AfricaIs aCountry

The Waka Waka Award*

Africa Is a Country Podcast
African Five-a-Side Podcast

The Waka Waka Award*

By
Sean Jacobs

This may yet become a weekly award on AIAC.

The inaugural Waka Waka Award–name in honor of Shakira–goes to Jack Burkman, “GOP strategist,” who recently decided to insult Ethiopians and Nigerians in a Fox Business News studio “discussion” about closing the United States Post Office–work that out. Watch it here.

I know no one watches Fox Business News. But anyway, Burkman, who has an interesting bio (to say the least), decided that the Post Office’s biggest problem was immigrant unskilled labor: “Most of these guys in the post office should be driving cabs. And we should stop importing labor from Nigeria and Ethiopia.”   He blamed the US government and trade unions for apparently letting this happen.  At least Al d’Amato, a former New York Senator, called Burkman out about his “racist bullshit.” Added D’Amato at the time: “… You should be ashamed of yourself and have your mouth washed out. What the hell are you talking about?” So did another guest. Burkman still insisted his nonsense was “based on fact.”

Jack Burkman. Winner of the Waka Waka Award.

Further Reading

Empire’s middlemen

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Lions in the rain

The 2025 AFCON final between Senegal and Morocco was a dramatic spectacle that tested the limits of the match and the crowd, until a defining moment held everything together.