The Congressman Howard Wolpe Award and Conversation on Africa: A Fireside Chat with Congressmember Karen Bass

On January 26, 2021, the Wilson Center Africa Program hosted the inaugural The Congressman Howard Wolpe Award and Conversation on Africa during which the “Congressman Howard Wolpe U.S-Africa Relations Leadership and Service Award” was presented. This award and series is dedicated to the life and vision of Congressman Howard Wolpe, a former U.S. representative, special envoy for the Great Lakes Region, dedicated Africanist, and first Director of the Wilson Center Africa Program.

Congressmember Karen Bass, the representative of California’s 37th Congressional District and the Chair of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations and former Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, was presented with the inaugural “Congressman Howard Wolpe U.S.-Africa Relations Leadership and Service Award” by Congresswoman Jane Harman, Director, President, and CEO of the Wilson Center, and Dr. Monde Muyangwa, Wilson Center Africa Program Director. The award citation read “The Congressman Howard Wolpe Award for dedicated leadership and service to stronger and mutually beneficial U.S.-Africa relations, and commitment to building enduring bonds, cooperation, and unity of effort among Americans, the African diaspora, and Africans.”

During the event, Congresswoman Harman spoke to Howard Wolpe’s legacy and thanked the Wolpe family for sharing him with the Wilson Center as the first director of the Africa Program. She noted the similarities between Congressman Wolpe and Congressmember Bass in their work and leadership on Africa.

Congressmember Bass then gave brief remarks, focusing on the recent inauguration of President Biden, the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and their implications for U.S.-Africa relations. A “fireside chat” style discussion with Congresswoman Harman followed, which addressed some of the key issues in U.S.-Africa relations. These included the prospects for a continued bipartisan approach to Africa, the critical role African youth and the Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI), the role of technology and innovation,  the importance of addressing climate change,  restoring and facilitating multilateralism and U.S. leadership in international organizations, Black Lives Matter and protests and police brutality in the U.S. and Africa, and the global reckoning with racism in the U.S. and Europe and other parts of the world,  and the U.S. response to Chinese engagement in Africa.

Mr. Michael Wolpe, Congressman Wolpe’s son, joined the event online and asked Congressmember Bass to share how his father’s career had influence or inspired her. Congressmember Bass then responded to a question from Dr. Muyangwa on building sustainable peace (a core component of Congressman Wolpe’s legacy) and reforming peacekeeping and several questions sent in by audience members. These covered a diverse range of topics: the impact of the contested 2020 U.S. presidential election on the U.S. commitment to democracy in Africa, the path forward for U.S.-Africa trade agreements (including the African Growth and Opportunity Act), how youth can engage in the African diaspora community, congressional support for YALI, the prospect of presidential or vice-presidential visits to Africa, the next Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, the Tigray Crisis, and how the U.S. can engage with France and other former colonial powers to address damaging policies.

Dr. Muyangwa then thanked Congressmember Bass and the Wolpe family, and closed by reflecting on Congressman Wolpe’s legacy as a perfect example of servant leadership.

Selected Quotes

Congressmember Karen Bass

“With the amazing changes occurring in Africa at this moment, there is no greater need than for the United States to seize the opportunity to reset our relationship with the continent. But it has been hard for us to promote accountable government that protects and preserves human rights after the last four years in our own country. As a matter of fact, when we were going through the attack on the capital, virtually within days after that there were elections in Uganda. And so I have to admit, and we were very concerned about the violence, the house arrests of the opposing candidates, but it was kind of hard to issue statements and be very strong when we were fighting off an insurrection in our own countries."

“I was excited to see President Biden, [and that] one of his first actions was to reverse the bans on countries because of their religious beliefs, including Libya, Somalia, Eritrea, Nigeria, Sudan, and Tanzania…I feel confident that the new administration is going to be a breath of fresh air, not just to our domestic policies, but to our relationships with foreign partners. And I believe that we will reset our relationship with the continent by expanding trade and economic growth, supporting health systems and their efforts against COVID-19…And making sure we call out authoritarian governments once again and help support young people by giving them a platform to be successful.”

“When President Biden was Vice President Biden he participated in [the] reframing of our policies towards the continent, and I believe he will continue the direction of shifting the paradigm away from a poverty and charity mentality toward a partnership and support for African countries that thrive on their own, and support Africans because they have the capacity.”

“Building and strengthening bilateral relations is the primary goal of mine—and the Biden—administration, and so to support the administration I plan to introduce legislation to enhance the Young African Leaders Initiative, support the protection of human rights in Ethiopia, and support legislation that calls for a more diverse workforce in the State Department.”

“We have strengthened those [intra-African] ties. That’s the model. Because that’s building capacity for Africans. That’s not going over and doing for them, thinking they can’t do for themselves. I always compare it to how inner-city America is viewed, because I think it’s the same kind of perspective: ‘Those poor, hapless people—we have to go rescue them.’ No, I don’t think they’re poor or hapless in south-central Los Angeles, and I don’t think they are on the continent of Africa either.” 

“I have to say that I was so proud that all of the African nations stood in solidarity with Black America at the UN, talking about police brutality in the United States. I’m sorry the world had to see it, but you know what, Jane, I viewed it as very similar to the civil rights movement when the world saw that protesters being attacked. Jim Crow, brutality from police had gone on for generations but when it was exposed to the world, then we saw policies begin to change and I think that’s what happened last year.”