WHAT HAPPENED TO BLACK ANTI-ZIONIST INFLUENCERS?

Many have noted the shift in what it means to be an influential Black figure. Our global diaspora has gone from revering radical figures like Muhammad Ali (1942-2016) and Malcolm X (1925-65), who championed global solidarity with the oppressed, to admiring seemingly apolitical celebrities like boxer Floyd Mayweather, influenced by powerful Z*onist interests. 

We spent an hour in December discussing why Africans should care about Palestine with Pan-Africanist social media influencer @mariamtheugandan (IG). 

African Stream Editor-in-Chief Ahmed Kaballo noted that US government repression via the Counterintelligence Program (or COINTELPRO) muffled and sometimes k*lled Black liberation leaders who made connections between domestic and global struggles against oppression. Today, he said, Black celebrities are permitted to discuss racism, but only in limited, individualistic terms.

Having lived in the US, Mariam observed that the individualism embedded in capitalist-driven US culture elevates material success rather than collective welfare. Growing alienation has led many in the US to focus solely on personal concerns and ‘getting that coin’ rather than organising against global injustices. This trend became especially clear after the 2024 elections, when some announced they would disengage from advocating for international liberation struggles, such as in Congo, Palestine, Sudan and Western Sahara. 

Have a watch, and please let us know what you think.

Sources

Malcolm X on Palestine

https://mondoweiss.net/2024/03/malcolm-xs-final-written-words-were-about-zionism-here-is-what-he-said/ 

MLK Jr. on Palestine

https://jacobin.com/2019/02/martin-luther-king-israel-palestine-occupation 

Mayweather as a Zionist

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/article-826597 

COINTELPRO

https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/cointelpro-1956-1976/