President Joe Biden will make history on Tuesday as the first U.S. president to visit Angola, using the trip to address the intertwined histories of Angola and the United States in the transatlantic slave trade.
Biden is scheduled to speak at the National Museum of Slavery in Luanda, a symbolic site that includes a 17th-century chapel where enslaved people were forcibly baptized before being sent to the Americas. Angola played a pivotal role in the slave trade, with 4 million Angolans transported to the Americas, primarily to Brazil but also to what is now the United States.
The audience will include Wanda Tucker, a Black American who traced her lineage to Angolan ancestors enslaved and shipped to Virginia in 1619. The United States will also provide a $229,000 grant for the museum’s restoration, ensuring the preservation of its artifacts, including shackles and other instruments of punishment.
Strategic Investments and Global Competition
Beyond history, Biden’s visit underscores the U.S. commitment to strengthening ties with Angola. He will promote a U.S.-backed railway project, the Lobito Corridor, which connects resource-rich Congo and Zambia to Angola’s Atlantic coast. This initiative aims to offer an alternative to China’s dominance in securing critical minerals essential for batteries and electronics.
Biden will also meet with Angolan President João Lourenço to discuss trade, security, and defense cooperation. Angola and the U.S. plan to hold a defense meeting next year focused on cyber and maritime security.
Addressing Historical Legacies
Biden’s visit comes amid ongoing global conversations about the legacy of slavery and colonialism. While Portugal, Angola’s former colonial ruler, has acknowledged its role in trafficking nearly 6 million Africans, Angola has declined to seek reparations, calling such restitution “impossible.”
Although the U.S. faces its own challenges in addressing the lasting effects of slavery, Biden is not expected to address reparations during his visit. However, the trip marks a significant gesture in acknowledging shared histories and forging future collaborations.
Biden’s Angola visit will conclude with a regional summit featuring leaders from Congo, Tanzania, and Zambia, highlighting his administration’s focus on deepening U.S. partnerships across Africa.
