Discuss The Dehumanization Of African American Colonialism

650 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Europeans in africa essay

Every day, humans are stripped of their natural rights. All people should have equal rights to be free and do what they desire, but that is not always the case. In many places around the world people are deprived of their human qualities, or dehumanized. Superiority causes people to feel as if they are allowed to take advantage of and brutalize others. This sense of superiority is what has caused major issues and dehumanization for years. The colonialism in Africa by the Europeans shows this dehumanization and impression of superiority. People in numerous African countries were stripped of their culture and rights when the Europeans came and took over. As proven in historical documents, European colonization of Africa had perpetual consequences …show more content…

Colonization is establishing control over a land and its’ indigenous people. The Europeans colonized Africa with a sole purpose of extracting the resources and taking land that was not theirs to take. Africa is 11.3 million square miles of land, and it is filled with an abundance of resources and raw materials that have many uses. Europeans only saw Africa as something that would help them obtain wealth, because it had “raw materials such as wool, copper, and tin to supply their factories; cash crops such as tea, coffee, and cocoa to fill their cups; and diamonds and gold to decorate themselves” (“Background Essay on Colonialism”). They did not see Africa as a continent with people that have rights like they do. As colonization went on, the Africans were exploited economically and were completely stripped of their resources. Despite all of the riches they had hidden in their land, they turned into one of the poorest groups of people and European nations obtained all of the wealth. Due to the colonization by the Europeans, “African’s remain the poorest people in the world amidst their own riches in their own African Continent” and they are still used by the imperialist nations to this day (Pheko). Africa was a country rich in culture, but the Europeans only saw it as rich in resources. European colonialism in Africa has had many consequences on the stability of Africa’s

Show More
Related

  • Decolonization of Africa

    1625 Words  | 4 Pages

    The colonization of Africa officially began in 1884 with the Berlin Conference. Western European powers began to split up the land and resources in Africa among themselves. This period of history became known as the Scramble for Africa. The Scramble for Africa occurred because as the slave trade ended, capitalists saw Africa as a continent that they could now exploit through legitimate trade. European capitalists found new ways to make money off of the continent. With greater exploration of the continent even more valuable resources were found. The encouragement of legitimate trade in Africa brought Europeans flocking to colonize Africa. Africa lost their independence, and along with it, their control over their natural resources. Europeans used the term the "White Man's Burden," a concept used by white colonizers in order to impose their way of life on Africans within their colonies, to ...

    Read More

  • The Impact Of European Imperialism

    1344 Words  | 3 Pages

    New Imperialism began in the last quarter of the nineteenth century and was a time when European powers began to pursue a structured (more formal) political control over other areas. Yet it is important to keep in mind that informal empires tend to have an expiration date. As time progresses, history shows us that one of the parties involved will start pushing for change, whether that change is for power or independence is based on the side that provoked the change. In this case, the party that pushed for change was the superior one. The push for power was motivated by greed and an overwhelming desire to control every aspect of valuable foreign areas. One of the biggest moments in the history of colonization was the ‘Scramble for Africa’, as historians (and Professor Hopkins) refer to it as. As slaves were the biggest resource of the time, the banning of slave trade in Africa in the early nineteenth century caused European disinterest in continent that they were once heavily dependent on. Although there were localized replacements, like ivory trading, they were not as effective in keeping Europe’s interest. As a result, Africa was desperate to be relevant again, their economy depended on it. Because of the ban on the slave trade, there was a sudden demographic collapse of middle aged persons, which was also counterproductive to the growth of the continent. Before the scramble, Africa was naturally

    Read More

  • DBQ ESSAY

    920 Words  | 2 Pages

    In conclusion, during the 15th and 16th centuries Europeans visited the Atlantic Coast in the African states to observe for gold and silvers. They took advantage of the Africans to get their desires when the Africans acknowledged them to be equal which drove into Africa’s downfall.

    Read More

  • European Imperialism In Africa In The 20th Century

    726 Words  | 2 Pages

    The results of European colonialism shows that the aim of colonialism is to exploit the human and economic resources of an area to benefit the colonizing nation. As a result, the nation that is colonized is affected negatively. In reality, how Europe really affected Africa as a whole is much

    Read More

  • How Imperialism Socially Affected European Colonies in Africa

    695 Words  | 2 Pages

    Europe's sudden swell of power led it to invading and exploiting Africa, its people, and its resources. This effect of Imperialism in European Colonies in Africa sent a lasting social message to Western civilizations. While the political and economic effects of this tragedy cast a large shadow, the social repercussions of Social Darwinism are by far the most prominent.

    Read More

  • European Imperialsim in Africa was Justified

    455 Words  | 1 Pages

    Unfortunately, even though European imperialism in Africa was justified, many Africans are still suffering from the effects to this day.

    Read More

  • The Effects of Imperialism in Africa

    557 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout history, imperialism has led countries to extend their rule over weaker countries and then colonized those countries to expand their own power. Imperialism allows the ruling countries to use the weaker countries for their resources. Colonizing other countries would then lead to growth and a better reputation for the dominating country. There are many examples of imperialism throughout European history. When many European countries “scrambled” for Africa, it seemed as though Africa had no say in anything. During the 19th century, Europe found a way to use Africa for their own growth and power. Using Africa for their resources, the Europeans colonized Africa without a second thought. European imperialism in Africa had a negative impact because of social disarray, cultural loss, and death it caused.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Foucault: Power, Knowledge And Discourse

    898 Words  | 2 Pages

    Colonialism, as Encyclopedia of Race, Ethnicity, and Society mentions, is “the expansion of a sovereign nation to other territories and sovereign nations. The colonizing nations exercise administrative, political, cultural, military, and socioeconomic power over the indigenous population in the colonized lands” (Schaefer 317). That is, colonialism itself involves not only the occupation of a place but also the rule over the local people. Schaefer further adds that “[t]he development of the European colonial project since the 16th century coincide[s] with the development of the concept of racism and ethnocentrism, as well as theory of Social Darwinism ” (317). With the belief of white supremacy and European pre-eminence, Europeans reckon that they have authority to take the action of colonialism.

    Read More

  • Exploitation in Africa over the centuries

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    The next time period in which the unbalanced relationship between Africa’s resources and European and American financial interest can be shown though is from 1884 – to the late 1950s/early 1960s. This period was started by the Berlin Conference and ended with the civil rights movement and African countries’ independence movements. The Berlin Conference started a period of European colonization in Africa where European countries got together to “chop” up Africa with no consideration for cultural lines. The division of African countries effectively ended any potential conflicts and Europe that would be caused because of colonization clashes between countries, so this also effectively benefitted Europeans. But what was wrong is that Europeans took over and formed these new co...

    Read More

  • African American Colonialism Essay

    1000 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the Western world European colonialism is hailed as an accomplishment. It is the time where Europeans flourished economically after finding and taking control of the lands of the New World. Because of European colonialism and the need for free labor, millions of Africans were forced from their homeland and were forced into slavery. Years later the Europeans came back to colonize and take the rich resources of Africa without any regard to the native people who lived there. Though colonialism ended in the United Stated in the 1700’s and other parts of the Americas in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, many of its racial and injustices are still an ingrained in society today There have been many instances where groups of people within African

    Read More

  • Dehumanization Of Colonization

    1099 Words  | 3 Pages

    When one thinks of the western world and how it has come to be, is the sweat, tears, and blood of the African diaspora person thought of? When one is stripped of their culture and humanity and forced to do labor how can one truly gain freedom? Colonization can be describe as taking over ones territory and making it yours and in the process; forcing ones practices, belief Colonization of the African diaspora person was a dehumanizing process that damaged not only the colonized but the colonizer as well. Colonization of the African person resulted in oppression and a sought for liberation. Freire’s notion of liberation can be described as a “painful child birth”.

    Read More

  • How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney

    1758 Words  | 4 Pages

    How Europe Underdeveloped Africa by Walter Rodney, was one of the most controversial books in the world at the time of its release. The book seeks to argue that European exploitation and involvement in Africa throughout history. This is the cause of current African underdevelopment, and the true path to the development is for Africa to completely sever her ties with the international capitalist economy. Rodney describes his goal in writing the book in the preface: “this book derives from a concern with the contemporary African situation. It delves into the past only because otherwise it would be impossible to understand how the present came into being and what the trends are for the near future” (vii). Rodney writes from a distinctly Marxist perspective by arguing that the inequalities inherent in European capitalism and required exploitation of certain countries in order to sustain capitalism.

    Read More

  • The Psychological Impact of Colonialism on the Victimization of Africans

    1070 Words  | 3 Pages

    Africa’s struggle to maintain their sovereignty amidst the encroaching Europeans is as much a psychological battle as it is an economic and political one. The spillover effects the system of racial superiority had on the African continent fractured ...

    Read More

  • Economic Impact of Colonialism in Africa

    2659 Words  | 6 Pages

    Throughout the centuries Africa has been a continent of agricultural achievement and plenty. Agrarian practices and technologies developed in Africa were emulated by the world’s great civilizations and radiated to every corner of the world. It’s speculated by many naturalist (most notably Charles R. Darwin) that modern agriculture originated in Africa. Ancient cave paintings discovered by archeologist in Africa are certainly some of the earliest evidences of plant and animal domestication. Arabic and European historical accounts agree that African diets were varied and abundant from the beginning of recorded history up until the middle ages. The African continent is rich with natural and intellectual resources. Northern Africa has rich oil deposits that, once discovered, have made billions of dollars. Sub-Sahara Africa is rich with deposits of precious minerals such as gold and diamonds. Throughout much of history Africa has been thought of as a rich land. But the Africa we know today as being plagued by famine, poverty and war came about at a much later date. These tragic circumstances could have been partly caused by the massive economic dislocation caused by the slave trade and colonization of the 19th and 20th century (Hopkins 13). Colonial powers representing outside interest setup “extractive institutions” across Africa. These “Extractive Institutions” refer to those entities that exist for the sole purpose of pull resources out of a country. Now that many of the colonialist powers have left, these “European-style institutions” still exist well into the turn of the century.

    Read More

  • Colonialism In Africa Essay

    989 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is no doubt that European colonialism has left a grave impact on Africa. Many of Africa’s current and recent issues can trace their roots back to the poor decisions made during the European colonial era. Some good has resulted however, like modern medicine, education, and infrastructure. Africa’s history and culture have also been transformed. It will take many years for the scars left by colonization to fade, but some things may never truly disappear. The fate of the continent may be unclear, but its past provides us with information on why the present is the way it is.

    Read More

More about Discuss The Dehumanization Of African American Colonialism

Open Document