19th Century American Imperialism

The 19th century was a century of innovation and wonder. Electricity revolutionized the world of industry as the chances of economic and social mobility led to the expansion of a new middle class across Europe and America. Although far from the consumer revolution of the 20th century, the growth felt by the west was unprecedented for the time. Drastic social and economic change allowed for the organization of labor, allowing the working class to gain more power and improve their living conditions. The 19th century also saw the advent of feminism en masse, with organizations uniting across national borders for a common cause. This radical change was made possible by one thing: imperialism. European powers began the century with the exploitation …show more content…
Africans also felt drastic change as the resources of their continent began to be stripped away by foreign powers. Perhaps the most infamous colony was that of the Belgian Congo, an area densely covered by rainforest and scarred with rivers. The Belgian King, Leopold II, forced Africans into slavery to extract rubber from the trees of the rainforest, as Hochschild describes in his book. The inhumane working conditions, brutal punishments, and sheer cruelty evident in Leopold’s exploits were extreme examples of the tortuous actions carried out against Africans. While the human loss is irreparable, the damage was not restricted to such a simple domain. It must be remembered that the vast material wealth Europeans gained was taken from somewhere; in this case, the flow began in Africa. As Europe gained leaders and innovators, Africa was left high and dry, forced into subservience without strong leaders. For decades, Africans were unable to protect their own, leading to the destruction of cultures which had existed for centuries as those who attempted to resist were swept away by the current of modern technology and organization. It was only when, following the World Wars, growing anti-imperial sentiment gave rise to radical, revolutionary leaders who were …show more content…
In South Africa, Apartheid systematically denied the reinstatement of African leaders into power. Apartheid, while overt in its effects, also had more subtle methods. Even two decades after Apartheid was recognized globally as a terrible institution, Subreenduth notes that “In both texts these offer visuals and texts that draws the learners’ attention to these atrocities, yet South Africa is not discussed a case study of 20th Century racism” in reference to an analysis of a 2010 textbook. By ignoring the issue, the educators conceal the truth that the racism and oppression has persisted, despite an end to formal efforts. The belief that imperial oppression survives is shared by Didier Gondola. To him, the presence of United Nations peace keeping troops in the Democratic Republic of the Congo only contribute to the problem. The logic is clear: why should foreign forces be responsible for the maintenance of order within a country? How is an armed occupation any different from the imperialism which devastated Africa a century before? Even the target of these forces is evidence of the failures of European imperialism, as conflict devours a country unified only by its European creators. The ethnic conflict, which

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American Imperialism 19th Century