Four Black Women on the Global Political Stage
A brief discussion highlighting the Black women making an impact on the global political stage.
By: Ian L. Courts¹
Politics is shifting; moreover, the demographic face of politics is also shifting. Women within the developing and developed world are flexing their political might and getting elected into high levels of institutional power. Consistent with this modern trend, Black women across the globe are rising to political heights and exerting a significant impact on international politics. This article will briefly highlight four, Black women (i.e., women of African descent or heritage), who are shifting international politics, notably, Vice President Kamala Harris of the United States; The Former International Criminal Court Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda; Chief Justice Meaza Ashenafi of the Ethiopian Federal Supreme Court; and the United States’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield.
Vice President Kamala Harris of the United States of America
Vice President Harris is the first American woman elected to the office of Vice President of the Union and President of the United States Senate. The Constitution of the United States spells out little about the Vice President’s role and largely regulates the position to be defined by its Legislative and Executive personnel. Essentially, the Vice President as President of the Senate breaks ties on divided votes and fulfills the tasks and initiatives assigned to her by the President of the United States, whom she is elected with. V.P. Harris in her role as the nation’s VEEP has cast eleven tie-breaking votes in the Senate, and been tasked with leading the Biden-Harris administration’s response to the Central American Migrant crisis, COVID-19 Vaccine response, expanding broadband internet throughout the country, leading the fight for voting rights, and heading the National Space Council. Furthermore, V.P. Harris has been assigned important diplomatic tasks, leading her to meet with several heads of state, vice presidents, and other foreign state personnel. V.P. Harris’s role has garnered a lot of attention and heat along with a string of mishaps and no clear successes; however, having only been in office for nine months, V.P. Harris has a lot of time to grow and see her impact on domestic and global issues blossom. Moreover, as Vice President of the United States and possible heir to the U.S. Presidency, Harris’s role in global politics is just beginning. She will likely be a key player on the world stage for the foreseeable future.
Former ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda
Ms. Bensouda was the elected Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court. Ms. Bensouda was the first woman to hold the position of International Prosecutor and only the second chief prosecutor of the Court. Under Article 42 of the Rome Statute, the ICC Prosecutor has broad discretion to investigate, charge, and prosecute international criminal law violations, including genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, etc. The ICC Prosecutor oversees an office of 380 staffers, including investigators, prosecutors, and other international criminal law enforcement officials. Under Ms. Bensouda’s leadership, the ICC has earned several groundbreaking convictions, including one of the first convictions for cultural heritage theft. Furthermore, Ms. Bensouda has pushed for the office to investigate war crimes committed in Afghanistan and Israel-Palestine. Ms. Bensouda’s emphasis on prosecutorial independence and aptness to challenge powerful countries like the United States has led to conflict. Ms. Bensouda’s time as the chief prosecutor has not been smooth; she has faced criticism from several global leaders, including former President Donald Trump, leading President Trump to revoke her visa and freeze any U.S. assets she may have held. For nine years, Ms. Bensouda, through her exercise of prosecutorial discretion and mandate given by the Rome Statute, has made a significant impact on the global political stage.
President Justice Meaza Ashenafi of the Ethiopian Federal Supreme Court
Chief Justice Ashenafi is the first woman appointed by the Ethiopian Legislature to the role of President Justice of the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia. Before becoming the chief of the Ethiopian Judiciary, Chief Justice Ashenafi was a leading women’s rights attorney and advocate, as Chief Justice Ashenafi has taken an active role in strengthening the Court’s public image, judicial independence, and global standing. Chief Justice Ashenafi has sought to establish a women’s judges association for the professional development of women judges and lawyers within Ethiopia. Moreover, Chief Justice Ashenafi has worked tirelessly at providing equitable constitutional jurisprudence in Ethiopia. Furthermore, Chief Justice Ashenafi has taken on a major role in promoting women’s rights, education, and suffrage on the global stage. Chief Justice Ashenafi has worked with the United Nations Economic Commission of Africa to support and promote women’s economic independence throughout the continent. Chief Justice Ashenafi has worked to promote the Ethiopian Judiciary to foreign systems and has hosted Justice Stephen Breyer at the Federal Supreme Court of Ethiopia. Chief Justice Ashenafi’s position on the global stage will likely continue to grow. Additionally, her advocacy for women shall continually improve the social and economic conditions for Ethiopian women.
U.N. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield
Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield is the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. As the U.N. Ambassador, she is tasked with serving as a liaison between the United States and the United Nations General Assembly. Additionally, the U.N. Ambassador serves as the U.S.’s representative on the United Nations’s powerful Security Council and representatives from France, the United Kingdom, Russia, and China. After stressed relations with the Trump Administration, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has been tasked with repairing the United States’s relationship with the United Nations and the Security Council. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has rebuked China over accusations of genocide incidents against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang internment camps. Further, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has encouraged peaceful negotiations between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray regional government. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has had an extensive foreign policy career, and in her current role, she is exercising significant influence on global politics. However, similar to Vice President Harris, Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has only been in her role for nine months, and there is a lot of time to repair U.S. relationships and influence international politics.
As the saying goes, “Black Women Lead.” In global politics, Black Women are wielding institutional power and influencing international relations for the foreseeable future.
[1]: About the Author: Ian Courts is a young millennial attorney with expertise and a passion in American and international law and politics. Ian received his BA in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 2017, in 2020 he received his J.D. from North Carolina Central University School of Law, and in 2022 Ian received his LLM in International Criminal Law and Justice from the University of New Hampshire School of Law. Ian lives in Philadelphia where he is an appellate lawyer and the proud fur-dad of two American Cocker Spaniels.
