"Bookended by remarks from African American diplomats Walter C. Carrington and Charles Stith, the essays in this volume use close readings of speeches, letters, historical archives, diaries, and memoirs of policymakers and newly available FBI files to confront much-neglected questions related to race and foreign relations in the United States. Why, for instance, did African Americans profess loyalty and support for the diplomatic initiatives of a nation that undermined their social, political, and economic well-being through racist policies and cultural practices? Other contributions explore African Americans' history in the diplomatic and consular services and the influential roles of cultural ambassadors like Joe Louis and Louis Armstrong. The volume concludes with an analysis of the effects on race and foreign policy in the administration of Barack Obama. Groundbreaking and critical, African Americans in U.S. Foreign Policy expands on the scope and themes of recent collections to offer the most up-to-date scholarship to students in a range of disciplines, including U.S. and African American history, Africana studies, political science, and American studies"-- "Bookended by remarks from two African American diplomats, Walter C. Carrington and Charles Stith, this volume incorporates the perspectives of scholars and practitioners of U.S. foreign policy on questions of race and foreign relations. Contributors begin with the late 1800s, examining both the roles of formally appointed African American diplomats and the broader early roles of African American religious, military, and educational institutions in foreign policy. Together, the essays confront several tensions within the field, including the paradox of loyalty, or why African Americans would profess loyalty and support the diplomatic initiatives of a nation which persisted in undermining their social, political, and economic well being through racist policies and cultural practices. Most essays depend on close readings of primary source materials including speeches, letters, historical archives, diaries, and memoirs of policymakers and newly available FBI files. Other essays address the less formal but no less influential roles of African American cultural ambassadors, such as Joe Louis, Louis Armstrong, and hip hop artists. The volume concludes with analysis of the effects on race and foreign policy of President Barack Obama, who was both a beacon of hope and a disappointment to observers of U.S. foreign policy both stateside and abroad"--