Meaning of History for “White People” – Volume-1

Sorry for the controversial topics going. I can imagine you’d be fed up with these kinds of stories. I hope you can suppress your resentments for the time being. Thank you for your understanding.

So why do “white people” need to manipulate history and trick people by history? In my opinion, it comes from the idea “White as Superior”. Years ago, I learned political science at Vilnius University in Lithuania and a Lithuanian professor insisted: “White people think that at the first place they put themselves on the top, and then they list black or Asian or any other peoples under their feet.” In short he talked about “white as the most superior”, and that’s why white people regard others as inferior, barbarous, incompetent etc. He is a white man and has the objective perspective on race.

When ancient civilizations flourished in India, China, Egypt, and Tigris & Euphrates, Europe was still sleeping in the forest of “primitive”. In “Commentaries on the Gallic War”, Julius Caesar stated he saw people wearing “hide (animal skin)” when he conquered the land of Gaul. Europe had been out of civilization for a long time in history. When a Canadian girl gave a presentation on “Contributions of Islam to Western civilization” in a lecture with that professor, she confessed to my great surprise that she hadn't known the contribution by Muslims to Europe. As a historical truth: without influence and help of Islam, Europe wouldn’t have been able to make up civilization today.

In the “Renaissance – Re-birth”, a lot of books were translated into European languages from Arabic, because ancient texts of the Greece and Rome were firstly translated into Arabic in the Islamic Golden Age (750-1258). Although “paper” made the Renaissance possible, it was invented in China and brought to Europe by the hands of Muslims when they conquered the Iberian Peninsula and spread out during the Islamic rule. It is said that “Compass, Gunpowder and Printing” are the great inventions of the Renaissance, but they'd been all invented in China before the Renaissance. And although the Age of Discovery is the first time for Europeans today to appear on the main stage of history, navigation and shipbuilding skills are also developed in other worlds and brought by Muslims. And it is true that steam engine was a great invention by Europeans, but the principle of steam was already know in ancient Egypt and Hero of Alexandria made up a steam-powered device. In short the Renaissance and Industrial Revolution were done by the knowledge of “history”. If you say it is all “our”..., it’s plagiarism. Without inventions of other worlds, Europe would be nothing.

And then if you look at Roman and Greek mythologies, you’d see many gods because it was a world of “polytheism (many gods)”, while Christianity teaches unique God – “monotheism (one God)”, which was adopted as the national religion at the end of the Roman Empire. And Latin was spoken in Rome but no native speaker of Latin exists in Europe today because it became a dead language with the fate of Romans, which can prove that there is no “direct” link between Europeans today and Romans. Although the Roman and Greek civilizations occurred on the land of Europe, they had nothing to do with European civilization today; even if Europeans seek for their Roots in the ancient civilizations, it’s not realistic. For Europe had been out of civilization until the Middle Ages comes.

In sum, I would say that European civilization is the newest and latest one in history and the prosperity of Europe started 500 years ago. But this truth won't reduce the value of contributions to mankind by Europeans at all and it doesn't mean that Europeans are inferior to other peoples. What Europeans did in the last 500 years is so great and splendid, which is also the truth of history.

 

The Meaning of History of Africa

 

When I was in Lithuania, I saw a ballet for children, in which “white people” go to Africa and save Africans. Is that correct? I would say this is brainwashing. There would’ve been such cases, but to teach proper history to children, bad acts in Africa done by “white people” should be also taught at the same time. Otherwise the ideology “White as good” would be imprinted into children’s mind and they wouldn’t believe and accept the truth of history from the bottom of heart even if the children study it at schools later on (I met in fact such young white people at Vilnius University). “Premise” is the base to think, and if you have the “White as good” in your mind, when you learn “Slavery”, how would you find the mentality of “white people”? How would you accept the evil mind of “white people”? When you see history, it is necessary for you to be neutral and objective without emotion.

On my desk, there is a book call “The Meaning of History of Africa” written in Japanese by Kumiko Usami. When I saw the book, I didn’t either pay too much attention on the title or notice how important this title was. However it is very meaningful to understand “International Development”. The other day I visited the Library of Northern Region in Tamale and checked shelves for history. There’re very few books on history of Africa. Why? Because it’s a new field in academic studies.

“White people” robbed so many things from Africa and other places in the name of Slavery, Imperialism, Colonization, Plantation, etc. and the evidence of the history are preserved in the British Museum. And “they” stole not only the treasures but also human beings, dignity of people, and “History”. Let me quote some words from the book above.

 << Nkrumah states about the education of Gold Coast before the independence in 1957 in his book, Africa Must Unite: “We were taught to regard our culture and tradition as barbarous and primitive. And our textbooks were to teach History of the Great Britain, Geography of Britain Islands, Lifestyle in Britain, Customs of Britain, and Thoughts of the British. Many of these textbooks hadn’t changed since 1895.” >>

As you can see, “white people” use two ways to brainwash us: destroy real history and teach fake history. It is true that “white people” distorted, forged, fabricated, hide, erased history of Africa.

And first of all, “they” created the myth: “There is no history in Africa” and then made up the theory that Africans were inferior and barbarous as races to justify their malicious activities.

<< First, Slavery was justified to save black people out from the land where the grace of God didn’t reach. And Africans were judged as the races who were supposed to be suitable for heavy labors from the birth and not to feel any pain physically and mentally, thus there is no problem at all to make them slaves in terms of a question of affecting humanity. And regarding Colonization, the introduction of gospel and advanced civilization in the Dark Continent was also idealized as good acts for barbarous and underdeveloped Africans. As a result of the above ideas, the discrimination consciousness that regards black Africans as an inferior race was rooted deeply in the mind of the Westerns as a ruler. >>

Extracted from the Meaning of History Africa (translated by D@IGO  D@IGO)

History tells us what happened in the past and at the same time it teaches us who we are. And it wasn’t until after the World War II that history of Africa started being taught properly at schools; during the Colonial times “white people” hided the true history of Africa. “They” needed a mask to hide the true face of “white people”. History is not an instrument to mislead people but a tool to learn something important for future. It’s the time for all peoples to know the truth of our history.

 

Slavery

For this time, I’d like to put an extract from a writing I wrote on Slavery several years ago. The information might be not very accurate because I wrote it from my memory then. Please take a look.

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A “black Man” was a thing in slave era, needless to say a black woman was too. Man means Human Beings, nevertheless he or she was, oops, “it” was treated as an "object" in slavery. And it was money, tool, machine, and one of properties for “white man” to keep their lives comfortable just like car, shoes, fridge, TV etc. The only difference was that it “looked like” Human being in black. 

Here’s a manual for “How to Make Slave”. First of all, “it” was hunted in the African Continent, which was a famous habitat for this black object living life in peace, and white men collected it in forests and loaded it up on slaver (slave ship). This black diamond was very profitable in slave markets in Americas. And in the slave ship, the black diamonds were piled up in shelves, just like coffin size, which was arranged efficiently to cram the black cargo (like coin-operated locker) as many diamonds as slave merchant could do; the more black cargo in one voyage, the more profit for him. Once a week, the black cargo was moved up on deck to clean shit and piss in the “locker”, and with sea water, slaver (slave merchant) washed up this smelly black animal which had bedsores by laying down on hard wooden bed, so naturally it barked, roared and howled due to pain, but it’s just strange noise of animal for white men (you’ve heard it in zoo). And sometimes white men found back objects not functioning properly: weakened, sick, dead, which means it had no longer value as goods, thus slaver threw it away in the Atlantic Ocean. Yet be sure that there was no pollution in the sea because this garbage was an organic compound, so natural decomposition. Slaver respected ecology.

Then in Americas, many customers were waiting for black animals in good quality, just like we do in supermarket. For quality control, slave merchants coated tar to hide scratch, crack, bruise, and here again black goods yelled in natural, but it’s just weird sound for white ears. Now black goods were brought to “auction” in slave markets, and auctioneer spoke out to buyers. “Start from Ten dollars!! $10, $10, $10... $15, 15, 15, Twenty!! 20, 20, 20, Sir, this is very good one!! 20, 20... Ok $25, Deal!!” At this moment the black object was given “life” as a slave. Until its death, the slave would be exploited. Day, month, year and second, minute, hour, it works, works and works. No freedom, no human rights. Yet it lived, it survived, it clung to the life with two things: body and self-esteem in their heart, believing in future: “Free at last, free at last; thank God Almighty, we are free at last.

Years ago, a black lady spoke out that she was a descendant of a president of the United States of America (though I forgot the name). Black slave was often raped by “its” owner, oops, it wouldn't be rape but “masturbation”, because you can’t rape “alone”. There shuld be at least two “people” for it but slaves were not human… As a result, the masturbation of a president of the United States of America proves that slave society in America robbed even their self-esteem. Slaves had body only.

 On December 1, 1955, Rose Parks was arrested for refusing to comply with the Jim Crow Laws that required “black” to give up seat to “white Man” in bus. The movements arose little by little and spread nationwide with the philosophy of civil disobedience in non-violent resistance practiced in India by Mahatma Gandhi. One of resistances is the Montgomery Bus Boycott led by Martin Luther King, Jr. And he gave the speech known as “I've Been to theMountaintop” on April 3, 1968 and was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968, which is the following day of the speech...

Roots

In the next few times, I must talk about something unpleasant and gloomy. Please be prepared for it. It’s actually a part of the theme “International Development”, even if it looks no relation at a glance. To understand this theme, it’s better for you to know the 3 things: politics, economy, and history, about which I’ll talk little by little. And everything has “cause” or “reason” behind it, and History always gives us clues and hints for the cause and reason. Thus I’d like to focus on history of Africa. In sum, to understand International Development, firstly you must know history of Africa.

When I was student, to tell you the truth, I didn’t study much because I was not interested in academic matters. Yet I encountered with a book called “The History of Black American” in a lecture at university, which attracted me to African Americans. I was so surprised, so shocked and so puzzled that I read more books written by black Americans and watched movies on “segregation” in the United States. According to a dictionary, the word “Segregation” seems to be specially used to describe “discrimination on black people in America”. But why can people become so cruel, aloof, brutal, barbarous and savage to other people? How come can you be aggressive, arrogant, violent, destructive and hostile to other group of peoples? Why can’t people be peaceful with others? It is uncomprehensive for me because there is no such history in Japan. In “the Seventeen-articleconstitution” promulgated back in 604, Prince Shotoku already said “We are all Harmonized!” Traditionally discrimination, racism, intolerance to other culture doesn’t root in the soil of Japan.

And when I went to Vietnam, I visited the War Museum in Ho Chi Minh City, and I got really shocked again by a gloomy picture printed on a brochure of the museum. In the Vietnam War, a lot of Vietnamese people are killed so easily by American soldiers like insects or animals, and on the picture I saw American soldiers “smiling” next to freshly severed heads of Vietnamese in line. Even the Americans enjoyed insulting Vietnamese after killing them brutally. There was no respect for life at all; it’s not a human act. This mentality is clearly described in the book: People Of The Lie, by Scott Peck, a man says: “Shooting up some Gooks might be kind of fun.” (p.229) The word “Gook” means Asian and here it means Vietnamese. They don’t feel anything to kill Asians, rather “fun” for them. So how could American soldiers be so brutal and barbarous? There is a “Roots” for everything. 

Today the America is considered as a country of white people, but it was the land of Native Americans. Europeans came to the American continent and killed, believe it or not, 95% of native people (this should be memorized and taught as “Genocide” in history books if the Holocaust by the Nazi is genocide). And they robbed the land and arrogantly insist “This is my homeland”, as if there was no such a cruel history. Based on this Roots, Slavery was introduced to that society and this cruel mentality was inherited and passed to American soldiers like the man above described.

Let me introduce a book: “Roots:The Saga of an American Family” by Alex Haley. Actually I watched TV miniseries of it on videos when I was student. The author is a 7^th generation descendant of Kunta Kinte who was captured by “white people” in a forest of Gambia, West Africa, and became a slave in America. He patiently searched for his roots and finally discovered the ancestor in the village of Juffure after 10 years. In this TV miniseries, you can see how cruelly black people were treated by “white people” in the history of the United States of America, which could be rather milder than real slavery. Without knowing your own Roots, you can’t understand yourself.

Obroni – Silminga

In Ghana, people use the word “Master” so frequently, but I am not in favor of calling someone or being called with it, because this word reminds me of “slave master”. However there is the inevitable problem that I have to be called “Master”. In Ghanaian custom today, teachers are called “Master” from students so I can’t avoid it because I am a teacher in a deaf school. You may say that the deaf can’t speak, yes very right, but some students can not only utter sounds, but talk English “fortunately” because of their relatively late loss of hearing. Thus I’m called as Master unfortunately.  

And there is another troublesome custom for me in Ghana. When we, “Japanese”, are walking down the street, Ghanaian people call us “Obroni” in Accra or “Silminga” in Tamale. This way of calling is not insulting at all but I don’t feel really good because it means “white man” in their local languages. And some people even call us “White man” in English. In my usage of “white man”, I am not “White” at all and should be called as “Japanese” or “Asian” because I identify myself as an “Asian”. Yet in their definition, there seems to be only two peoples existing on this planet: “white man” and “black man”, and Japanese are much closer to “white” than “black”, so they call us “white man”. It seems a matter of comparison for Ghanaian people. Needless to say, Vietnamese, Chinese, Koreans are white man; Venezuelans, Colombians, Jewish (Sephardi), Arabs, Indians would be called “Obroni” if they come to Ghana. Anyway I am “White man” in Ghana regardless of my will.

And “Japanese” feel in general very unpleasant and uncomfortable because of some words by some Ghanaians. When Japanese walk on streets, Ghanaians scream “China! China!” to us, but we are not Chinese. And they continue like “Hey, hey! China man! Chin, chon, chan!”, which doesn’t mean anything in Chinese because they don’t know Chinese. And then they start pretending “Kanfu (Chinese martial art)”, which they take from Kanfu movies. There is no manner in Ghana, there is no etiquette in Ghana, and there is no respect in Ghana. They might say that they are “kidding” or “joking” for friendship or something, but it’s not interesting at all for us, but very insulting. A lot of Japanese volunteers suffer from the Ghanaians and say that they don’t want to come back to Ghana again. Needless to say that I am not saying that “all Ghanaians” are impolite, but there are, in truth, Ghanaians who insult us. Is it a phenomenon that happens in any developing countries? The answer is “No”, because I’ve never ever experienced such rudeness in any other countries. Anyway I become “master”, “white man”, and “Chinese” in Ghana, regardless of my desire, feeling and will.

By the way, in Japan discrimination is very rare, but if I say that “I” discriminate people, would you be surprised? Yes, it’s true, I discriminate people. But it’s not by “race” or unchangeable norms, but “behavior”. In fact, I discriminate those above-mentioned Ghanaians by ignoring them when they insult me, but I would never support any kinds of racism, because “racism” shouldn’t happen and you can’t judge people by “colors of skin”. But to me, the discrimination caused by “behavior” is acceptable, how would we be able to treat all the people in the same way? If someone offenses you, would you talk to that person as a friend? Me? Never. However I would never have a bad feeling to “other” Ghanaians because it has nothing to do with them. Most Ghanaians are nice people and the impolite Ghanaians don’t represent Ghana at all. In the next couple of entries I will use the words “white people” on Slavery and any kinds of exploitation done by “white people” in history. But it doesn’t mean “you”. It doesn’t mean white people living life in peace. This is the prelude for future.