Farewell to Glen Ford, A True Friend to Eritrea

Elias Amare

03 Aug 2021

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Ford's reporting on Eritrea exemplified his commitment to African liberation.

It came as shocking sad news for us to learn of the passing of a good friend of #Eritrea, comrade Glen Ford, the co-founder and Executive Editor of the Black Agenda Report. Brother Glen was one of the sharpest critics of U.S. imperialism's interventionism in Africa. Glen was also one of the few radical left Black intellectual analysts who truly understood and was able to appreciate Eritrea's steadfast struggle for genuine independence, social justice, and people-centered development.

His consistent solidarity with Eritrea's struggle was a source of inspiration. Bitsai/comrade Glen was always there for us whenever we needed him to speak at Eritrea festivals and youth conferences. He also wrote with clarity and sharp analysis about Eritrea's struggle and the complex politics of the Horn of Africa.

Listen to this brilliant keynote address of Glen Ford at the Eritrean Festival in Oakland, California, in August of 2012.

I am honored to have known brother Glen closely over the years and learned a great deal from him. He stood by us through thick and thin. I would call him every now and then to keep him posted on developments in Eritrea and the region. When on June 11, 2018, he made this interview with the Real News Network, I was very impressed with how sharp he was in his analysis. I remember having called him on June 20, a week after this interview, to let him know about Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki's speech on Martyrs' Day, in which he announced that he was sending a peace delegation to Ethiopia to assess the situation on the ground. Glen was happy to learn about the peace breakthrough for Eritrea, Ethiopia and the region. He was especially glad after the lifting of the U.S.-engineered sanctions on Eritrea at the United Nations Security Council later that year in November 2018. But he also knew that the peace would not be well-received by the powers-that-shouldn't-be in Washington and that there would be challenges and obstacles ahead.

The last I was Brother Glen Ford was four years ago in August 2017 at the Eritrea festival and conferences in Seattle – three days of lengthy discussions, debates, intense conversations and learning from an older brother and, dare I say, revolutionary mentor. At that conference Glen was especially happy to see young Eritrean Americans fully engaged in political activism and the struggle to defend Eritrea. It warms our hearts to know that, according to investigative journalist Ann Garrision, Glen thought of Eritrea and his Eritrean friends till the very end. We’ll always cherish and honor his memory and legacy.

We in the Eritrean communities in the diaspora extend our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Brother Glen Ford, as well as to his comrades at Black Agenda Report. We mourn the loss of such a great intellect and analyst, a powerful voice for the voiceless and a principled friend for Eritrea. He will be greatly missed.

Rest in peace, gallant fighter and honorable comrade, Glen Ford!

This article originally appeared in #Eritrea. Elias Amare’s work can be found @eliasamare on twitter.

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Glen Ford

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