Africa Action is the oldest national organization in the U.S. workingon African affairs. Our work dates back to 1953, the year our oldest predecessor organization was founded.  Today, in partnership with activists and civil society organizationsthroughout the United States and in Africa, Africa Action is working tochange U.S. foreign policy and the policies of international institutionsin order to support African struggles for peace and development.By changing the policies of our own government, we have proven that wecan make a real difference.Our History - Africa Action is the name we adopted in 2001, when three of the oldest Africa advocacy groups in the U.S. merged to become one new organization,working for political, economic and social justice throughout the Africancontinent.Our predecessor organizations date back to 1953, when the American Committee on Africa (ACOA) was founded. It was created by a group of black and white civil rights activists who had organized support for the historic Defiance Campaignin South Africa the previous year. ACOA, together with The Africa Fund, founded in 1966, provided key support for independence movements throughout Africa. They built strong networks of U.S.-based activists that became crucial partners in the anti-apartheid struggle.  The Africa Policy Information Center (APIC) was founded in 1978. It pioneered the use of new information and communicationtechnology to support advocacy work on Africa. Our Mission - Africa Action's work is guided by a set of core beliefs: We believe that the U.S. has a special historic responsibility toward Africa;- We believe that racism has been and is a major determinant of U.S.policies toward Africa, Africans and U.S. citizens of African descent;- We value Africa and the people of Africa and seek to work in partnershipwith Africans;- We believe in the principles of consultation, openness, accountabilityand consensus.Our Work - Just as our predecessor organizations took action to support African efforts to defeat apartheid, today Africa Action is engaged in the struggle against global apartheid – the international system of minority rule that keeps Africa poor and marginalized.- We provide information and analysis to change how people think aboutAfrica.- We mobilize public pressure to change the policies of the U.S. andmultilateral institutions toward Africa, so that they support the effortsof Africans themselves to promote human rights, democracy and development.