Glenn, Ian2017-11-072017-11-072017Glenn, I. (2017). Obama and liberal Afro-pessimism. Communitas, 22,1-15.2415-0525 (online)1023-0556 (print)https://dx.doi.org/10.18820/24150525/Comm.v22.1http://hdl.handle.net/11660/7445This article disputes academic accounts of Afro-pessimism, which see it as a product of ideological or discursive bias in the viewer, or as a crude generalisation across very different countries and cultures by examining the context for and major themes of Afro-pessimism after 1994. In particular, it shows that modern Afro-pessimism is largely a product of liberal concerns and liberal media. It demonstrates the salience of these themes by showing how they permeate and influence former US President Barack Obama’s African outlook by a close reference to his speech to the Ghanaian parliament in 2009 and suggests that they may provide the context for the views of current US President Donald Trump.enAfro-pessimismAfro-optimismWestern liberal orthodoxySpeechBarach ObamaDonald TrumpRhetoricAfrican UnionRhetorical criticismArticleDepartment of Communication Science, University of the Free State