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Why US nationwide protests matter to Africans
A protester open carries, securing a perimeter around the demonstration for Casey Goodson Jr., as the main group walks east on Broad Street in Columbus, Ohio, on December 12, 2020.
Saturday, April 19, marked another day of protests in America on a range of Donald Trump’s policies on domestic and foreign policy. These included immigration, Elon Musk and reduction of the federal bureaucracy, climate change, tariffs, violation of civil liberties and democracy.
April 19 was a significant date picked by the protest organisers, as it marks the date of the start of the American Revolution – April 19, 1775.
The 50501 Movement was responsible for organising the nationwide protests and successfully mobilised demonstrators in 50 states, to engage in 50 protests in one day, hence the name 50501.
The idea behind the movement is to raise public awareness and concern on Trumpian policies on a range of domestic and foreign policy issues.
Some of the largest protests were witnessed in Washington DC, New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
These protests are significant in influencing US foreign policy on a range of matters that affect Africans. Immigration, for instance.
For instance, according to the Migration Policy Institute (MPI), there are more than 170,000 Kenyans in the United States. This diaspora community is responsible for remitting over $4 billon to Kenya annually.
Immigration, which is one of the main themes of the 50501 Movement, is a central concern for those with legal papers and those who are illegally in the US.
US President Donald Trump points a finger during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (not pictured) in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, April 7, 2025.
Kenyan students in particular are concerned about the illegal detention of foreign students for participating in protests and the arbitrary revocation of their visas.
In addition to this, concerns abound about the deportation of foreign workers without due process, on grounds many legal experts term unconstitutional.
The MPI estimates that there were more than 11 million unauthorised immigrants in the US as of 2022. Between 2022 and 2024, some 128 Kenyans were deported, 309 were detained over immigration issues, and 205 were arrested on a range of immigration violations. These deportations create a climate of fear in communities.
Another area of concern to the 50501 protesters is the reduction in the size of the American government. According to Newsweek’s March 2025 edition, 12 federal agencies have been impacted by layoffs. Layoffs announced by US employers shot up by over 245 percent in February 2025.
Government agencies like the US Agency for International Development (Usaid) which is responsible for billions of dollars of US aid in healthcare and agriculture to Africa, have been affected. Also impacted has been the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the parent organisation housing the Voice of America. In the context of Africa, this directly impacts VOA broadcasts in Kiswahili, Hausa, Amharic, Bambara, French, Portuguese, Somali and Shona.
Reduction of diplomacy
Protesters are adamant that Trump is abandoning America’s leadership in soft power diplomacy via language, the arts and dissemination of American values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. This past week, Trump announced drastic reductions in America’s diplomatic footprint in Africa by terminating State Department offices dealing with climate change, democracy and human rights.
Since becoming the head the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), Elon Musk, a billionaire of South African ancestry, has also become a target of significant protest. Musk has wielded enormous power to trim what Trump calls tyrannical administrative state that has taken power away from the states.
Critics in the 50501 Movement question the constitutional basis of a lot of Musk’s actions. His role in the Trump administration is ill defined, as he never underwent Senate confirmation.
Some owners of Musk’s Tesla brand of vehicles have had their vehicles vandalised and Tesla dealers have been attacked across the US. On April 18, the US Justice Department arrested and charged a sixth person in relation to recent nationwide vandalism of Tesla dealers, charging stations and vehicles.
Trump immediately removed the US from the Paris Climate Accord on coming to power. His policy stance on climate change impacts Kenya, given the centrality of Nairobi to the global environmental movement, hosting UN Environment and Habitat headquarters.
Trumpian climate change denialism affects the capacity and effectiveness of the Nairobi Declaration on climate change. In addition to this, it is not clear how Trump’s attitude on climate will affect African Union and global multilateral initiatives on climate change.
the 50501 protesters also highlighted Trump’s tariff policy. Not only are they unpredictable, but their punitive application to America’s closest allies, in the form of a 10 percent tariff across the board, does not instill confidence in American leadership from its closest partners. These tariffs disrupt trade and create uncertainty in global financial markets.
A trade war between the US and China or the US and EU, will have spillover effects on emerging markets in the Global South. Raising 10 percent tariff on Kenyan goods, for instance, will lead to job losses to US-centred export-driven sectors such as the Export Processing Zones.
Extended tariff uncertainty will also lead to a weakening of the Kenyan shilling against other currencies. Ultimately, these Trump tariffs could lead to higher inflation in the US, a recession, which would devastate the volume of US tourists coming to Kenya. The US is Kenya’s largest source of tourist market.