Without US guns and money, those dictators would have likely been overthrown by their own people, but it was the US that ensured the longevity of the continent’s worst strongmen, and enabled their continued rape of African countries. The saddest part is that it was for the most flimsy of reasons that the US supported such dictators, without a passing thought for their people or their future.

The consequence of US policy was a vicious cycle of corruption and repression that caused many African countries to suffer from negative growth for over two decades.