Legacies of Historical Globalization Ch. 6

Key Concepts 1. legacy 2. ethnocentrism 3. Eurocentrism 4. Scramble for Africa

Legacy Definition Characteristics Examples Non-examples - political structures - architecture, art - oral histories / stories cultural traditions & celebrations Something that has been passed on by those who lived in the past. Legacy Examples Non-examples 3

Historical Globalization Think Back - Chapter 5  Rise of a European Middle Class Global Competition for Trade Strategic Reasons Spread Christianity and Civilization

Ethnocentrism A word that combines “ethnic” and “centre.” It refers to a way of thinking that centres on one’s own race and culture. Ethnocentric people believe that their worldview is the only valid one.

Eurocentrism A form of ethnocentrism that uses European ethnic, national, religious, and linguistic criteria to judge other peoples and their cultures.

“It is this consciousness of the inherent superiority of the European which has won for us India. However well educated and clever a native may be, and however brave he may prove himself, I believe that no [military] rank we can bestow on him would cause him to be considered an equal of the British officer”. Commander-in-Chief of the British military in India on Indian Soldiers joining the British army. -Lord Kitchener

R.B. Bennett In 1907, R.B. Bennett - later became prime minister announces to British Columbians “Canada must remain a white man’s country.”

Brainstorm with a partner Activity How do Kitchener and Bennett’s words reflect their Eurocentric views? How would views like these have fostered a legacy of ethnocentric and eurocentric attitudes in the British Empire? What is your experience with ethnocentrism? Is Mac a culturally diverse community? Brainstorm with a partner

Empire Building: The Scramble for Africa

The Arrival of Europeans When the Portuguese arrived in the 16th century, they were thought to be vumbi, which are ancestral ghosts. Indigenous people of the region believed that a person’s skin turned white after death. Stories were told of the European arrival by oral history. Vasco da Gama Portuguese Explorer

Empire Building Identify reasons for this trend… What event eventually led to the end of empire building at this time?

Britain’s Empire 1876 - 1914, the imperial powers greatly expanded their global possessions. During that time, many Indigenous peoples — especially those in the South Pacific, Asia, and Africa — came under the control of one of the imperial powers.

Symbols of the British Empire The Imperial Lion The British flag (the Union Jack) Rallying points or hated signs of oppression? These two symbols were also included in Canada’s coat of arms (right) when it was adopted in 1921.

The Scramble For Africa 19th century large parts of Africa were uncontrolled In 1884, many European nations met in Berlin to divide Africa. No African representatives were present at the Berlin Conference Indigenous peoples whose lands and resources were taken over by Europe’s imperial powers were not consulted.

King Léopold and the Congo In the early 1880s, King Léopold II of Belgium sparked the scramble for Africa. By 1885, Léopold had forced the Indigenous peoples of the Congo region to give up much of their land and to work harvesting natural rubber. He claimed it as his personal property. Indigenous people who resisted were brutally punished. An estimated 10 million died. Léopold finally handed control of the Congo to the Belgian government in 1908.