The U.S.-China battle in Africa over Anti-black Discrimination

The current violence created a hustle in dozens of U.S. cities to protest police viciousness against African Americans is now appearing as a key theme within the U.S.-China narrative battle in Africa. China’s state-run media outlets alongside its diplomatic social media channels in Africa are establishing a gentle stream of videos, photos, and other accounts of the riots in the middle of harsh condemnations of the U.S., particularly associated withwidespread U.S. support for anti-government protests in Hong Kong.

Part of this effort is not any concern associated with the broader U.S.-China worries that the African missions are solely amplifying. However, it’s quite likely, and this is often admittedly speculative, that China’s showcasing of the riots within the U.S., including the arrest of journalists, attacks by security forces on unarmed civilians and therefore the general disorder that now exists in many U.S. cities, is intended to delegitimize the U.S. in Africa.

The fact is that Africans and African-Americans still face discrimination and even violence in China and therefore the US. U.S. foreign policy professionals have repeatedly criticised racism as morally disgusting and understood it to be an obstacle to U.S. foreign policy in Africa.

Data source: China-Africa Project Report