Jennifer from IWS was recently on Latitude on Air to discuss “Black Genocide” and the decades of systemic violence against Black people with the team of Wearebornfree! Empowerment Radio and Biplap Basu.
Racism in the world towards Black people has led to genocide against many indigenous populations. Examples include atrocities committed by Imperial Germany in Namibia and those by white police and lynch mobs against African Americans in the USA. Black genocide is characterised as the humiliation and mistreatment of Black people by both the Western and Arabic world based on historical prejudices, Transatlantic and Trans-Saharan slave trade.
Millions of Black Africans died through forced labour or while being transported across the Atlantic or the Sahara Desert. Others were victims of brutal killings, rapes and castrations that were common forms of torture used by the imperialists.
This was followed by colonialism – a special policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over the global South, especially “Black Africa”, occupying it with settlers and exploiting it economically, culturally and socially. The settlers practiced forms of genocide, arbitrary torture, ethnic cleansing and maltreatment. Up to date, in the 21st Century, such practices, concepts and beliefs exist against Black people. Everyday, everywhere in the world, black people are faced with violence, being enslaved, being raped, being tortured, being shot, being exploited and being murdered in cold blood, without any access to justice.
One year ago last month, on May 25th 2020, George Floyd, a 46 year old Black man, was murdered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the United States. A white policeman had knelt on his neck for nine minutes and 29 seconds while he lay facing down in handcuffs. Acts like these contribute to “GENOCIDE” against Black populations. This is was just one of the millions of murders of Blacks committed in many different ways.
Just recently in France, at Saint Etienne, a 26 year old Gambian by the name of Yusupha York was murdered in cold blood by a group of 10 Armenian men, who stabbed him multiple times on his stomach – another atrocious act motivated by racism.
We all want to live in peace in a better world, free of racism and discrimination, where justice prevails for all!
IW*S
International Women* Space is a feminist, anti-racist political group in Berlin with refugee and migrant women* and non-migrant women* as members.