Black Agenda Report
Black Agenda Report
News, commentary and analysis from the black left.

  • Home
  • Africa
  • African America
  • Education
  • Environment
  • International
  • Media and Culture
  • Political Economy
  • Radio
  • US Politics
  • War and Empire

Farewell to Glen Ford, A True Friend to Eritrea
Elias Amare
03 Aug 2021
🖨️ Print Article
Farewell to Glen Ford, A True Friend to Eritrea
Farewell to Glen Ford, A True Friend to Eritrea

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.

Eritrea
Glen Ford

Do you need and appreciate Black Agenda Report articles? Please click on the DONATE icon, and help us out, if you can.


Related Stories

Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Eritrea and the “Internal Government Document Seen by Reuters”
06 May 2026
Reuters reports on a mysterious government document seeming to confirm that sanctions will be lifted on Eritrea.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
US Seeks to Turn Eritrea Into “a Bulwark Against Iranian Influence”
29 April 2026
As the militarization of the Red Sea escalates, the US tries to enlist Eritrea in exchange for sanctions relief.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki Stands with Sudan
03 December 2025
Eritrean President Isais Afwerki arrived in Port Sudan on November 29 to stand with General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan for the unity of S
x
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor , Elias Amare
Eritrea in the Empire’s Crosshairs: Propaganda and Regime Change Operations
01 October 2025
Western NGOs and media recently launched coordinated attacks on Eritrea, a longstanding US target for regime change.
Isaias Afwerki
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Isaias Afwerki: My Struggle for Eritrea and Africa
13 August 2025
Michel Collon has interviewed Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki and says the world must listen to him.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Eritrea: We Won’t Kneel Down
06 August 2025
Eritrean Americans celebrated their 51st Eritrean Festival and their home country’s resolute independence from August 1 to 3, 2025.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Independent, Sovereign Eritrea Stays the Course
28 May 2025
Eritrea remains true to the revolutionary ideals forged during its 30-year War of Independence.
NefasitPost
Biden’s Last-Ditch Agenda and Western Media’s Smear Campaign: Eritrea’s Resolve Amid Hostility
11 December 2024
Eritrea defies relentless Western hostility with unwavering self-reliance and resilience.
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
Washington Post Attacks Eritrean Americans for Organizing in their Own Defense
27 November 2024
The Washington Post’s latest anti-Eritrea propaganda demonizes Eritrean immigrants defendin
Ann Garrison, BAR Contributing Editor
How the US Destabilized the Horn of Africa
02 October 2024
In 2018, the leaders of Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia signed a regional cooperation agreeme

More Stories


  • Anthony Karefa Rogers-Wright , ​​​​​​​ Ajamu Baraka, BAR editor and columnist
    COPing Out In Brazil: How The United Nations Reduces its Legitimacy More Than Global Emissions
    19 Nov 2025
    Despite being held in Brazil, a nation with the largest Black population outside of the African continent, COP30 has continued a thirty-year pattern of sidelining the specific climate threats to Afro…
  • Jon Jeter
    In South Africa, White is the New Black: The ANC’s Failures Opens the Door for the Return of a Government Led by Settlers
    19 Nov 2025
    Decades of unmet promises and endemic corruption have eroded the ANC's legitimacy, creating a surge of support for a party led by South Africa's white minority.
  • Clau O'Brien Moscoso
    “Only unity will make us free:” The Masses Build and Sustain a Zone of Peace through the Unity of Struggles
    19 Nov 2025
    As U.S. militarism intensifies across Latin America and the Caribbean, regional social movements are making the firm declaration that only a unified, mass-driven front can build a true "Zone of Peace…
  • Black Alliance For Peace
    A Call for Mass Struggle Against U.S.-Led War on Venezuela and the Caribbean
    19 Nov 2025
    The assault on Venezuela's sovereignty represents a broader imperial strategy to discipline any nation that defies U.S. hegemony.
  • Jessica Washington
    SNAP Recipients Crushed by Democrats Caving on Shutdown: “They Just Wasted It All”
    19 Nov 2025
    SNAP recipients were willing to sacrifice to protect health care benefits for themselves and others and they are furious that the Democrats' chose collusion with the Trump administration rather than…
  • Load More
Subscribe
connect with us
about us
contact us