Soft Power and the Impact on Black American Lives: Legal and Political Realities Chat.
- Karen Brittingham-Edmond
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
May 15, 2025
Social Justice
In recent decades, the concept of “soft power,” as articulated by political scientist Joseph Nye, has become increasingly relevant in understanding the subtle mechanisms of influence within American society. Soft power, defined as the ability to shape preferences and outcomes through attraction and persuasion rather than coercion or force, has played a significant role in the evolution of law, politics, and the lived experiences of Black Americans.
Soft power, unlike hard power which depends on direct force such as military action or economic influence like bribery, functions through cultural messaging, political values, and the legitimacy of policies. An example of this is the use of American tax dollars to fund higher education for international students in their home countries starting in the 1960s for free.
While the cost of higher education for American citizens has risen dramatically since the 1970s, policy shifts and political strategies—often influenced by resistance to affirmative action from the far right—have disproportionately affected Black Americans. According to Kiana Cox’s 2024 Pew Research Center report, “Most Black Americans Believe U.S. Institutions Were Designed To Hold Black People Back,” a significant majority of Black Americans perceive that key institutions, including higher education, have been structured in ways that impede their progress. These perceptions are grounded in historical and ongoing patterns of underinvestment in Black communities, coupled with policy decisions that have prioritized other populations for educational and economic opportunities. As a result, the Black North American population continues to experience limited or slow advancement, a reality that is not only reflected in public opinion but also substantiated by persistent disparities in educational attainment and economic mobility. The lack of transparent public debate around these strategies further exacerbates the challenges faced by Black Americans in accessing and benefiting from higher education. https://educationdata.org/average-cost-of-college-by-year Bloomberg's New American Economy (NAE) Report January 2019 'Power of the Purse: Middle-Easterners and North Africans in America': https://www.newamericaneconomy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/MENA-Report.pdf
One of the most notable arenas for soft power has been the media. Through carefully crafted narratives, mass media has influenced public perception about demographic changes, economic opportunities, and the social status of various groups. These narratives often frame large-scale population shifts and policy decisions in ways that obscure their more profound impact on Black Americans, sometimes presenting them as natural or benevolent developments rather than as outcomes of deliberate political strategy. In the legal and political spheres, soft power has manifested in shaping public opinion and legislative priorities. Policies affecting education, housing, and economic opportunity have often been justified through appeals to shared values or national interests. While at the same time, their disparate impact on Black communities has been downplayed or ignored. The result has been a gradual normalization of disparities, with legal frameworks and political discourse adapting to reinforce rather than challenge existing inequities. https://www.ebony.com/video/gayle-king-americas-best-friend-media-trailblazer/
To Clarify:
What the military might classify as a mass occupation of foreign nationals (for the last 50 years,) is being quietly reframed by the media as a benign influx of job-seekers. This calculated narrative, repeated endlessly, conditions the American public to accept what is described as an “amnesty move”—when in reality, it may be a coordinated mass infiltration. Behind the scenes, this strategy appears to align with the interests of political actors whose motives are far from transparent, including those with ties to ideologies that should have no place in American government.
The consequences are dire: by accepting these misleading stories, American citizens are unwittingly surrendering their rights and their ability to resist this sweeping demographic transformation. This is not just a matter of policy—it is a deliberate campaign of misinformation, orchestrated by political factions with a long-standing animosity toward Black Americans, whose resilience and progress have long been a target for those seeking to undermine their hard-won freedoms.
If left unchecked, this manipulation threatens to erode the very foundations of American democracy, leaving vulnerable communities—especially Black citizens—at the mercy of forces determined to reverse decades of progress. The stakes could not be higher, and the time to question these narratives and defend the rights of all citizens is now.
For Black Americans, the consequences of these soft power tactics have been profound. While overt discrimination has become less socially acceptable, more subtle forms of exclusion and marginalization have persisted. The use of soft power has enabled policymakers and political actors to pursue agendas that disadvantage Black communities without resorting to explicit coercion, making these dynamics more difficult to challenge through traditional legal means. As the nation continues to grapple with questions of equity and justice, understanding the role of soft power in shaping both policy and perception is essential. For legal professionals and political experts, recognizing these tactics is a critical step toward developing strategies that address not only the letter of the law but also the broader forces that influence its application and impact.
In sum, the legacy of soft power in American politics underscores the need for vigilance and advocacy in the pursuit of genuine equality. By examining the ways in which attraction, persuasion, and legitimacy have been used to shape outcomes, experts can better identify and counteract the subtle mechanisms that perpetuate disparities—ensuring that the promise of justice is realized for all.
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