The post World War I years witnessed the growth of a powerful civil rights movement among African Americans culminating in the triumphs and setbacks of the 1960s. At the same time, however, African Americans were extending their view outward from the shores of the United States, taking a greater interest in foreign affairs and their nation's foreign policy than ever before. The selections in this reader focus on how and why that interest developed, and what impact African Americans had on U.S. diplomacy. They demonstrate how the fight for civil rights and equality at home quickly spilled over into concerns regarding race and foreign policy. A tremendous interest in the decolonization of Africa, efforts to have an African American voice heard in the United Nations protests against South African apartheid, and criticisms of the Vietnam War were all indications that for many African Americans race was now a global issue.