When Nelson Mandela had an Ethiopian Passport
In April 1962, Mandela traveled on an Ethiopian passport in the name of David Motsomayi. He visited Morocco, Algeria, and Mali.
Politics
Three Myths about Mandela Worth Busting
The Nelson Mandela encountered by former antiapartheid activist Tony Karon in American media is so unrecognizable.
Tata Mandela
The Mandela Capture Memorial in Howick, Kwazulu Natal speaks eloquently to the essential truth: that in South Africa, some families mattered more than other.
Madiba: I Remember
The writer, originally from Cape Town, remembers Nelson Mandela's impact on his life.
10 excuses Dutch people make for blackface
The Dutch can't hide how racist the "tradition" of the blackface character, Zwarte Piet, is. Here we parody their rationalizations.
How much is an African body worth?
An African refugee in Britain seeks assistance. He is thrown behind bars, often shackled. He fasts in protest. He is shackled and shipped out on the next charter flight.
Antiblack racism in Korea
Racist representations of Africans are common in South Korea. Where does it come from? Why do South Koreans behave this way?
The loser mentality of white South Africans
On the rather extraordinary claim that white South Africans have been politically and economically marginalized since the inception of majority rule in 1994.
Lilian Thuram’s burden
Why should black players have the burden of calling out racism, while white players don't feel compelled to do the same?
Revisiting Sweden’s colonial past
The image of a benevolent, preternaturally anti-racist “good old Sweden,” spreading its perfect democracy around the world, is fiction.
My New York Times column about Cape Town
The author wrote a column about racial and class inequalities in the city where he lived. The usual backlash by those in power followed.
File under: Dutch Liberalism
No, there's is not a vigorous debate on blackface and racism in the Netherlands. Instead it's the usual duplicity of Dutch liberals.
Canada’s “Somali Problem”
Racism against Somali Canadians is a real problem. It is present not only on the right, but the left as well.
Africa and the Future
An interview with Achille Mbembe, including on the consequences of global capitalism on the continent.
The Big Boss
Stephen Keshi’s success as Nigeria's national men's soccer team coach, will perhaps encourage more African countries to look closer to home for coaching salvation.
Morbid nostalgia
What's wrong with the 'Africa' journalism of Aidan Hartley, a staple in rightwing UK media like 'The Spectator' and 'The Daily Mail."
What happened to Mbuyisa Makhubo?
A youth activist that came to prominence in the 1976 student uprising in South Africa has been missing since 1978.
Julius Malema’s EFF and the South African Left
It is not often that analysts of diametrically opposed ideological tastes in South Africa agree, except about Julius Malema.
The New Yorker and the Mercenaries
An open letter to the New Yorker over its approving coverage of mercenary-activity-for-humanitarian-intervention, despite its record of failure in Central Africa.