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Congo Free State
3
- Established after the dispersion of the Congo Free State
- The Congolese had no role in legislation but were used to gather a workforce
- Private companies invested in the Belgian Congo after WWI
- The Congo continued to be exploited for its resources
- Mines and plantations were places of work for indentured laborers
- Congo Free State was established by brutally seizing the Congo
- The purpose of colonization was to enrich King Leopold II, not the Belgian state
- Leopold's rule has gone down in history for its brutality and inhumane nature
- This era is now referred to as the 'Forgotten Genocide'
- Humans rights abuse induced a series of riots and rebllions
- In 1908, King Leopold turned over the Congo Free State to the Belgian government, transitioning into the Belgian Congo
Climate and Physical Features of the Congo
1
- The Belgain Congo has a tropical climate
- Charactreized by heavy precipitation and high temperatures and humidity
- '“The country’s major topographical features include a large river basin, a major valley, high plateaus, three mountain ranges, and a low coastal plain."
- grasslands and woodlands
- mangroves, bamboo thickets, and Afro-Alpine
- the average elevation of about 1,700 feet above sea level.”
Congolese Culture
Relations to the Novel
The Belgian Congo
- Setting
- The story occurs during the time of the Congo trying to gain independence
- "Jimmy Crow" (Kingslover 120)
- The Price family's actions are related to the beliefs of the "paternalism"
- Tribalism
- Over 250 ethnic groups and languages
- Bantu is the dominant language with French being the offical language
- Other languages include Kikongo, Lingala, Swahili, Tshiluba
- Polytheistic religion
- Sculptures and masks
- Traditional Fashion - Pagne
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2
Etablishing an Independent Country
5
Ava, Emily, Azba, and Abbie
1
- Paternalism was used by the Belgians to control the Congo
- The African population challenged the colonial regime
- First nationwide Congolese political Party - Congo Nation Movement of 1958
- The Congo became an independent republic on June 30, 1960
- Change the name to the Democratic Republic of the Congo