Macron’s Nairobi moment

Added: 2026-05-16

[00:00:00]Uh, excuse me. Everybody.

[00:00:03]Hey. Hey. Hey.

[00:00:06]I'm sorry, guys.

[00:00:09]But it's impossible to speak about culture to have people like that super inspired coming here making a speech with such a noise.

[00:00:22]>> [applause] >> So, this is a total lack of respect.

[00:00:26]So, I suggest if you want to have Some Africans consider it a total lack of respect from President Emmanuel Macron.

[00:00:33]They see that as the continued infantilization of Africans, a European former colonial master telling Africans how to behave, and they ask the question, "Do you think an African president would do that in Paris? Or would President Macron do that in the US?"

[00:00:47]So, that is the assumed authority that he took here that others maybe would not have suddenly other African presidents would not do in Europe. And yes, it's annoying when the room is noisy, and he did the right thing by, you know, trying to calm people down, but the optics of this are all wrong, especially when you consider what President Macron told Africans here that we come to the table as equal partners, but then they see stuff like that, and they say, "This is why you're getting shunned in the west of Africa in former French colonies follow."

[00:01:12]And of course, many in Africa, they they do view China perhaps more favorably than former colonial powers like France as you know, Larry. Um,