The history of African people has been plagued by constant oppression and unethical appropriation. Although it is a land that has substantial talent, its people have perpetually been denigrated and abused. Even though there are a lot of people that believe that Africans are less than others, most of Western culture is profoundly indebted to Africa, especially due to the intellectual theft that the Greeks committed upon them.
Greek culture and philosophy is one of the main influences of Western civilization. Many people believe that they were the founders of many of the rational achievements that modern society has brought. Nevertheless, many do not realize that many of these brilliant ideas were actually stolen from Africans, especially Egyptians. “By virtue of their materialistic tendencies, the Greeks stripped those inventions of the religious, idealistic shell in which the Egyptians had enveloped them”. The Hellenistic culture modified the original African lines of thought, yet one can still see their brilliance shine through.
This Greek theft happened through many centuries, with numerous people being involved. However, one can attempt to point out the great turning points and actors in this line of thinking. “There are three persons in the drama of Greek philosophy: (a) Alexander the Great; (b) Aristotle's School and; (c) The Ancient Roman Government who are responsible for a false tradition about Africa and the social plight of its peoples”. It is important to know the relevance and actions of these different players, so as to better understand how Africa led to the development of some of the most important ideas of Western society, even though many people do not recognize it to this day. “The result of this dishonesty has been the creation of an erroneous world opinion; that the African continent has made no contribution to civilization, because her people are backward and low in intelligence and culture”. As such, it is important to know one’s history well, so as to not denigrate those people that have contributed so much, while others have attempted to steal their important beliefs.
The first of these, Alexander the Great, invaded Egypt three hundred years before Christ was born, stealing many of the books that contained Egyptian knowledge. Furthermore, the territory itself came to be under Alexander’s rule, annexing its culture as well. In terms of philosophical knowledge, it was the School of Aristotle that turned the Royal Library of Alexandria into a research center and a University, appropriating the wisdom that was therein, calling it their own.
Rome constantly attempted to control Africa. This is nothing new, as Africa has constantly been under attack from many different fronts. “We are dealing here with the unusual, [] a permanent situation which, in combination with the forces outlined in foregoing pages, destroyed the civilization of an entire race, checked progress, and forced countless thousands into barbarism”. Africa’s history is plagued by constant evolution, yet that is often dismissed and destroyed by other peoples.
In fact, there are authors that signal Africa’s great contributions and culture as being the cause of their own downfall through the jealousy that other societies held towards them. “This lofty culture system of the Black people filled Rome with envy, and consequently she legalized Christianity which she had persecuted for five long centuries, and set it up as a state religion and as a rival of Mysteries, its own mother”. Africa’s complexity and richness was cause of such praise and honor that Rome decided to destroy it by stealing and denigrating them. This culture that many people praise in the present day should actually be shunned due to the acts that they committed in the past. “Now that it has been shown that philosophy, and the arts and sciences were bequeathed to civilization by the people of North Africa and not by the people of Greece”. Although entire chapters of Western civilization have been thought to be caused by the Greeks, it would actually be more exact to praise and celebrate the African people, including the Egyptians.
This subjugation of the African people has not changed to this day. Even though it is not the Greeks at the present moment, they are still being oppressed by other forces. “The plain truth is that the African states today are not even half free and independent, for colonialism was from the beginning exactly what it is today, an economic system for the control and exploitation of the wealth of other peoples”. In this sense, it is important to note the coercion that these people are still being subjugated to. Far from being inferior, they are simply more peaceful than their attackers, who constantly attempt to degrade them.
In conclusion, it is important to see African people as being intelligent and peaceful contributors to Western society, against the stereotype that many people attempt to classify them under. The negative propaganda that has been launched against the people of this continent is just another manifestation of “the inherent aggressiveness white men have toward women and others who do not resemble them”. It is important to know and understand the importance that Africa has had in Western culture in order to ascertain the truth of the development of ideas that continue to shape history to this day.
Bibliography
Diop, Cheikh A. The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality. Westport: Lawrence Hill and Company, 1974.
James, George. Stolen Legacy: Greek Philosophy is Stolen Egyptian Philosophy. Ebook. The Journal of Pan African Studies 2009. http://www.thebiblekonsultant.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/eBook-Stolen-Legacy.pdf
Williams, Changelor. Destruction of a Black Civilization. Dubuuque: Third World Press, 1971.
Funua Olade, Yeye Akilimali. “A Forum on The Destruction of a black Civilization” Accessed August 28, 2016. http://yeyeolade.wordpress.com/2007/11/20/how-to-solve-the-problems-of-the-black-race/
