When I was 18, I traveled to South Africa with a group of other college classmates to work with local organizations on voter education for their first free and democratic elections. It was the opportunity of a lifetime. Like many others in my generation, I was aware of South African apartheid and incensed by it. I recall the protests and sanctions. As an African American, I felt a deep kinship with Black and “colored” South Africans. When the chance to work there arose, I was ready to go.

My ...