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Native american culture and spirituality
Native american religion and spirituality
Native american culture and spirituality
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According to T.O. Ranger in “Revolt in Southern Rhodeisa”, the first Chimurenga, which occurred from 1896-1897, was an uprising in response to the imposition of colonial rule in Southern Rhodesia, present-day Zimbabwe (ix). The Nbele and Shona people resisted the colonial rule and in return endured a complex set of struggles over land and cattle and taxes. The inability and unwillingness of the Euroopeans to understand the Nbele and Shona people’s culture and religion misguides perceptions of events and views of their behavoior and actions (2). Terrance mentions during the colonial rule, many Europeans thought the people of Africa were content with the new administration and misunderstood the reaction of the “African pople of Southern Rhodesia to colonial rule…, this misunderstanding arose…partly out of white ignorance of the history of the Shona and the Ndebele…Edwards [confessed ],we knew nothing of their past history, who they were or where they came from, and although many of the Native commissioners had…knowledge of their language, none of us really understood the people or could follow their line of thought, we… looked down on them as a downtrodden race who were grateful to the white man for protection” (2). The Europeans did not treat them as equals because they saw them as dependent and thought of their lives as meaningless. They believed the Shona and Ndebele people had no roots or culture and therefore had no history. Terrance Ranger mentions “the whites believed that the Shona people would not rebel because they believed that the Shona had no roots, no sense of history; no sense of religion,…no way of life worth fighting and dying for” (2). The African people of these cultures were seen as inferior by the Europeans... ... middle of paper ... ...tives from the vixtims they mrdered was secretly placed and kept in Nyanda’s cave. The colonists were determined to destroy the cave in orer to show the natives that the white man had little respect for Nyanda’s power since she was the inspiration for the peoples’ resistance (108). The abolishment of her cave, was a way to violate and damage African sacred places, a strategy that forced more Africans to Christianity. “Nehanda-charwe was powerful because of her spirit” and the women before and after her who held that position were also influenced with great power (109). Nehanda-Charwe was charged with ordering and participating in the murder of Pollard, but she was still on the run. The colonials wanted and paid more attention to capturing of Nehanda-Charwe instead of other mediums because they believed she was keeping many of the natives from surrendering (111).
Thornton is a graduate from Millersville University, Pennsylvania. He is an American historian specialized in the history of Africa and the African Diaspora. He is also a history professor in Boston University. My paper speaks about the legitimacy of Nzinga’s coming to rule. I use Thornton’s piece for information about her rise to power.
Although it is usually 19th century European imperialism that appears in Western literature, Africans have felt pressure from outside powers for over a thousand years. By the year 1200, most of Northern Africa had adopted Islam, and the population consisted mainly of a blend of Arab and Berber peoples. It was at this time that the enslavement of black Africans along the eastern coast of the continent by Arabian pirates began. This slave trade, however, met fierce resistance from the flourishing African kingdoms of Kush and the Somali king, Nagus Yeshaq, who was a Christian Becker). Because the strength of the Arabic incursions was based mainly on conversion, the Islamic armies never penetrated deeply into sub-Saharan Africa.
The Kenyan feminist and environmental activist, Wangari Maathai, explores the legacy of colonialism and oppression in her native country through her moving 2006 memoir, Unbowed. Maathai explains that over the course of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Africa experienced a massive influx of white settlers. In an effort to solidify control over recently acquired colonies, many European powers had encouraged large numbers of their ethnically white citizens to make a new home on the African continent. As a result, thousands of native Africans were displaced. Maathai’s ancestors, the Kikuyu and Maasai peoples were among them. The majority of these forced dislocations took place in the highland regions. The rich soil and temperate climate of this area had proven attractive to native African peoples for centuries; and it seemed the new British settlers found it equally tempting. After most of the land’s original occupants were transported to the Rift Valley region of western Kenya, settlers began taking advantage of the highlands’ vast natural resources. The land was essentially ravaged as ancient forests were clear-cut in order to make room for agricultural plots. The introduction of the plantation system, with its non-native plant species, large-scale hunting, and systematic recruitment of Africans as field laborers, signaled the next phase in the oppression of native Africans (Maathai 6-9).
Over time concepts of ‘Race’, defined as a distinct group with a common linage, and ‘Primitive’ which pertains to the beginning or origin, , have been inextricably linked with the perception of Africa. The confusion of the two in the minds of people at the end of the 19th centaury, and some of the 20th, caused a sense of superiority amongst the ‘White Races’ that affected every aspect of their interaction with ‘the Black’. The ‘Civilisation’ of Africa by conquest and force was justified by these views.
The English deemed Africans barbaric people fit to work as slaves. Social interaction between the two further allowed Europeans to assume their culture was greater than all others. Such reasoning, became a social cause for enslavement. Long before the forced arrival of Africans, Europeans considered themselves superior to the Irish and Native Americans (Txbk). They reasoned that if some didn’t conform to their English laws, customs, and culture, they were uncivilized. Since Africans had fought, dressed, and lived differently, settlers placed themselves on a higher pedestal, perhaps even feeling they have the right to enslave them due to the cultural difference (Zinn). In the long run, the English saw colored people as “savages.” One slave trader, John Newton described Africans in Sierra Leone as “wild barbarous people” (Zinn). Because Europeans assumed other cultures were inferior, hence barbaric; many deemed Africans as not even “men” (Zinn). This made enslavement much easier to achieve. Ultimately, they were considered different from white servants and so weren’t treated the same, for white settlers did not believe slavery was immoral when profit and wealth blinded them. This social, but negative interaction between whites and Africans grew into racism and helped contribute to the eventual development of
A great revolutionary once said, “The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.” The revolutionary in this quote, Che Guevara, epitomizes the notion that revolutions are not a random occurrence but rather a continuous push for a fundamental change. In the framework of revolutions that have occurred in the world, most notably those that have occurred in Britain, America, France, and Haiti; one realizes that the elements of competition and mass mobilization are intrinsic to understanding the successes of each revolutionary movement. Yet, the catalysts and societal implications for each of these revolutions provides different venues of implementation that separates it from others.
Imagine a group of foreign people invading your home, disavowing all your beliefs, and attempting to convert you to a religion you have never heard of. This was the reality for thousands and thousands of African people when many Europeans commenced the Scramble for Africa during the period of New Imperialism. A great fiction novel written by Chinua Achebe, Things Fall Apart, highlights the responses to missionaries by African people. The African natives responded to the presence of white missionaries with submission to their desires, strategic responses to counteract them, and with the most disruptive response of violence.
The Rhodesian Revolution Rhodesia, now called Zimbabwe, is a nation that never featured apartheid. Race relations were generally decent under the government of Ian Smith. Smith's book "The Great Betrayal" clearly spells this out. Former President, Jimmy Carter, would not even see Ian Smith in 1979 when Smith came to the White House to beg for help. Ian Smith then asked Henry Kissinger for help when Carter would not help him.
In many accounts of the Africans, the Africans were in disagreement with the European's Scramble for Africa. Ndansi Kumalo an African veteran wrote in 1896 if many of them to give or keep their land. In a distrustful and agony tone he spoke of how the poor treatment of the Africans in the Ndebele rebellion against the British advances in South America to convince many others not to stay because it has impacted many Africans and many died in the process of it. He says “So we surrendered to the White people and were told to go back to our homes and live our usual lives and attend to our crops. They came and were overbearing. We were ordered to carry their clothes and bundles (Doc.4).” A German military officer in 1896 wrote in a newspaper article about the reactions of the Africans about the white settlers. In an awed tone he wrote about the 1906 account of the Maji Maji Rebellion in German East Africa and to give an example of how the Africans believed in a magic medicine would help them defend themselves against the white settlers (Doc.8). Mojimba an African chief in 1907 described a battle in 1877 on the Congo River against British and African mercenaries to a German catholic missionary. In an appalled and hateful tone he used this description to show that these whi...
Social Darwinism lead to many social repercussions for European colonies in Africa. Because Social Darwinism lead the Europeans to treat the natives like savages, it caused quite a lot of discord in the system. Europeans took advantage of the lack of unity between the natives to conquer them, and it also turned some of the different tribes against each other. But, "Native resistance was often vigorous” (Porter). The Zulus fought back against the British by uniting, overwhelming the latter with sheer numbers. Italy was also defeated by the Natives of Adowa in 1896,which was quite humiliating for the Italians, and hereby ended their attempted...
Source A gives a view on the South African governments control over its people and racial discrimination. It is a biased view and makes the South African government seem cruel and racist. It states that the governments "politics are determined by the colour a persons skin". As this is a statement it gives the impression that it is a fact and by giving this impression it also communicates the idea that the South African government IS racist, rather than the South African government COULD be racist. This comes as no real surprise as the advert has been paid for by the ANC (African National Congress), who are a very anti - South African government organization.
Bohannan, Paul, and Philip Curtin. Africa & Africans . Long Grove: Waveland Press, Inc. , 1995.
The process of decolonization in Africa during the 1950’s through the 1970’s was a very smart yet risky idea. For some places independence was easily gained yet in other areas it was a battle. During the time periods where colonization existed, Africa was peaceful and kept things in order. People had control over their specific locations and there were no questions to be asked. Once it was decided to remove these rights, things got out of hand rather quickly. Violence was a main occurrence during the decolonization timeframe because rules, rights, leaderships, etc. got altered and drastically changed. Sometimes nonviolence was used but it usually wasn’t as effective. A major example of using nonviolence actions to gain independence is when Gandhi protested in India. African leaders have tried very hard to lessen the influence of Western powers and the broader international community but they’ve never been completely successful because they continuously needed support in state building, economic development, and public health initiatives.
the ban on the ANC, the PAC and the SACP, he announced the release of
While Collins does a succinct job of examining the economic and political factors that heightened colonization, he fails to hone in on the mental warfare that was an essential tool in creating African division and ultimately European conquest. Not only was the systematic dehumanization tactics crippling for the African society, but also, the system of racial hierarchy created the division essential for European success. The spillover effects of colonialism imparted detrimental affects on the African psyche, ultimately causing many, like Shanu, to, “become victims to the white man’s greed.”