des États-Unis sur son territoire, soulignant l'érosion de la souveraineté du Niger depuis l'établissement de bases militaires américaines en 2014. Malgré la déclaration du Niger, les États-Unis refusent de partir, et traitent la position du Niger comme une simple expression de l'influence Russe. Les organisations locales au Niger ont ouvertement dénoncé l'ingérence des États-Unis dans le processus de transition en cours dans le pays et la population a manifesté devant l'ambassade des États-Unis à Niamey pour exiger le départ immédiat de l'AFRICOM.

La BAP et l'USOAN soulignent la nécessité pour les peuples africains de contrôler le destin de leur continent et s'opposent à toute intervention militaire étrangère et à toute forme d'intervention impérialiste en Afrique. La BAP exprime également son inquiétude quant aux plans d'expansion de l'AFRICOM, qui prévoit d'installer de nouvelles bases de drones au Bénin, en Côte d'Ivoire et au Ghana. Nous dénonçons cette expansion et appelons à la fin de tous les accords militaires entre les nations africaines et les Etats-Unis.

L'équipe Afrique de la BAP et l'USOAN suivront de près l'évolution de la situation au Niger.

Les U.S.A. Dégage! ! A bas l'AFRICOM !

Banner photo: Demonstrators in Niger against France neocolonialism hold sign that reads “A Dieu La France” (courtesy pbs.org/newshour}.

Black Alliance for Peace’s U.S. Out of Africa Network Deplores Plans to Expand U.S. Drone Atrocities in West Africa

Black Alliance for Peace’s U.S. Out of Africa Network Deplores Plans to Expand U.S. Drone Atrocities in West Africa

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE     

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(202) 643-1136

The Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) and the U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) opposes in the strongest terms the U.S. plans, in collusion with West Africa’s comprador class, to further violate Africa’s sovereignty and right to self determination in the form of three new military drone bases in Ghana, Ivory Coast and Benin. Further, we condemn the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) for not publicly renouncing this proposal in particular, and the existence of the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) in general. Their silence around this development confirms their complicity and betrayal of Pan-Africanism and the interests of the African masses struggling against the ravages of neo-colonialism.

More U.S. drone bases in Africa spell more violence, vicious anonymity, and "collateral damage" from drone assassinations. It spells enhanced surveillance capabilities for imperialism to use against any threat to the neocolonial order. U.S. maneuvering to expand its already massive military drone operations is consistent with the U.S. incessant drive to wage war globally and its militarization of the planet. U.S. drone and air strikes in Africa have primarily been in Libya and Somalia with the numbers of confirmed civilian deaths from drones as high as 3,200 in these two countries, and studies have shown these conditions “have inadvertently aided the growth of terrorist groups in the region.” This is what the U.S. proposes now for West Africa.

There are clear and disturbing geostrategic implications regarding the countries they have chosen for these U.S. drone bases. The bases will form a border along the three countries of the Alliance of Sahel States – Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger – countries which have been adopting an anti-imperialist disposition. In fact, Burkina Faso’s entire southern flank would be surrounded by these U.S. drone bases. The last two administrations as well as members of Congress have clearly stated in policy declarations and legislation that the U.S.' primary objective in Africa is to counteract the presence and influence of China and Russia in order to maintain its full spectrum dominance of all regions of the world. This is also consistent with the Global Fragility Act that states the Biden administration’s first sites of focus would be Haiti, Libya, and "West African coastal states," where the U.S. seeks to place the drone bases.

The bases will not be there to end so-called terrorism of extremists in Africa; they will be there for the U.S. to terrorize the region. It is folly to believe that the settler criminals who rule the U.S. state, who can justify the genocidal assault on Gaza, and who systematically murder, sanction, and attack nations globally to maintain white supremacy and global capitalism, are spending hundreds of millions to “fight terrorism” in Africa.

Rather than “an urgent effort to stop the spread of al Qaeda and Islamic State in the region,” according to American and African officials, the USOAN contends that this is more likely a contingency plan to preserve drone capabilities in the event of losing their $110 million U.S. drone base in Agadez, Niger. Niger has also recently temporarily suspended the granting of new mining licenses and ordered an audit of the sector, a move that would invariably raise the eyebrows of the U.S.-EU-NATO axis of domination, concerned over the future of exploitative access to the mineral resources there, such as uranium. Resource sovereignty runs counter to the true colonialist objectives of U.S. foreign policy.

BAP and the USOAN call on all who support African sovereignty to denounce the U.S.’ latest imperialist moves in Western Africa as well as the neocolonial African governments and collaborators like the Ghanaian president Nana Akufo-Addo who, face-to-face with U.S. Secretary Antony Blinken, openly begged for the U.S. to violate the sovereignty of the countries in the Alliance of Sahel States.

BAP and the USOAN will continue to expose the puppets of neocolonialism in Africa and the misleaders masquerading as Black representatives in the legislative branches of the U.S. setter state. We maintain that the U.S. and its Western Europe progenitors are the root cause and primary sustenance for the poverty, displacement, despair, and violence in Africa, born from decades of colonialist plunder.

 #ShutDownAFRICOM!

#USOutofAfrica!

Banner photo: 3 U.S. drones docked on an airfield in Asia. Courtesy didpress.com

All Africans Should Condemn the Call for an ECOWAS-led Military Invasion of Niger

All Africans Should Condemn the Call for an ECOWAS-led Military Invasion of Niger

The Africa Team of the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) and the U.S. Out of Africa Network (USOAN) condemn the threats of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to lead a military intervention into Niger. We believe this would be an act of subservience to U.S./EU/NATO interests. As Western imperialism seems to be losing its neo-colonialist grip on Africa, it is trying to expand its use of puppets and proxies to undermine resistance.

The military coup in Niger on July 26 deposed President Mohamed Bazoum and installed General Abdourahamane Tchiani as the country's new leader. In power since 2021, Bazoum and his party were reliable servants of French and U.S. imperialism. This may help explain why the United States and its NATO allies seemed overly concerned about this particular coup.

The West’s hypocritical claims of standing for “democracy” in Niger fall flat when compared to its response to the military coup in Sudan as well as the political repression faced by the popular movement in that country. The United States (and its Western partners) has had a hand in orchestrating countless coups in Africa, such as those against democratically elected leaders Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Patrice Lumumba of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso, to name a few.

The objective of the U.S./EU/NATO Axis of Domination is colonial control of Niger and the Sahel region. France and other EU countries rely on Niger for 15-30 percent of their uranium imports, critical to Europe's nuclear energy sector. Meanwhile, the majority of Niger’s population doesn’t even have access to electricity. Furthermore, Niger is the last state in West Africa where a large number of Western soldiers are stationed under the U.S. “War on Terror” regime. The $100 million U.S. base in Agadez, Niger, is where the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) operates its drones, and is just one such AFRICOM facility in that country.

As Ezra Otieno, member of the Revolutionary Socialist League in Kenya and BAP’s U.S. Out of Africa Network Steering Committee, says:

“For all of these factors, France, the EU, and the U.S. are keen to maintain control over Niger. They aim to push the new authorities to restore their puppet Bazoum or to reach an arrangement with General Tchiani to maintain his predecessor's pro-Western stance. If these preparations fail within the next few days, Western imperialists want to intervene militarily with the support of their foot soldiers in the Nigeria-dominated ECOWAS bloc.”

It is clear that the United States and France have decided to draw a line here before France is expelled and U.S. interests are threatened. Without NATO, the United States or France, ECOWAS would not be able to intervene. It is telling that, of all the coups in Africa, ECOWAS is ready to intervene militarily in Niger. This is because their masters in the West demand it. Apparently, ECOWAS member states have chosen servitude to imperialism over the people's will.

In Haiti, the imperialists use Kenya and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) as cover for their intervention. To do the same for the coup in Niger, they have the President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and ECOWAS. Now they are facing a united front composed of Burkina Faso, and Mali, whose leadership have all expressed support for Niger’s sovereignty. While the CNRD of Guinea, Comité national du rassemblement et du développement (National Committee of Reconciliation and Development) is not part of the front, their Spokesperson, Aminata Diallo said that if “…requested by ECOWAS to send troops that we would refuse…”

ECOWAS is working as a comprador structure, along with the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), which has levied financial sanctions against Niger and the coup leaders. The situation in Niger demands an African response, not the imperialist-led and anti-people militarized one suggested by members of ECOWAS.

The Black Alliance for Peace October 2023 International Month of Action against western militarization of the African continent, demanding that the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) is shut down, will be more important than ever before. The annual Month of Action is an opportunity for political education and action that links the domestic war being waged against African peoples in the United States with the war that the United States wages on the continent of Africa and globally.

From Haiti to Niger and beyond, we must build an understanding of Pan-Africanism and illuminate the interdependent geo-political and economic interests among African/Black people in Haiti, the Americas, the African continent, and among those domestically colonized in the enclaves of the imperialist countries.

No to imperialism in Black face. Yes to Pan-African self-determination. U.S. Out of Africa!

Banner photo: Supporters of Niger's ruling junta gather at the start of a protest called to fight for the country's freedom and push back against foreign interference in Niamey, Niger, Thursday, Aug. 3, 2023. (Courtesy AP Photo/Sam Mednick)

An Africa Anti-Imperialist Week of Actions Launches Today to Expose and Denounce Biden Administration’s U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit in Washington, D.C.

For Immediate Release     

Media Contact

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DECEMBER 12, 2022— In a direct response to the Biden administration’s “U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit''—taking place in Washington, D.C., December 13-15—the U.S Out of Africa Network, the organizational arm of the Black Alliance for Peace’s (BAP) campaign to shut down the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), has launched an anti-imperialist week of actions in Washington to raise public awareness about the cynical intentions of the summit.

BAP’s December 9 statement challenges in detail the Biden administration’s claim that the summit will “demonstrate the United States’ enduring commitment to Africa, and will underscore the importance of U.S.-Africa relations and increased cooperation on shared global priorities.” BAP pointed out the United States militarily occupies 53 of the 54 countries on the continent in one form or another, that it sustains a drone war in Somalia, and that it led the 2011 NATO destruction of Libya.

BAP’s actions throughout the week will include protests and rallies, starting on December 13 with a noon forum, “Africa Anti-Imperialist Summit: Voices from the Ground.” Then a press conference will be held at 2 p.m. on December 16. Both events mentioned will take place at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) at 1301 Connecticut Avenue, 6th Floor, Washington, D.C.

While Biden administration officials play down their concern about the inroads of China and Russia into Africa, U.S. Out of Africa Network Coordinator Tunde Osazua says, “Challenging these inroads is a clear goal of the summit. On the heels of Human Rights Day they’re convening the summit to undermine the human rights of African people and want us to ignore the historical record of the U.S. in Africa.”

BAP is also calling out the Congressional Black Caucus for their ongoing support of U.S. oppressive, murderous policies in Africa. “These members sit quietly, in active dereliction of their duty, to safeguard the rights and interests of Black and oppressed people,” says Netfa Freeman, BAP Coordinating Committee member.

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Banner photo: The center of Benghazi in ruins after years of conflict (courtesy Ivor Prickett for The New York Times.)

Invitations for a Seat at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit Table Should Not Only Be Rejected, the Table Needs Turning Over!

The Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) recognizes the “U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit'' — scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C. December 13-15th — as nothing more than collusion between neo-colonial powers and U.S. attempts to advance and maintain dominance over the continent.

Liberal elements of U.S. civil society will preoccupy themselves with the issues they think should be addressed at the Summit, claiming to act in the best interest of Africa or, as with the Summit of the Americas held earlier this year, attack those who they say do not deserve to be invited. Such dispositions presume the U.S. has honest intentions for Africa and legitimizes/obscures its real interests and role.

Convened on the heels of Human Rights Day which is held every December 10, the Black Radical Human Rights and Peace Traditions must center the historical record of the U.S. in Africa and the geo-strategic interests it is committed to upholding. The carefully considered proceedings, side events, invitations, and public relations campaigns are designed to secure greater control of Africa’s abundant resources for U.S. “national interests” aligned with the interest of international finance capital.

Having assumed the racist mantle of the “White Man’s Burden” in the Global South in general and Africa in particular, the U.S. claims that this summit will “demonstrate the United States’ enduring commitment to Africa, and will underscore the importance of U.S.-Africa relations and increased cooperation on shared global priorities.” Such statements should be exposed as being disingenuous and an effort to cover up the United States' malign intent.

African independence movements since the 1950s have been destabilized by U.S. administrations of both parties. Democratically elected leaders such as Patrice Lumumba of Congo, who was assassinated by the CIA, and Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, who was overthrown in a CIA orchestrated coup, fell victim to U.S. government meddling, and they are only two among many. Contemporary U.S. interference has involved proxy wars in Congo with the assistance of Uganda and Rwanda, and in Somalia with Ethiopia (2006-2009) followed by a sustained drone war over Somalia under the guise of fighting extremists. In 2011 the U.S. led NATO in a regime change operation resulting in the total destruction of Libya. The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) occupies 53 of the 54 countries on the continent in one form or another for U.S. neo-colonial hegemony.

A core goal of the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit is to challenge the inroads of the People’s Republic of China and to a lesser extent the Russian Federation vis-à-vis the continent. The political sectors of the U.S. oligarchy are concerned about regional cooperation initiated in the Horn of Africa since 2018, and anti-France and pro-Russia expressions among the people in countries like Mali, Guinea, and Burkina Faso, which is invoking the legacy of the revolutionary Thomas Sankara.

Most notably, the complicity and silence of the Congressional Black Caucus members over the role of the U.S. federal government in Africa and the dereliction of their professed purpose to represent the interests of Black and oppressed people will undoubtedly find political cover in the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit. CBC members will be key-note speakers, event conveners, and backdoor deal makers for the U.S. neocolonial, white supremacist, patriarchal order. 

In contrast, the Black Alliance for Peace (BAP) is holding an anti-imperialist week of actions to raise public awareness related to the real issues that should be on the agenda for discussion at the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit.  BAP calls for the dismantling of NATO, AFRICOM and all imperialist structures. Africa and the rest of the world cannot be free until all peoples are able to realize the right of sovereignty and the right to live free of domination.

We demand:

1. The complete withdrawal of U.S. forces from Africa;

2. The closure of U.S. bases throughout the world; and

3. The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to oppose the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) and conduct hearings on AFRICOM’s impact on the African continent, with the full participation of members of U.S. and African civil society.

Join BAP for an anti-imperialist week of actions!

Banner photo: The 2014 summit table surrounded by the empty chair reserved for invited participants (courtesy DOS Flickr)