American Racism: A Threat to US Foreign Policy and National Security

In recent months the U.S. has experienced nationwide protests against police brutality, white supremacy and systemic racism. Far from a new phenomenon, these historic challenges and the civic resistance to them have long threatened the viability of America's democratic experiment. These domestic issues have far reaching implications for America's global standing, its conduct of effective foreign policy, and its maintenance of an enduring national security. This talk will examine these themes at length, with a specific focus on how they impact U.S. foreign policy towards Africa and elsewhere.

About Travis Adkins

Travis L. Adkins is a Lecturer of African and Security Studies at the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. As an international development leader, he has two decades of experience working in governance, civil society and refugee and migration affairs in over 50 nations throughout Africa and the Middle East. This includes serving as Staff Director of the House Subcommittee on Africa, working with leading international NGOs and think tanks, as well as within several branches of the United Nations system.

Travis is an alumnus of the International Affairs Fellowship at the Council on Foreign Relations, and a recipient of academic appointments from Carnegie Mellon and New York Universities. Mr. Adkins has served in numerous international election observation missions in Africa and the Middle East with the National Democratic Institute; is a contributor to the BBC and Al Jazeera on African affairs; and is the creator and host of the “On Africa” podcast, which engages diverse thought leaders in conversation on the continent's politics, history and culture.