Black lives matter, history matters as well

THE marginalisation of the black race will not end simply because we have removed the statue of Cecil John Rhodes. Only until we have a black first-world African country to lift up the black population all over the world. In the wake of George Floyd’s death at the hands of white police officers in the United States, the black race is once again the object of renewed worldwide attention, which is positive.

Rhodes’ statue should not be removed, but remain a symbol of African history. He was part of southern Africa’s economic drive and he is part of the successful growth of the southern African economic powerhouse — South Africa. Yes, he was an oppressor, but what he did was for the development of Africa and will remain part of African history.

Let the truth be told, the biggest oppressors of the black race are black African leaders. Africans, in general, do not have the opportunity like other Africans in the western world to demonstrate against oppressors like we are seeing around the world.

For black Africans to demand the removal of Rhodes’ statue is not only crazy, but a lack of appreciation of world history that should not be destroyed. They should demand the erection of George’s statue, not demand the removal of a symbol of history that is important for future generations.

The black race should realise that black oppression is not limited to the Unites States or United Kingdom alone. Worldwide, there is no country, even among the most liberal nations, where the black man is dignified. History dealt us an unforgiving blow, when the Arabs and the Europeans invaded and occupied the African continent.

The first slave traders were the black Africans, followed by the Arabs who enslaved tribes and nations and then colonised and evangelised them. Then came the Europeans who convinced the African chiefs and religious leaders that they were of an inferior race. They then partitioned the African continent over lunch in Berlin in 1884, then moved a large population of the African people to the Caribbean

and Americas, in some cases leaving entire villages almost empty and conquered the remaining population on the continent and brought it under European rule. In the history of the human race, this was a complete transformation that was so effective that no black nation retained its identity, nationhood, national language or national identity.

On the African continent, more black Africans are dying at the hands of fellow black African leaders and fellow black Africans with a few of these cases reaching the attention of the international community. The truth is an average black African is terrified of the black elite across the world and has adopted a culture of not criticising fellow Africans. For those who have the guts to challenge or question within the black race will be deemed sellouts, as former US President Barack Obama was repeatedly called.

The truth is, no one now talks about the painful fact that most African and Caribbean nations have either failed or are about to collapse. Zimbabwe, one of the last countries to have successfully fought colonial rule and won, has completely collapsed. The structures and mechanisms that make a nation exist, let alone succeed, have all been completely destroyed and eroded.

The African culture of incompetence, endemic corruption, ineptitude, destruction, selfishness and greed has played a major role in the country’s demise. The same, sadly, can be said for most other African nations like Senegal, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea that are farcical democracies presided over by men who exclusively cater for their interests, family and those of their inner circles.

African and Caribbean people are leaving their homes en masse to beg on the streets of Greece, to be prostitutes on the red-light districts of Holland. Black African immigrants now make up 40% of migrants flocking to western Europe. It is sad to note that as fellow black Africans arrive in these countries, helpless, unwanted, starved, or maimed, they are treated like dogs and continue to suffer.

For the black race to progress, black African leaders and the black elites should allow for criticism, soulsearching and for the restoration of the Pan-Africanist movement with an eye for building sustainable black nations. As long as the world continues to ignore Africa’s continuous senseless poverty and destructive failures, pictures of continuous oppression and child poverty will always haunt it.

As long as the black African continue to ignore his own self-assessment and soul-searching, black Africa will remain the undignified race.

It is time for our world leaders to leave a legacy, not destruction like what some of our liberators did.

Engineer Jacob kudzayi Mutisi