Birmingham activist Kamau Afrika said he believed his days of running for office were over. Then he looked around and saw what he described as stagnant and deteriorating conditions in his city that were not addressed by the people in power.

“We elect a lot of Barbie dolls who are unqualified, or we elect religious leaders,” he said.

Either way, he said the popularity contests aren’t working. The 66-year-old lifelong Birmingham resident said he is running for mayor because he has not seen anyone else willing to tackle the most pressing needs that affect the majority of his neighbors.

“We need services in all the communities and not just every four years,” he said.

Afrika has run for several state and local offices including the city council and the Jefferson County Commission. This is his third run for Birmingham mayor.

While political observers mull who will run in the August election and incumbent Mayor Randall Woodfin seeks a third term, Afrika said with a laugh that insiders failed to note that he has already formed his campaign committee.

Afrika knows he is an underdog as he faces a well-funded, two-term mayor.

Afrika has little money, but said he believes in his grassroots message of rebuilding the city and providing opportunities for the marginalized majority.

Afrika’s home in Smithfield is a monument to Birmingham history. His father, a steelworker, built the home and moved his family there around 1951.

At the time, the Smithfield neighborhood was the choice community for Black middle-class families. Photos of his parents line the mantle, and their vintage furniture still sits in the living room.

While Afrika remains in the family home, he laments the decline around him. Meanwhile, downtown is growing.

Afrika conceded that redevelopment is planned nearby through a $50 million Choice Neighborhoods grant from HUD last summer to help revitalize communities just west of downtown in Graymont, Smithfield and College Hills neighborhoods.

The project, championed by Woodfin, is expected to help leverage $294 million in total investment.

Still, Afrika said that most communities lack basic amenities or even grocery stores and continue to languish. Any progress that does occur is only through the advocacy and activism of people like him, Afrika said.

“Randall didn’t keep his word, and I believe in keeping my word,” he said.

The city’s decline occurred over decades and under numerous administrations, he said. However, Afrika said the current administration has been slow to react to community needs. He also points to Birmingham’s record-breaking homicide rate that was set in 2024.

“No mayor can be blamed. However they have to accept some responsibility,” he said regarding the city’s homicide rate. “I’m going to give the police the biggest salaries that I can command, because that’s going to bring them back to Birmingham.”

Afrika said there is a lack of adequate sporting and recreation facilities in the city. More than just a dated building with little programmed activity, Afrika pledged to build two sports and recreation complexes designed to give the city’s youth more opportunities.

“That’s going to be a priority in my administration if I get in there. We’re going to compete with Hoover and the suburban cities who are taking our athletes,” he said. “How many kids could we get involved in the athletic complex that could become the next Dr. J. Michael Jordan or Babe Ruth?”

The recreation centers would also serve as a deterrent to crime committed by youth.

“When you talk about reducing crime you’ve got to give people opportunities,” he said.

Besides increasing police salaries, Afrika wants to offer incentives for both recruitment and solving major cases.

He also wants a city ordinance to increase the minimum wage to $13 an hour for employees of large companies with more than 300 workers.

Afrika, who was born Marlon Walker, legally changed his name in 1985 to Kamau, a Kenyan term for ‘’quiet warrior.‘ He said the change reflected his newfound African cultural awareness.

Afrika has embraced non-conventional methods to highlight his points. In 2001, he stood on the steps of the Jefferson County Courthouse with a rifle as a hearing went on inside about the Water Works and its assets.

He was there to protest the eventual transfer of the utility’s assets from the city to the independent board. He left without incident when told it was illegal to have a firearm in a public demonstration.

Afrika said his theme of inner-city investment and development run counter to the well-financed corporate interests who finance and dominate city politics.

As mayor, Afrika promised to lead as an honest advocate for the people.

“I’m not going to do anything corrupt,” he said. “I’m not going to steal any money and I’m not going to use drugs.”

Afrika grew up in west Birmingham and attended prep school in Maryland. He then graduated from Birmingham-Southern College.

Even his now-shuttered alma mater plays a role in his platform. Afrika was among a group of residents to urge public funding to salvage the longtime institution. But he also advocated for greater community involvement and Black hiring by the institution to revive the bailout.

Afrika says he would work to repurpose the dormant property that sits only a few miles from his home, revitalizing it with outside investment.

Afrika likened his vision for Birmingham to that of former Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson who was credited with ushering in an area of development and growth that benefited all sectors of the city, specifically Black businesses.

When pressed, he declined to give specifics, saying if the public wants his ideas and strategies, then they should select him in August.

“I have a plan that’s well thought out and all I need to do is get there to orchestrate it,” he said. “When I say the pen is mightier than the sword, I mean that.”