On March 8, 2023, General Laura J. Richardson of the United States (U.S.) Southern Command gave testimony at a congressional hearing wherein she issued a warning to U.S. lawmakers about the expansion of Chinese influence in the Caribbean that were at odds with purported U.S. interests in the region.[1] Richardson advised policy makers in the U.S. to “pay more attention” to the Caribbean (and Central and South America) because “proximity matters.”[2] To raise the issue to a level of “threat” for U.S. policymakers, Richardson claimed that China had “increased its support for anti-U.S. regimes in the region” of which the . . .
Neo-Colonialism
Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger at the head of the African Revolution
History is a great teacher. If we do not learn from it, we are doomed to repeat mistakes made. Early post-colonial African leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah, Sekou Toure, Modibo Keita and Marien Ngouabi spoke of economic independence and the ongoing struggle for true independence. Well aware of the trap of bogus independence, what Walter Rodney referred to as “brief- case independence”, or what I refer to as “flag-and-anthem independence”, these leaders mobilised and organised their people for the completion of their respective national liberation struggles. However, Western imperialism and its stooges, or “running dogs of imperialism”, as the Chinese . . .
Cowardly Red, White and Blue Weasel Stalks Africa
Although the U.S. huffed and puffed in the days following a military takeover in Niger, history suggests that notwithstanding the heavy U.S. military presence in Africa, the commitment of U.S. troops to direct armed combat on African soil is unlikely. That’s because the U.S. has never had the guts to tell the truth about how it has bullied and exploited Africa from a distance by using covert operations, drone and air strikes, and proxy military forces to do the dirty work needed to accomplish its imperialist objectives. But like all liars, the U.S. occasionally slips up and discloses the truth. . . .
“Ignorance is Bliss” and other Fallacies of Counterinsurgency
By Erica Caines and Geechee Yaw When attempting to educate someone politically, or confront them with the contradictions present in our material reality, oftentimes the phrase “ignorance is bliss” is said, suggesting that not knowing or not being aware of certain things can bring a sense of happiness or contentment. The phrase also suggests that being unaware of certain truths, realities, or problems can be more comfortable and less troubling to an individual than knowing and dealing with them. As playwright and activist, Lorraine Hansberry understood, “Comfort has come to be its own corruption.” Yet, not only is this sentiment . . .
Beyond Affirmative Action, Toward Black Unity
If the roof of your home caved in during a thunderstorm and your landlord offered to sell you a patch to cover a quarter of the hole drenching you, your family, and all your Earthly possession for a high-interest loan of $100,000 that you had to repay under penalty of incarceration, you would tell them to go where the sun don’t shine. But lucky you, your landlord is a ‘benevolent’ one and recognizes that you’re in this position partially because of an unjust system that they benefit from and discrimination against your people (past and present). Landlord loans you a . . .
More Than Meets the Silk Press: Kamala Harris and U.S. Imperialism
Kamala Harris wants to be your aunty. The Biden Administration’s controversial Vice President is often presented as either an incompetent sidekick, or a lovable big sister figure who “stays with her hair done”. Usually when she is presented to the general public it’s a roast— right wing media highlighting her latest string of incoherent thoughts or social media unloading a fresh set of cop memes. In February, The New York Times published the headline, “Kamala Harris Is Trying to Define Her Vice Presidency. Even Her Allies Are Tired of Waiting.” In the piece, John Morgan, a prominent fund-raiser for the . . .
Nigeria Will Become A Liberated Zone
The bus driver, the shop keeper, as well as the farmer are all aware of the many ways the Nigerian government is depriving its citizens of the means of realizing their potential in terms of development, and self-actualization. Nigeria as an institution is not working in favor of the people within its apparent territory. The proletariat of the country is well aware of the government’s failings but do not always make the connection to the larger problem of neocolonial capitalism. The average person experiences these issues through inflation, and while that is a magical economic term for many including myself, . . .
We Are At War
This war of ours pits the masses of African people against a vicious capitalism characterized by white supremacy, imperialism, zionism and a host of social maladies. . . .