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Christopher Columbus and the Afrikan Holocaust: Slavery and the Rise of European Capitalism
Dr. Clarke provides an overall analysis of a period of history that has been systematically falsified and hidden from the serious scrutiny of African-centered scholars and researchers and other committed individuals. He points to concepts that are keys to unveiling that truth about African history and destroying the 'Big Lies' about white supremacy.In Professor Clark's continual quest for African truth, this work is a potent articulation of an all too neglected period of African world history and sets the stage for a more expansive publication dealing with slavery and its impact on Africa and the world. Dr. Clarke challenges the traditional views of African Civilizations and its strength and weaknesses before the enslavement and colonialism periods. He challenges the Eurocentric view of Columbus as discovered and states that he set in motion the genocidal process and renewed western racism. Professor Clarke points out that Columbus set in motion, political forces that established a global system of exploitation. This system has its roots in the Columbus Era and produced European world domination. The fifty year period from 1492 to 1536 A.D. has special significance for world history. During this period, the European's world was able to synthesize various economic, political and cultural forces and lay the foundation for a global system of power, centered around materialism, capitalism and imperialism. At the heart of the new global system of European-American materialism was a super exploitation of the indigenous people of the Western Hemisphere and the enslavement of Africans. As a result, two worlds collided and left us with a legacy of genocidal institutionalized White supremacy. African and Native American humanism lost out to the system of European materialism.
131 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1992
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
December 12, 2019
Many of today's problems are based on a lack of reappraisal of the atrocities and as long as the history books are biased sick ideologies can continue to create ever poorer concepts.
That is why the style of reporting and historiography over this time until to the present has to be revised and all the celebrated heroes properly described as mass killers, slave owners and war criminals.
All kinds of monuments, street signs, etc. removed, which would cause stronger protests than any real, system-inherent problems together.
Redemption and redress would be as necessary as an open conversation about the ownership of stolen land. This is the critical point that will forever delay the reconciliation, as trillions would have to be paid back to their true owners under this aspect. Compensation payments of a similar amount would have to be made and both together would be catastrophic for all economies that face tough global competition. Neither the world economy, let alone a single country, would survive that. Like the rats, corporations and capital would flee the country overnight and it would collapse into hyperinflation and financial crisis.
Books like these are a must-read in history lessons. Not badly written travelogues about European sailors, their lives and strange and unrealistic worldviews and beliefs. If they have to be mentioned, then as ideologically scrapped, uncivilized barbarians, causing immense suffering. How the economic interests and beliefs of these dark ages have turned people into such creatures. This leads to an open comparison between greed, capitalism as the driving force of slavery and today's economic system, especially neoliberalism.
If one would begin removing the monuments of those who have blood on their hands, many empty podiums would remain. Furthermore, there would be many streets to be renamed, places, ... which could be instead adorned with names of role models, with people who have done something for society or scientific progress and are completely unknown.
A good alternative to the pitiful figures who are still approached too unreflectively, uncritically and superficially in history lessons today. Not to mention pointing out the connections, because just like today, the connection between business and politics is far too less critically reflected in history. Big history should become the new, objective method.
Instead of memorizing the irrelevant rulers, wars, kingdoms, ... with years, the socio-economic and ideological component should be analyzed. Which idea evolved, for example, across different cultures and epochs and caused corresponding developments. How does the quartet of military, state, religion and economy function in different stages of civilization always similar, who has the joker and who death for many as a card in the hand?
Then you usually find a chain reaction: A theoretical or philosophical idea finds applications in politics, business and military. Trade and arms manufacturers strengthen the ideologies that bring them the most profit. Such as slavery, any ideologically supported dictatorship, a war against a state with interesting raw materials or neuralgic trading hubs and ports. The general public or even the state and its politics don´t really care about this and the endless loop begins. Political titles, even royal titles, come and go. Financial aristocracy, however, remains forever.
Even today, many scholars of history and some humanities are unfortunately ideologically biased and one-sidedly blind to the fact that they overlook important factors. Because if they believe in one of the many wrong ideologies now, they also transfer them to their research priorities and in the future. And they are biased and the results of their work are only modified reproductions and extensions of the original, false, inhuman concept.
A wiki walk can be as refreshing to the mind as a walk through nature in this completely overrated real-life outside books:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangu...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neocolo...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neolibe...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_His...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrohi...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_He...
That is why the style of reporting and historiography over this time until to the present has to be revised and all the celebrated heroes properly described as mass killers, slave owners and war criminals.
All kinds of monuments, street signs, etc. removed, which would cause stronger protests than any real, system-inherent problems together.
Redemption and redress would be as necessary as an open conversation about the ownership of stolen land. This is the critical point that will forever delay the reconciliation, as trillions would have to be paid back to their true owners under this aspect. Compensation payments of a similar amount would have to be made and both together would be catastrophic for all economies that face tough global competition. Neither the world economy, let alone a single country, would survive that. Like the rats, corporations and capital would flee the country overnight and it would collapse into hyperinflation and financial crisis.
Books like these are a must-read in history lessons. Not badly written travelogues about European sailors, their lives and strange and unrealistic worldviews and beliefs. If they have to be mentioned, then as ideologically scrapped, uncivilized barbarians, causing immense suffering. How the economic interests and beliefs of these dark ages have turned people into such creatures. This leads to an open comparison between greed, capitalism as the driving force of slavery and today's economic system, especially neoliberalism.
If one would begin removing the monuments of those who have blood on their hands, many empty podiums would remain. Furthermore, there would be many streets to be renamed, places, ... which could be instead adorned with names of role models, with people who have done something for society or scientific progress and are completely unknown.
A good alternative to the pitiful figures who are still approached too unreflectively, uncritically and superficially in history lessons today. Not to mention pointing out the connections, because just like today, the connection between business and politics is far too less critically reflected in history. Big history should become the new, objective method.
Instead of memorizing the irrelevant rulers, wars, kingdoms, ... with years, the socio-economic and ideological component should be analyzed. Which idea evolved, for example, across different cultures and epochs and caused corresponding developments. How does the quartet of military, state, religion and economy function in different stages of civilization always similar, who has the joker and who death for many as a card in the hand?
Then you usually find a chain reaction: A theoretical or philosophical idea finds applications in politics, business and military. Trade and arms manufacturers strengthen the ideologies that bring them the most profit. Such as slavery, any ideologically supported dictatorship, a war against a state with interesting raw materials or neuralgic trading hubs and ports. The general public or even the state and its politics don´t really care about this and the endless loop begins. Political titles, even royal titles, come and go. Financial aristocracy, however, remains forever.
Even today, many scholars of history and some humanities are unfortunately ideologically biased and one-sidedly blind to the fact that they overlook important factors. Because if they believe in one of the many wrong ideologies now, they also transfer them to their research priorities and in the future. And they are biased and the results of their work are only modified reproductions and extensions of the original, false, inhuman concept.
A wiki walk can be as refreshing to the mind as a walk through nature in this completely overrated real-life outside books:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triangu...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neocolo...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitalism
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neolibe...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_His...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macrohi...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_He...
May 9, 2016
OH MY GOD! WHAT A BOOK. IT OPENED MY EYES AND GAVE ME A NEW PERSPECTIVE OF HOW THE NEW WORLD DEVELOPED AND WHAT SLAVE TRADE HAD TO DO WITH WHAT EVERYTHING WE SEE TODAY. WHO CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS REALLY WAS? WAS HE THE REAL ARCHITECTURE AND CREATOR OF AFRICAN AND ASIAN SLAVE TRADE IN THE NEW WORLD? DON'T MISS THIS BOOK FRIENDS. IT'S ONE HELL OF A BOOK. I WON'T GO DEEP AND LEAK ANYTHING, PLEASE BUY OR GET THIS BOOK AND READ IT. YOU WON'T BE DISAPPOINTED.
September 9, 2014
This book is definitely a masterpiece. Dr. Clarke was truly a genuis, he goes through the slave trade and shows the roles of both various European world imperialist powers, and african empires that played a role in the slave trade and He uses referrences from portuguese and spanyard sources that shows the role of Christopher Colombus and his crew men in the african holocaust as well as the holocaust against the indigenous people of america and He shows how the crusades played a crucial role in the second rise of europe and its exploitation of most of the world and This book is excellent, it is well researched and it answers questions to many unknown or know but unanswered questions. The personality of Christopher Colombus and europe's mentality towards the rest of the world has been exposed and I seriously recommend this book for all who are interested in the subject
August 22, 2015
Europe was short of food and realized it needed more spices from the Far East to use as food preservatives. Europe also needed an outlet for it’s own anger and feudalism had been only a lightweight enslavement. Columbus’s greatest achievement to Dr. Clarke is that he is the person who sets into motion western civilization’s most dubious achievement: racism. Outside of the U.S. in South America and the West Indies, and elsewhere blacks had some cultural mobility, but inside America - forget about it; only in the U.S. was there a consistent attempt to eradicate a slave’s culture and their family history. The Civil Rights movement was just a consumer rights movement for blacks. The present job of Pan-Africanism is to unite again all the African Holocaust survivors. When Henry the Navigator found his cache of important maps, there was no Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard or Sorbonne. Instead dedicated knowledge seekers had to go to Salamanca in Spain and Sankore in Timbuktu. There, scholars were had been taking all the Chinese maritime information and jotting it down and the Europeans would now take the information kept safely by Africans and use it against them and the entire world. The Asians had a long history of intrigue and knew not to trust the Europeans. But the Africans and Native Americans were generous by nature… and we know how that panned out. ☺ Did they teach us as kids that Columbus on his second voyage made his crew sign a paper saying they would have their tongues cut out if they told anyone that Cuba was not China? Did they teach us that each of his three ships was nicely stocked with criminals because few regular seamen wanted to come on such a risky mission? A terrific book - the only problem was that it was too short.
February 26, 2021
"Let's look at it historically" "Why are we, a people whom so many have said have no history, pursued by so many other people? Why is it that we have been a prize to be captured down through the years? It is because of a prevailing thing that prevails right now. African people have been under siege for over 3,000 years for the same reason they're under siege right now: African people have always had and still have something other people want, think they can't do without, and don't want to pay for!"
You have to be prepared for the concepts John Henrik Clarke is going to blow your mind with. Everything you believe you thought you knew, forget it and start from Africana scratch. Thank you Mr. Clarke for the work that you contributed to Black history. "We have to realize it is not the effort of anyone of us that will lead to freedom, but the collective work of all of us who are sincere."
You have to be prepared for the concepts John Henrik Clarke is going to blow your mind with. Everything you believe you thought you knew, forget it and start from Africana scratch. Thank you Mr. Clarke for the work that you contributed to Black history. "We have to realize it is not the effort of anyone of us that will lead to freedom, but the collective work of all of us who are sincere."
December 6, 2012
An annotated perspective, primarily through citations, captioning the events that precipitated and nurtured slave systems. This certainly is the most condensed, 'familiar' version, of what I learned in the 70's about these historical events, and even more certainly makes for a nice source to use as a reference for finding protracted versions on war and the multifaceted contributors at the roots of caste systems and capitalism.
August 21, 2018
This will be quick, but I'll write a review later.
John Henrik Clarke was a genius. His historical knowledge and analytical assessment of our issues stemming since the pre-trans-Atlantic slave trade. The amount of information and thinking points he poses within this (very) short book is quite astounding.
Now, the book does not transition well and seems to jump around at times but the information is solid. There's a bibliography in the back of the book and I plan on checking out all of that information. There's a lot of historical contexts, however, there's also a lot of Clarke's ideas, thoughts, and opinions.
You just need to read it.
John Henrik Clarke was a genius. His historical knowledge and analytical assessment of our issues stemming since the pre-trans-Atlantic slave trade. The amount of information and thinking points he poses within this (very) short book is quite astounding.
Now, the book does not transition well and seems to jump around at times but the information is solid. There's a bibliography in the back of the book and I plan on checking out all of that information. There's a lot of historical contexts, however, there's also a lot of Clarke's ideas, thoughts, and opinions.
You just need to read it.
November 23, 2020
This short but important book from legendary scholar of African history John Henrik Clarke tells the truth about Columbus and the Holocaust he set in motion. Clarke discusses the impetus and development of European imperialism and colonialism—rooted in enslavement and genocide of Africans and Native Americans—and its ultimate consequences for the continent of Africa and African people. Clarke provides a brief chronological account—from the Crusades to 1492—of Europe’s rise and Africa’s fall. This is a striking, tragic story that every person who seeks to learn about a more honest, less Euro-centric (and thus false) account of Columbus’ “discovery” should read. Highly recommended.
January 26, 2018
To be avoided at all cost! There are much more serious much better informed books available.
Sometimes dated, often totally off-charts, this book is a collection on semi-baked ideas and paranoid conspiracy theories that do little to explain how and why trans-atlantic slavery developed in the New World. One can of course relate to the generous ambition of the author (dispelling the myth of the European "civilizer", showing slavery for the catastrophe that it was, etc.), but the book itself does not reach the basic level of academic seriousness to succeed in that goal.
The book itself is short, so you'd think the author would go straight to the point, but no, the authors finds the time to dwell on totally irrelevant matters such as the Crusades or the Vikings for several pages. In the same way, whatever one may think about Colombus, he was not the initiator of the African slave trade in the Atlantic so putting his name in the title is misleading and a complete loss of time.
More problematic even are the judgemental inserts peppered by the author all over the book. Worse, most of these commentaries are totally unwarranted. No one of note claims that Africa "needed" the Europeans for anything, the fact is that Northern merchants came and traded manufactured goods for slaves, that's objective and does not require moralistic commentaries.
In his absurd attempt to colour pre-1450 Africa as a lost paradise, the author brings some serious nonsense to the table. I particularly enjoyed the downgrading of African warfare to "skirmishes" as if native sovereigns could amass large armies and conquer massive chunks of Western African mainland without going through some serious "battles". In the same way, the author insists on finding twisted psycho-pathologies lurking behind everybody's actions. Europeans are mad with "racism" and Africans suffer from a crippling "naivety", as if both groups could not be perfectly rational. Reading this book one can be forgiven for having completely forgotten that, at the basis of the slave trade, was a simple commercial choice: cheap labour needed to be brought to cultivate large under-populated lands.
No need for paranoia, conspiracy and mental pathologies, the realty of the cold calculation that led to slavery is terrifying enough. For those who start reading about the subject, I'd recommend a more serious book: Hughe Thomas' The Slave trade 1440-1870.
Sometimes dated, often totally off-charts, this book is a collection on semi-baked ideas and paranoid conspiracy theories that do little to explain how and why trans-atlantic slavery developed in the New World. One can of course relate to the generous ambition of the author (dispelling the myth of the European "civilizer", showing slavery for the catastrophe that it was, etc.), but the book itself does not reach the basic level of academic seriousness to succeed in that goal.
The book itself is short, so you'd think the author would go straight to the point, but no, the authors finds the time to dwell on totally irrelevant matters such as the Crusades or the Vikings for several pages. In the same way, whatever one may think about Colombus, he was not the initiator of the African slave trade in the Atlantic so putting his name in the title is misleading and a complete loss of time.
More problematic even are the judgemental inserts peppered by the author all over the book. Worse, most of these commentaries are totally unwarranted. No one of note claims that Africa "needed" the Europeans for anything, the fact is that Northern merchants came and traded manufactured goods for slaves, that's objective and does not require moralistic commentaries.
In his absurd attempt to colour pre-1450 Africa as a lost paradise, the author brings some serious nonsense to the table. I particularly enjoyed the downgrading of African warfare to "skirmishes" as if native sovereigns could amass large armies and conquer massive chunks of Western African mainland without going through some serious "battles". In the same way, the author insists on finding twisted psycho-pathologies lurking behind everybody's actions. Europeans are mad with "racism" and Africans suffer from a crippling "naivety", as if both groups could not be perfectly rational. Reading this book one can be forgiven for having completely forgotten that, at the basis of the slave trade, was a simple commercial choice: cheap labour needed to be brought to cultivate large under-populated lands.
No need for paranoia, conspiracy and mental pathologies, the realty of the cold calculation that led to slavery is terrifying enough. For those who start reading about the subject, I'd recommend a more serious book: Hughe Thomas' The Slave trade 1440-1870.
April 16, 2015
I loved every page of this book. He illustrates why and how our history made African people a powerful race. I'm even more proud to be black. This is a must read for anyone that wants to know the details of 1492, and the lies that our kids (and ourselves) are being taught in schools across the world regarding Columbus and his pirates. Mr. Clarke even challenges us in the last paragraph of the book, and I accept; a memorial for the ancestors that died during the Middle Passage must be built for our future generations.
October 6, 2014
The book was underwhelming. Considering Henrik Clarke's prestigious reputation as a scholar of Black history, that he could put together such a disjointed text is depressing. Also, whoever edited this book needs to be drawn and quartered.
January 2, 2023
Wow. This book goes HARD. I first got a better understanding about the true evils of Christopher Columbus after reading "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared Diamond (1997), "A People’s History of the United States” (2004 edition) by Howard Zinn, "An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States" by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz (2014), and "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong " by James W. Loewen (2008). All fantastic books I would highly recommend.
So I already knew he was a bad dude. But because it’s Indigenous Peoples Day weekend, I figured I’d read a short book just about him. But this book…this book cranks it to 11 at the jump. It does not hold its punches against Columbus, the church, colonialists, capitalists, anyone. It’s awesome. Reading through the author’s Wikipedia page and watching some videos of interviews with him, it’s no wonder he’d write something this unabashedly provocative. He was an amazing professor and historian that tried to right the wrongs of the US’s Eurocentric historical understanding.
Christopher Columbus was a bad guy. He personally participated in the genocides of countless people on two different continents. Don’t take my word for it. You can read his own journal to see how ruthlessly evil he was. He didn’t discover shit. You cannot discover places where people already exist. Furthermore, he didn’t know he “discovered” a new place, AND he wasn’t the first European to show up. He destroyed more cultures than he helped create.
What he did do was spearhead (and personally participate in) the genocides of the natives of North America and the genocides of native Africans. He was ruthless and cruel. He set into motion the beginnings of capitalism, commodifying human beings and slaughtering those who disobey.
I’ll be checking out some more stuff by this author and some books he recommended in his interviews and in this book. His call for Pan-Africanism is really interesting and a subject I know disappointingly little about.
Highly recommended to anyone who wants to actually understand this history of the founding of the USA and not the whitewashed bullshit they teach in school.
So I already knew he was a bad dude. But because it’s Indigenous Peoples Day weekend, I figured I’d read a short book just about him. But this book…this book cranks it to 11 at the jump. It does not hold its punches against Columbus, the church, colonialists, capitalists, anyone. It’s awesome. Reading through the author’s Wikipedia page and watching some videos of interviews with him, it’s no wonder he’d write something this unabashedly provocative. He was an amazing professor and historian that tried to right the wrongs of the US’s Eurocentric historical understanding.
Christopher Columbus was a bad guy. He personally participated in the genocides of countless people on two different continents. Don’t take my word for it. You can read his own journal to see how ruthlessly evil he was. He didn’t discover shit. You cannot discover places where people already exist. Furthermore, he didn’t know he “discovered” a new place, AND he wasn’t the first European to show up. He destroyed more cultures than he helped create.
What he did do was spearhead (and personally participate in) the genocides of the natives of North America and the genocides of native Africans. He was ruthless and cruel. He set into motion the beginnings of capitalism, commodifying human beings and slaughtering those who disobey.
I’ll be checking out some more stuff by this author and some books he recommended in his interviews and in this book. His call for Pan-Africanism is really interesting and a subject I know disappointingly little about.
Highly recommended to anyone who wants to actually understand this history of the founding of the USA and not the whitewashed bullshit they teach in school.
February 4, 2022
The book was decent and short. Having heard a few lectures by the author I would say this book is a good introduction to The history of slavery. A wonderful reference point to start your studies. The author does get repetitive sometimes in stating one of his premises, but I did not mind. The book in my opinion in cohesive and succinct. Readers should be aware though, Dr.Clarke holds nothing back when talking about religion, race and slavery. So, if the prospective reader is someone who is sensitive about either topic, this may not be the book for you.
Audible: What I didn't like was the narration Mr.Clarke has a very unique and gripping way when speaking to audiences that the narrator just doesn't have, on top of that the narrator incorrectly pronounced the names of other black historians mentioned in the book. :(. I thought Mr.Clarke would be narrating had I paid attention I would have noticed my error and just bought the kindle book.
"I only debate my peers, all others I teach" Dr.Clarke ... Sorry, I just had to throw that in there.
Audible: What I didn't like was the narration Mr.Clarke has a very unique and gripping way when speaking to audiences that the narrator just doesn't have, on top of that the narrator incorrectly pronounced the names of other black historians mentioned in the book. :(. I thought Mr.Clarke would be narrating had I paid attention I would have noticed my error and just bought the kindle book.
"I only debate my peers, all others I teach" Dr.Clarke ... Sorry, I just had to throw that in there.
June 29, 2015
A strong systemic analysis of how and why the Maafa happened. I wish that Columbus' direct role in it was explained better, it did help me understand why Europe did it, and how it impacted the world greater than most historical events.
April 25, 2016
An exceptional account of our history, the plague of Columbus & the Middle Passage, and what we as a people need to do to truly move forward. Recommended for the conscious, the open-minded & the young.
September 12, 2015
A low rating mostly because 1) I am not a fan of polemics; 2) I have read most of the source material and find Clarke playing a bit loose on the interpretation; and 3) the characterization of Africans as monolithic is troubling, even when it comes with the best of intentions. That said, the polemic is powerful, decenters and challenges simplistic historical narratives, and the ending, a call to mourn and memorialize, is surprising and gives one pause.
January 2, 2017
Dr John Henrik Clarke does a phenomenal job with giving historical background on the truth behind America's beloved explorers and hero Christopher Columbus by exposing the so-called hero as a rapist racist and murderer of millions of indigenous people. It is wonderful that in the book it takes us to the history of the slave trade and how there is no evidence that Christopher Columbus ever discovered America.i highly recommend this book to African Americans and a wonderful book for all classes.
July 30, 2008
Open your third eye. There is a reason for everything.
August 21, 2011
A huge fan of Dr. Clarke and his teachings. This is the 1st book I read of his after watching his documentary A Great and Mighty Walk.
August 5, 2022
The author’s heart is in the right place, but Jesus Christ this shit reads like a schizophrenic trying to recollect Walter Rodney’s “How Europe Underdeveloped Africa” and the first chapter of Howard Zenn’s “A People’s History” but getting sidetracked along the way so they just start talking about how Columbus had 7 baby mamas
January 27, 2019
Excellent account of African History before the "discovery" of the New World by Christopher Columbus.
https://bibliophileonabudget.wordpres...
https://bibliophileonabudget.wordpres...
April 14, 2025
Christopher Columbus and the Afrikan Holocaust, while branding itself as a historical work, comes across more as a manifesto than anything else. Its narrative is quite unfocused, jumping back and forth and back again in time. As readers, we’re pulled and whipped along by Clarke’s anger as he excoriates this part, then that part of the brutal history of European directed Afrikan genocide. But the political message is there. Clarke is sure to call for revolution at every opportunity. Specifics about this revolution are absent, but the direction is clear: forward towards Afrikan unity. Likewise, Clarke never misses a chance to place Afrikans as protagonists within their own story. Some traditional go-to’s on the topic of the Afrikan genocide and capitalism—Eric Williams’ work comes to mind—neglect our agency and resistance when analyzing the horrific theft and murder of our people. Clarke doesn’t. As a result, his calls for revolutionary transformation are much more earnest. We must not forget our tradition.
February 9, 2011
As a consummate student of Dr. Clarke this was just another wonderfully written book by the rebel historian.
February 25, 2013
A great, passionate introduction to Chattell Slavery study promoting Pan Africanism and a better awareness of the struggle. A&B edition isn't greatly printed though.
February 10, 2018
Absolutely must read.
March 24, 2019
This book is a must read for Africans and those of African descent
August 28, 2024
Although before reading I had suspected there would be some marxist/anti-white rhetoric, I was eager to learn about the supposed subject of the book, Christopher Columbus. However, it focused more on the European slave trade, which was connected by white and capitalism (still vague on how those logically connect) to Columbus. But it was honestly informative and interesting to read about post-Crusades Europe.
However, my destain for the book and the rhetoric from its author Dr. Clarke came when, on two separate occasions, explicitly excused the history of slavery from Africa, as it was not as inhumane as the European slave trade. This is probably true. However, he makes no effort to take the time to condemn the actions of Africa because he is so steeped in a race-washed ideology that poses the Africans as the automatic protagonists and the Europeans as the antagonists, which carries into now. He even muses over the products of horrible slavery like the pyramids, or slavery in a military sense as they conquered different parts of Africa, as a great triumph for his people.
And what is the solution to all this? A museum. Along with being a proponent of teaching generations of African descents to hold destain for the white man. There are also a lot of “plot-holes”, including no real explanation as to why capitalism itself is the cause of this brand of European slavery, or how Columbus connects besides the color of his skin. His claim that this was a holocaust is a bit dubious, and turns to semantics at this point. He seems to just be making it a competition, which is useless and just stirs hate. Most of this book is also him describing books that I assume are much better written.
This ideology that has prevailed into modern day society of identity politics and reparations is dangerous on so many levels. It’s not surprising in order to make his argument for collectivism to work he has to find ways to look over the hypocrisy in oppressive government by claiming it to be good in Africa but bad in Europe. And his non-sensical stringing into the idea of capitalism being bad (even though he acknowledges Africa’s wealth was part of them selling gold, or capitalism), is clearly part of his marxist agenda. It saddens me that an ideology with the emotional capacity of a ten year old is so prevalent, and people who call themselves educated continue to proponent this.
Tdlr: It’s bad when they do it, but it’s okay when we do.
However, my destain for the book and the rhetoric from its author Dr. Clarke came when, on two separate occasions, explicitly excused the history of slavery from Africa, as it was not as inhumane as the European slave trade. This is probably true. However, he makes no effort to take the time to condemn the actions of Africa because he is so steeped in a race-washed ideology that poses the Africans as the automatic protagonists and the Europeans as the antagonists, which carries into now. He even muses over the products of horrible slavery like the pyramids, or slavery in a military sense as they conquered different parts of Africa, as a great triumph for his people.
And what is the solution to all this? A museum. Along with being a proponent of teaching generations of African descents to hold destain for the white man. There are also a lot of “plot-holes”, including no real explanation as to why capitalism itself is the cause of this brand of European slavery, or how Columbus connects besides the color of his skin. His claim that this was a holocaust is a bit dubious, and turns to semantics at this point. He seems to just be making it a competition, which is useless and just stirs hate. Most of this book is also him describing books that I assume are much better written.
This ideology that has prevailed into modern day society of identity politics and reparations is dangerous on so many levels. It’s not surprising in order to make his argument for collectivism to work he has to find ways to look over the hypocrisy in oppressive government by claiming it to be good in Africa but bad in Europe. And his non-sensical stringing into the idea of capitalism being bad (even though he acknowledges Africa’s wealth was part of them selling gold, or capitalism), is clearly part of his marxist agenda. It saddens me that an ideology with the emotional capacity of a ten year old is so prevalent, and people who call themselves educated continue to proponent this.
Tdlr: It’s bad when they do it, but it’s okay when we do.
August 19, 2017
A few inaccuracies concerning WWII but this book was a gem. The fact that we still have this sham holiday every October is beyond comprehension.
February 3, 2018
This could be a great book without the bias and political agenda of its author. If you ignore the author’s political comments and focus only in the historical facts, it is a good book.
July 30, 2018
Dr. Clark sought to edify in this book and that is just what he did. He packed a lot of profound, thought-provoking, information and theories that really enlightening and challenges the reader. I for one never learned this in any of my education and I wish I had. I was told the same lie as everyone else, what I’ve learned from this book is that history was re-white (no didn’t misspell that) to justify the brutality and savage measure taken to erase an entire people of their culture, mind, body, and spirit. American History as it is taught in elementary, middle and high school children are taught that European conquers/colonizers are the saviors and civilized and all non-Europeans are the savages. So, I certainly believe that this informative book and others like it are extremely important because it’s the part of history we don’t normally receive.
I will agree that there were certain places in the book that seemed disjointed and choppy, but overall the message and the meaning was well received. My favorite part of the book was chapter 10 when he touches on Japan. Japan was one of the countries to never be colonized by the European powers. Another part that stuck with me was how he explained the slavery systems of Africans by Africans which was indentured, not made to dehumanize or demonize whereas European/American slavery was created to completely erase Africans of their culture and heritage. Scholars and non-scholars love to cite that Africans enslaved each other, they don’t define the difference in the two sets of slavery. I mean a half-truth is still a whole lie, and to use African slavery to justify American slavery is an invalid argument because they are not the same.
Overall, extremely powerful and eye-opening and necessary read. I look forward to reading the other books mentioned as well. He is right there was an African Holocaust and we’re told to get over it than to acknowledge and learn from it. There is a lot I did not point out but thoroughly enjoyed the read and I appreciate Dr. Clark’s research and thoughts. I highly recommend the read.
I will agree that there were certain places in the book that seemed disjointed and choppy, but overall the message and the meaning was well received. My favorite part of the book was chapter 10 when he touches on Japan. Japan was one of the countries to never be colonized by the European powers. Another part that stuck with me was how he explained the slavery systems of Africans by Africans which was indentured, not made to dehumanize or demonize whereas European/American slavery was created to completely erase Africans of their culture and heritage. Scholars and non-scholars love to cite that Africans enslaved each other, they don’t define the difference in the two sets of slavery. I mean a half-truth is still a whole lie, and to use African slavery to justify American slavery is an invalid argument because they are not the same.
Overall, extremely powerful and eye-opening and necessary read. I look forward to reading the other books mentioned as well. He is right there was an African Holocaust and we’re told to get over it than to acknowledge and learn from it. There is a lot I did not point out but thoroughly enjoyed the read and I appreciate Dr. Clark’s research and thoughts. I highly recommend the read.
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