Through Maria Spiller
January 17, 2026
Advocates warn that the Trump administration’s withdrawal could slow international momentum on reparations and embolden backlash against racial equality worldwide.
The Trump administration’s decision to withdraw the United States from the United Nations Permanent Forum for People of African Descent has raised concerns among civil rights advocates and international leaders, who say the move could undermine global progress on racial and restorative justice. reported Through DeGrio.
The withdrawal was included in an executive memorandum signed by President Donald Trump last week, formally withdrawing the US from 66 international organizations. Among them was the UN Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, a body established by the UN General Assembly in 2021 to address the lasting impact of colonialism and slavery on people of African descent worldwide.
Since its first meeting in 2022, the forum has served as a space for dialogue and policy development affecting Black communities worldwide, from more than 40 million African Americans in the United States to approximately 1.5 billion people in Africa and the broader diaspora.
“It was a space where Black people from all over the world could come and share their struggles, but also share their joy and see themselves in each other, even if they didn’t speak the same language,” said Desirée Cormier Smith, founder and co-chair of the Alliance for Diplomacy and Justice.
Cormier Smith previously served as the first State Department Special Representative for Racial Equality and Justice under President Joe Biden. In that role, she advocated for U.S. support for the forum and led each U.S. delegation to its annual meetings. She said the forum played a crucial accountability role for governments. “From the government’s perspective, this space was necessary because it forced governments to announce at least once a year how they were supporting people of African descent,” she said.
Bishop Joseph Tolton, a Pan-African activist and chairman of Interconnected Justice, described the forum as a mechanism to unite the global struggle. It helped communities “connect our struggles and create a device to tell each other what our respective stories are, and then distill some action from that understanding and knowledge base,” he said.
Victoria Kirby, director of public policy and programs at the National Black Justice Collective, called the forum a “story collector and documenter of the experiences of the Afro-diaspora around the world,” noting that this data was “carefully” curated to inform action by the UN and other governing bodies.
In just a few years, the forum laid the foundation for discussions on global reparations, including proposals for a UN declaration on the human rights of people of African descent. “That would lead to recovery in a way that we’ve seen the United Nations and other global agencies do for other populations around the world,” Kirby said.
Following the withdrawal, the Trump administration accused the forum of promoting “victim-based social policies” and labeled it a “racist organization.” Advocates rejected that characterization, arguing that the move reflects a deeper hostility toward racial equity efforts.
“I don’t think any of us would have wanted the Trump administration to be actively involved… because it could have been nefarious and counterproductive,” Cormier Smith said. “However, there was no need to back down, other than the fact that it was racist clickbait for their base.”
While advocates say the forum will continue its work without U.S. government participation, they warn the decision sends a broader message. Tolton said it creates a “consent structure” for other countries to resist restorative justice, citing Haiti as a vulnerable example. “If there is no restorative justice in Haiti, how can Haiti ever rebuild or redevelop itself?” he asked.
Global recovery strategist Gretchen Moore said this moment calls for a long-term view. “We need to think 25 and 50 years from now,” she said, emphasizing that justice efforts must continue “regardless of any administration, because governments come and go.”
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