The imperialism of the European powers has always been a source of discomfort for the affected countries as imperialism brings with it changes to the overall way of life of the colonized people. In the eighteenth century, the problem of colonization created a number of challenges for males and females on the African continent. The North African states of Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria faced some of the greatest challenges of colonialism as the colonizers were aggressive in their quest to acquire land and power on the continent. The main colonizers of that period were the British and the French and both controlled approximately two-thirds of the continent. Nonetheless, the entrance of the European colonizers in Africa created a colossal milestone in the expansion of the Africa continent that did not meet with the approval of all of the Africans and caused various responses to their presences.
For many Africans, colonization of the continent was instrumental to the present conditions in the country, the lives of the people and the political and economical development of the country. With the present state of the continent, there is no doubt that almost every negative occurrence that the Africans faced since their independence stems from the historical legacies of colonialism, (Colonialism and the African Experience, 2012). The Europeans had hoped to Christianize the Africans and help to uplift these Africans from a state of barbarism, (Colonialism and the African Experience, 2012), but many Africans did not embrace the changes that came with colonization. Many Africans had to readjust their cultural practices and language because the Europeans did not encourage the “ridiculous” culture and customs of the Africans. To top this off, the mission schools did not allow the use of African languages as the aim was to force the Africans to take on new identities, Christian names, and Christian principles, (Colonialism and the African Experience, 2012).
Of course, the changes in the culture caused the Africans to respond in a negative manner as they resisted the extensive changes to their way of life. Much of the anti-colonial activities that took place in Africa came as a result of the European presence in the country. But, the responses varied according to the individuals. Africans used violent and non-violent acts to lash out against the presence of the Europeans in the country. According to the article, Anti-Colonial Movements, Africa, the nonviolent types of anti-colonialism included the use of trade unionism, the indigenous press, organized religion, art and literary forms, and mass migrations, (Anti-colonial Movements, Africa, n.d). But, for the most part, the Africans resorted to armed resistance as a way of protecting their country against the sovereignty of the Europeans.
Benjamin Talton suggests that the resistance to colonialism is often seen as a matter of the Africans struggle for power against the Europeans, (Talton, 2011). But, the Africans used a number of complex strategies that showed that the Europeans had underestimated the strength of the African people. Furthermore, they rejected the European power despite the dominance of the Europeans in the country. The disunity among the African tribes gave the Europeans the advantage over the people as the different tribes did not unite to fight against the European powers. Talton reinforces the fact that the conflict between the African societies served as motivation for some African tribes, such as the Fante, to join forces with the British colonizers and fight against the Asante tribe, (Talton, 2011). Interestingly, the conflict among the tribes shaped the resistance of the Europeans as a number of African tribes had to confront European and African forces in their attempt to retain African control in the continent. Clearly, one must recognize that the response to colonization was not a simple matter of the blacks resisting the whites, as some Africans opted to collaborate with the colonizers against their African counterparts, while others openly resisted the colonizers. In essence, the Africans assessed the conditions of being colonized and resisted accordingly. Not all of the resistance at the time resulted in physical violence. They were restrained and sometimes were directed at the common local issues in the control of the political and economic control of the Europeans.
Women were instrumental in the later resistance to colonialism and the Aba Women's Revolt in 1929 in southeastern Nigeria showed that the response to colonialism could be done in a passive manner. The Igbo women protested for the resignation of the Warrant Chief Okugo because his British ideas on taxes in the territories. The aim was to protect the economy and retain political autonomy of the country. In some instances, the passive responses to colonialism showed in the Africans removing themselves from the influence of the Europeans instead of directly challenging the policies of the colonizers. This form of resistance led to instability in the European government and the colonial order that the Europeans attempted to put in place.
Gbenda suggests that a number of the Africans saw religion as a means of creating religious thoughts and philosophy despite the different cultures and ethnic nationalities, (Gbenda, n.d). The expansion of the missionary activities on the continent was beneficial to the Africans in a number of ways as the missionary experiences were instrumental to the development of the continent. With the missionaries came the introduction of a new language which undermined the African religious practices. The violent responses in these areas helped to redirect the colonial rule.
In the 1890s, the people of Congo faced the harsh treatment in terms of forced labor and brutality of the Europeans and the tribe response was in the form of physical violence. The Congolese rebelled against the Europeans as they led fights against the Force Publique. The response led to the death of a number of soldiers including an officer. As a result, the Africans retreated and found refuge in a cave, but the European soldiers used smoke to gain the advantage of smoking them out into the open. The tactic was unsuccessful, and like many other Africans who resisted European control in the late 1800s, the bodies of the Sango were later found after three months. In other instances, the Africans openly rebelled against officials and burned buildings and the forests in order to show their displeasure with the presence of the Europeans.
The Southern parts of Africa did not see much of the military confrontation, but the mass uprisings and spontaneous guerrilla attacks helped to eliminate the strength of the Europeans. The South Africans caused a number civil unrest that would overwhelm the resources that was a part of the apartheid. Many of the African demonstrators suffered relentless consequences that would create a challenge for the white minority government. The 1976 protests in South Africa showed the strength of the African students who boycotted the educational institutions and created protests in the streets. The oppressive language of the white minority that was used in the schools served as a means of elevating the level of education in the schools. With the violent protests came the violence against these Africans who were beaten, killed and arrested and the problems that would lead to the resistance against the colonizers.
In concluding, the Africans responded to the Europeans and the introduction of a new culture in different ways. Some used passive resistance while others openly fought the presence of the Europeans with violence. Despite the negative responses on the part of a number of the African tribes, there were still those who embraced the language, culture of marriage, new schools and the action of the missionaries in the country as these natives wanted a change in their African conditions.
References
Anti-colonial Movements, Africa, (n.d) Web, 24 July 2015
Colonialism and the African experience (2012), Chapter 4, p. 99, Web, 24 July 2015
Gbenda, J., (n.d) The Impact of Colonialism on African Indigenous Religion, Department of
Religion and Philosophy, Benue State University Makurdi, Nigeria, 24 July 2015
Talton, B., (2011) African Resistance to Colonial Rule, Web, 24 July 2015
