Shavon Arline-Bradley, CEO President (Photo Credit: ncnwdetroit.org).
National Council of Negro Women President Rev. Shavon Arline-Bradley was recently tapped to join President Joe Biden’s delegation on his inaugural trip to Angola, where he was recognized as the first U.S. president to visit the nation.
The visit, which took place from Dec. 2-5, made good on his promise to take a journey to the continent of Africa during his four years in office to bolster the nation’s investment and relationship with foreign leaders.
The sitting president apologized for the horrors of slavery during several remarks on the visit and lauded the U.S. project known as the Lobito Corridor.
The freight rail line was funded by $4 billion with a span reaching from Angola to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), connecting four nations in East Africa to promote economic opportunity through the transportation of minerals, including cobalt and copper, for exports.
However, Biden did not boast about the unprecedented U.S. investment with only politicians and close officials but also included critical leaders from America’s Black community on the historic trek to sub-Saharan Africa.
Alongside Arline-Bradley were NAACP President Derrick Johnson and U.S. Sen.-elect Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), the first Black woman to represent Delaware in Congress’s highest chamber, and many others.
Arline-Bradley said the trip allowed the organization to expand its “global footprint” sparked 89 years ago when Mary McLeod Bethune founded the organization to empower women of African descent.
Throughout her leadership, Bethune established various schools for Black children across the nation following her studies at Scotia Seminary in Concord, North Carolina, and the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago.
She regularly wrote about her endeavors in the Pittsburgh Courier and The Chicago Defender.
As NCNW celebrates 89 years, how did President Biden’s trip to Angola fulfill the mission of Mary MacLeod Bethune?
Mary McLeod Bethune was the only Black woman who served as an advisor to President Roosevelt and was the leading voice in the development of the United Nations, solidifying initial international engagement for NCNW.
In addition to her, Dr. Dorothy Height (former NCNW president) secured our non-governmental organization status, which allows us, to this day, to have a sustainable global presence.
It was humbling 89 years later that I am able to hold the ear of the White House to advance those issues that are important to NCNW and, ultimately, Black women.
Where do you see US-Africa relations going from here?
Relations with US-Africa can only get stronger, understanding that the United States will also include investment in infrastructure with signature investment projects like the Lobito Trans Africa Corridor.
It was great to see the Biden Administration continue honoring the Prosper Africa Initiative. I am hopeful the upcoming administration will continue relations with Africa.
Who were you most aligned with on the trip?
It is not a matter of who but with what I was aligned. I was aligned with knowing the time is right for international expansion of NCNW.
The goal is to expand our global footprint. NCNW is committed to continuing our presence at the United Nations, re-establishing our partnership on the content of Africa.
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