Starting in the 1900’s Europe descended of Africa, and set out to colonize it in the hopes of spreading out with the eventual intent of conquering the entire continent. This initial interactions with the African natives set up standards of treatment that would continue to prevail even through World War 2. Looking into some of the early ideas and practices of the first colonizers, readers will gain a better understanding of how certain ideas and stereotypes came about, and how these moved and evolved to effect the women in minority races in the current day and age. When European men first got to Africa, they took a hyper sexual approach to the land itself. In the French and Poska article Gender and Imperialism, with “the unexplored land described
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One of the most evident symbols of the war they had faced and the “consequences” they were now forced to deal with were the children that resulted from relations between the French woman and African Soldiers who had been station there during the war. Most often these African soldiers were from Germany’s own colonies, a fact that made their looming force ever the more shameful towards some of the German people. Often known as “occupation babies,” these children to some represented just how far Germany had fallen. As seen in Helga Emde 's memoir An “Occupation Baby” in Post-War Germany, she explains the reaction that people heard towards her as a child, by marveling over “my kinky hair, and my black skin”, questioning her place of origin, caused to have issues identifying herself as a German citizen (Emde 102). As she states, “I was not supposed to stand out, and yet I was noticed by everyone” (Emde 102). Even though she had been born and raised in Germany, Emde expresses the struggle she felt with for years of feeling as she had never fit in. Interestingly enough, she retreated into the nursing field, a field seen in Sandra Gilbert’s Soldiers Heart to be widely hated and scorned by the soldier due to the fact it seemed that “their sisters …show more content…
Even though Europe has a long history of immigration, it is not as known as places such as the United States. This makes it difficult for minorities to find a definitive place of belonging in a land that does not want to acknowledge their history of significance. As seen in Fadela Amara’s book Breaking the Silence: French Women’s Voices from the Ghetto, there was a huge response from the community of young French Muslim girls, who wished to have the freedom to identify and live as both. They hope to one day live without harmful stereotypes and practices coming from both inside and outside their community. Their war cry of “Ni Putes Ni Soumises,” which when translated means “neither whores nor submissive,” uses a harsh language to draw attention to the problems that they are facing (Amara 2). Asserting their positions, this group wishes to show the rest of the world that they can be French Muslim, that their traditional way of dress is not a form of submission. They also hope to raise awareness of the constant and consistent violence perpetrated against women within the Muslim community itself. They hope to one day be able to live in a world of “physical security in mixed-sex company” (Amara 3). In a land still reluctant or unaware of the harmful ideals they hold onto and the way that they effect minorities, these young women are fighting
One of the most evident symbols of the war they had faced and the “consequences” they were now forced to deal with were the children that resulted from relations between the French woman and African Soldiers who had been station there during the war. Most often these African soldiers were from Germany’s own colonies, a fact that made their looming force ever the more shameful towards some of the German people. Often known as “occupation babies,” these children to some represented just how far Germany had fallen. As seen in Helga Emde 's memoir An “Occupation Baby” in Post-War Germany, she explains the reaction that people heard towards her as a child, by marveling over “my kinky hair, and my black skin”, questioning her place of origin, caused to have issues identifying herself as a German citizen (Emde 102). As she states, “I was not supposed to stand out, and yet I was noticed by everyone” (Emde 102). Even though she had been born and raised in Germany, Emde expresses the struggle she felt with for years of feeling as she had never fit in. Interestingly enough, she retreated into the nursing field, a field seen in Sandra Gilbert’s Soldiers Heart to be widely hated and scorned by the soldier due to the fact it seemed that “their sisters …show more content…
Even though Europe has a long history of immigration, it is not as known as places such as the United States. This makes it difficult for minorities to find a definitive place of belonging in a land that does not want to acknowledge their history of significance. As seen in Fadela Amara’s book Breaking the Silence: French Women’s Voices from the Ghetto, there was a huge response from the community of young French Muslim girls, who wished to have the freedom to identify and live as both. They hope to one day live without harmful stereotypes and practices coming from both inside and outside their community. Their war cry of “Ni Putes Ni Soumises,” which when translated means “neither whores nor submissive,” uses a harsh language to draw attention to the problems that they are facing (Amara 2). Asserting their positions, this group wishes to show the rest of the world that they can be French Muslim, that their traditional way of dress is not a form of submission. They also hope to raise awareness of the constant and consistent violence perpetrated against women within the Muslim community itself. They hope to one day be able to live in a world of “physical security in mixed-sex company” (Amara 3). In a land still reluctant or unaware of the harmful ideals they hold onto and the way that they effect minorities, these young women are fighting