European Imperialism in Africa

Rebecca Biel

Johnson HS in St. Paul, MN

Grades 9-12

Lesson 3-4

Theme:  European Imperialism in Africa – Case Study #1

Grade Level: 9-12

Title: Rwanda

Overview:  Students will be studying the civil war in the 1990’s between the Hutus and Tutsis for long term effect of imperialism on Africa.

Time: Two 90 minute periods

Subjects:  Human Geography, World History

Required Materials:

We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families: Stories From Rwanda, Philip Gourevitch

Copies of excerpts, an edited version or the entire Communist Manifesto for each student with highlighted sections.

http://www.anu.edu.au/polsci/marx/classics/manifesto.html

Optional Technologies:

Objectives: Students will connect excerpts from the Communist Manifesto to Rwandan history.

Suggested Procedure

Students are familiar with European colonization of African nations for cheap natural resources from Lesson 1, but what were the criticisms of this practice?  Introduce the students to the Communist Manifesto written by Marx and Engels.  Explain its historical context and review vocabulary students will need to know, such as bourgeoisie and proletariat.  Have students examine excerpts from the Communist Manifesto for criticisms of ‘capitalist/imperialists’.  To help students learn main messages, split them in small groups of 3-4.  Give each student a packet of images that relate to ideas from the Communist Manifesto.  They should try to match the theme with an image.  When the groups have finished matching the images with the excerpts compare answers as a class.  Next, compile a class list in the students’ own words of main ideas from the Communist Manifesto. 

Next, look at the excerpts and decide which ones would have applied to colonization of Africa.  Finally, read a segment from We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families: Stories From Rwanda about Rwanda’s civil war in the 1990’s.  Students will apply the abstract criticisms to the concrete events in Rwandan history.

Opening

Review from Lesson 1 the reasons for European colonization of African countries.  Brainstorm the benefits that Europe received and the disadvantages for Africans forced to live under a colonial power.  Next, introduce the Communist Manifesto as a document that criticized European colonization for profit.  Put the document in the historical context that it was written.  Make sure students understand the words ‘bourgeoisie’ and ‘proletariat’.

Development

Pass out a copy of excerpts from the Communist Manifesto to small groups of 3-4 students along with a packet of images.  Students should try to match up the images with the excerpts.  When all the groups are done, compare the groups’ answers and compile a class list of main ideas from the Communist Manifesto.

Karl Marx and Frederick Engels

                               MANIFESTO  OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                 I --  BOURGEOIS AND PROLETARIANS

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The bourgeoisie, wherever it has got the upper hand, has put an end to all feudal, patriarchal, idyllic relations.  It has pitilessly torn asunder the motley feudal ties that bound man to his "natural superiors", and has left no other nexus between man and man than naked self-interest, than callous "cash payment".  It has drowned out the most heavenly ecstacies of religious fervor, of chivalrous enthusiasm, of philistine sentimentalism, in the icy water of egotistical calculation.  It has resolved personal worth into exchange value, and in place of the numberless indefeasible chartered freedoms, has set up that single, unconscionable freedom -- Free Trade.  In one word, for exploitation, veiled by religious and political illusions, it has substituted naked, shameless, direct, brutal exploitation.  (A)

The need of a constantly expanding market for its products chases the bourgeoisie over the entire surface of the globe.  It must nestle everywhere, settle everywhere, establish connections everywhere… (B)

The bourgeoisie, by the rapid improvement of all instruments of production, by the immensely facilitated means of communication, draws all, even the most barbarian, nations into civilization.  The cheap prices of commodities are the heavy artillery with which it forces the barbarians' intensely obstinate hatred of foreigners to capitulate.  It compels all nations, on pain of extinction, to adopt the bourgeois mode of production; it compels them to introduce what it calls civilization into their midst, i.e., to become bourgeois themselves.  In one word, it creates a world after its own image.    (C)

The bourgeoisie keeps more and more doing away with the scattered state agglomerated population, centralized the means of production, and has concentrated property in a few hands. (D)

In proportion as the bourgeoisie, i.e., capital, is developed, in the same proportion is the proletariat, the modern working class, developed -- a class of laborers, who live only so long as they find work, and who find work only so long as their labor increases capital.  These laborers, who must sell themselves piecemeal, are a commodity, like every other article of commerce, and are consequently exposed to all the vicissitudes of competition, to all the fluctuations of the market. (E)

Modern Industry has converted the little workshop of the patriarchal master into the great factory of the industrial capitalist.  Masses of laborers, crowded into the factory, are organized like soldiers.  As privates of the industrial army, they are placed under the command of a perfect hierarchy of officers and sergeants.  Not only are they slaves of the bourgeois class, and of the bourgeois state; they are daily and hourly enslaved by the machine, by the  (G) overlooker, and, above all, in the individual bourgeois manufacturer himself.  The more openly this despotism proclaims gain to be its end and aim, the more petty, the more hateful and the more embittering it is.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                              FOOTNOTES

[1] By bourgeoisie is meant the class of modern capitalists, owners of the means of social production and employers of wage labor.  By proletariat, the class of modern wage laborers who, having no means of production of their own, are reduced to selling their labor power in order to live.  [Note by Engels - 1888 English edition]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next read an excerpt from "We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families: Stories From Rwanda" that directly relates to what the Communist Manifesto was criticizing.

Pages 53-58 directly describe how the Belgians favored one tribe, the Tutsis over another, the Hutu and the legacy it left for the Rwandans (formerly part of the Belgian Congo).

Closing
Discuss the reading from We wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families: Stories From Rwanda as a class. How are the main ideas from the Communist Manifesto seen in the situation in Rwanda? What’s the legacy Rwanda had from Belgian imperialism?