This Belgian colonialist exhibition stemmed from the time of King Leopold II and his brutal dictatorship in the Congo. From there, he created a ‘Colonial Section’ of expeditions, taking hundreds to Tervuren (Belgium) so that investors in his colonial plunder could see firsthand the kind of slaves he had in the Congo colonial project and thus garner more support for his exploitation.
Leopold II even kidnapped some Black slaves and kept them as pets in his own home, where he built them houses of straw and mud, using them for entertainment when visitors came, as if they were exotic animals.
No fewer than 267 Congolese were forcibly taken to Belgium and exhibited to the public like animals in a zoo. At least seven of them died, including an eight-month-old baby, Juste Bonaventure Langa, who perished during the 1958 colonial exhibition.
Far from being an isolated case, human zoos became widespread in Europe, in countries like Germany, Belgium, Spain, and France, from the colonial era onward.
This appalling colonial spectacle was part of a veritable slave industry, where people were treated as pets. This is the West that lectures us on civilization and human rights—we’re talking about 60 years ago, not two centuries ago.
Source -> https://xcancel.com/DaniMayakovski/status/2046156341832540312#m
And still, the western world truly believes western European colonizing powers are the most moral, democratic, just governing bodies in the world.
Theyre just eating theyre own shit down
This apparently was the last display of such a human-zoo (https://web.archive.org/web/20230417213344/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/16/belgium-comes-to-terms-with-human-zoos-of-its-colonial-past). The translation as is confuses the reader, as it implies there were more after this event. The article makes mention of a book, King Leopold’s Ghost (https://annas-archive.gd/md5/1137552727fb28067a8cfaecc664fa35). I’ll read it. Does anyone else know of books that deal with this matter, published in English? I am completely ignorant of Belgium’s history. The more I read of history in general though the more disturbed I become. It’s hard not to lament… and I often wonder what is the point. The same forms just take on different masks depending on the period.
Our grandparents were alive back then. This isn’t long ago and some people still have memories of going there
My father in law was alive back then lol it’s seriously not that long ago and there are still statues of Leopold standing around
The tiny country of Belgium still proudly honors the Butcher of Congo with 24 statues (there’s also 2 of them in France).
