(C) Global Voices
This story was originally published by Global Voices and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .



Trump’s comment on Liberian President’s English triggers Africans online [1]

['Pamela Ephraim']

Date: 2025-07-14

A seemingly offhand remark by US President Donald Trump during a meeting with African leaders on July 9 at the White House has ignited a storm of reactions across Africa and its diaspora.

While hosting five West and Central African leaders from Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal to discuss trade and development, Trump commented on Liberian President Joseph Boakai's English.

“Such good English,” he remarked after President Boakai spoke. President Trump then asked where the Liberian president was educated.

“In Liberia?” President Trump asked. “Yes, sir,” Boakai affirmed.

“That's very interesting,” President Trump said. “I have people at this table who can't speak nearly as well.”

Although Liberia’s Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti told CNN that the Liberian president was not offended by President Trump’s remark, many Africans online found the comment to be offensive and condescending.

The video clip, which has now garnered millions of views across social media, triggered accusations of ignorance, microaggression, and colonial undertones. Liberians and other Africans viewed the comment as reflective of a persistent Western misconception that English is foreign to Africa, despite the continent having numerous English-speaking nations, many due to colonial histories.

“Not a compliment”

A Liberian X user asked:

Our official language is English, our flag is literally like the US flag, but with only one star, how didn’t he do his research? https://t.co/1ejD7g8wjD — Ami (@AmiKK30) July 9, 2025

A Zambian X user wrote:

Africans, listen: “Your English is so good” is not a compliment. It’s a backhanded slur, a reminder that people still see our fluency as “unexpected.” Language isn’t inherited by passport. #DecolonizeYourMind — Sampa Kabwela (@ukusefya) July 10, 2025

A former Nigerian Senator, Shehu Sani, further explained the controversy in a post on X: “Liberia has the closest affinity and history to the United States, more than any country in Africa. President Trump was surprised that its President speaks ‘good English’ and even asking him where he learned it from. That is a classic example of disconnect and ignorance about our continent.”

English is the official language of Liberia, a country of over 5 million people on Africa’s western coast that was founded in 1822 as a project of the American Colonization Society (ACS), which aimed to resettle freed slaves, and declared independence in 1847.

Some tried to defend Trump’s remark as an innocent compliment. @Christinalb77, a commentator on X said:

It was meant as a compliment, as many ‘English’ speaking Americans don’t even speak proper English!

The need for cultural sensitivity in diplomacy

US Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett expressed concern about cultural insensitivity in international relations, especially when displayed by high-profile leaders. She wrote on X:

Trump never misses an opportunity to be racist and wrong, and every day he finds a new way to be embarrassing. Asking the President of Liberia where he learned English when it’s literally the official language is peak ignorance. I’m pretty sure being blatantly offensive is not… https://t.co/Jhvf9dvqZE — Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (@RepJasmine) July 9, 2025

In a statement, the White House said the remark deemed offensive by some was a “heartfelt compliment.”

This is not the first time President Trump has caused controversy with remarks about how foreigners speak English or their accents. For example, in February 2025, Trump complimented British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s “beautiful accent,” and later that month, he told an Afghan reporter he couldn’t understand her “beautiful accent.”

Additionally, Trump told an Indian reporter, “I can’t understand a word he’s saying,” adding, “‘It's the accent, it's a little bit tough for me.”

For many Africans, President Trump’s comment wasn’t just a gaffe; it was a painful echo of colonial-era stereotypes. As Africa asserts its global influence, such missteps highlight the importance of mutual respect in fostering meaningful partnerships.

[END]
---
[1] Url: https://globalvoices.org/2025/07/14/trumps-comment-on-liberian-presidents-english-triggers-africans-online/

Published and (C) by Global Voices
Content appears here under this condition or license: https://globalvoices.org/about/global-voices-attribution-policy/.

via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/globalvoices/