LONDON (AP) — When black men died at the hands of U.S. police in recent years, the news made international headlines. The name of George Floyd has reached the world's streets.

Since his death while being detained by Minneapolis police last week, Floyd's face has been painted on walls from Nairobi, Kenya to Idlib, Syria. His name has been inked on the shirts of professional soccer players and chanted by crowds from London to Cape Town to Tel Aviv to Sydney.

The outpouring of outrage and support reflects the power and reach of the United States, a country whose best and worst facets fascinate th...