Reflection on movie 500 years later Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Reflection on 500 years later - Movie Review Example It would appear as if Africans then were willing and subservient slaves working for Europeans, but in actuality, they tried their best to rise above the horrible conditions they were pushed into. Somehow, it was just inopportune that they were helpless victims to those who had more power then, but all that is part of history now. Being able to view Elmina, said to be the slave colony in Ghana, and getting an idea of how slaves were treated, makes one shudder. Just imagining how they were placed in massive numbers in dungeons with steel plates on their necks, cuffs and ankles, and chains binding them together, creates an image that is so distressing, and it makes one wonder, why did these white people treat the Africans this way? What have they done to deserve this? What’s even ironic is that there is a church on this fortress; it makes you think how can these church-goers even bear to attend mass there knowing that the Africans were suffering in the dungeons in that area? Desp ite being the world’s 2nd largest continent – and possibly even one of the richest, because of their natural resources, one of which is diamonds – Africa has a dark history of slavery behind it which is said to be so deeply-ingrained that even the Africans themselves have a distorted view of what they perceive to be â€Å"the true, the good and the beautiful†. This occurrence is highly-expected due to the long-term bondage and subjection to foreign influences by different countries. Africa was an unwilling pawn in this game, and yet it has received the least desired effects which are still felt up to the present day. As one of the resource persons in the documentary states, what took place in Africa 5 centuries before was one that was physical – the torture, the serfdom, the suffering and vulnerability. Currently, Africa is still deep in slavery, but more on mental enslavement, which is indeed very disturbing. This is made apparent in the following quote: â€Å"African people are the largest consumers of self-mutilation products; skin bleaching, hair straightening, artificial nails, false hair, etc.† This is the effect of the long-term exposure to the Western/European cultures and creating icons which are far removed from what Africans can actually see in the environment they are exposed to. Africans have lost their genuine love for what is truly of African origin and have totally embraced that which was merely fed to them by their Western brethren. What’s more, the act of accepting Western culture as part of being African has been further enriched by attaching negative connotations to the word Black – as evil, dark, ugly, dirty, sinister, etc. – which only served to even widen the gap between the two races. Hence, in trying to be White, the Blacks merely ended up throwing more mud on their faces – not really a great scenario. It is indeed quite unsettling to know that up to the present time , the false notion of White superiority over Blacks is still believed by most Africans. There is still that undeniable stereotype attached by blacks to whites, and vice-versa, and although it has significantly improved, it will still probably take some time to totally eradicate this principle. This, I think, is a common problem which persists among cultures which were colonized and subjected to foreign influe

Regan to Obama years Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Regan to Obama years - Essay Example This paper seeks to describe major events that took place from the period of Reagan to Obama. There were major historical turning points from Reagan to Obama period. The first major historical turning point was the collapse of communism and the ending of the cold war. The other major historical turning point was increased growth of United States economy in a rate that was never witnessed before during Reagan and Clinton period. The other turning point was the terrorist attack. Another major historical turning point is the Obama health care program. The major historical turning points that took place during this period had an impact on America current society, economy, politics, and culture. The collapse of communism had a tremendous effect on America’s politics (Peck, 2010). It signified the end of tension that existed between America and communist countries. Moreover, the nuclear weapons that were in United States and Soviet Union declined significantly. There was also restor ation of democracy at the expense of communist totalitarianism. Moreover, it led to domination of America economy in the world as capitalism won over communism (Peck, 2010). America influenced other countries to adopt free trade. Secondly, the growth of America economy caused the country employment rate to decline. ... The 9/11 attack led to America change of foreign policy due to the threat posed on homeland security (Purdum, 2003). The attention of America security was heightened that witnessed before. There was also increase in Domestic security measures and continue to affect the everyday lives of all Americans. The other transformation is on the health sector. The Obama health care reforms are expected to change the lives of low-income earners in America. Millions of America who could not get medical cover will now be covered in the Medicaid. On the other hand, insurance will get more premiums at a lower cost. The AIDS epidemics in America shook Americans confidence starting from 1980’s. AIDS was discovered in America in 1981. However, this topic was not frequent among politicians. President Reagan was the first to deny its general presence and even forced his surgeon not to discuss AIDS. Like other politician, he thought the disease was for gay people. With time, the disease spread to other people and affected lives of many Americans (The History of HIV and Aids in American, n.d.). The Centre for Disease Control published the first official record of the disease on June 5, 1981. The documentation involved gay men hospitalized over pneumonia and disseminated Candida infections. After this, many cases were reported while the two gay men died later. The disease was characterized by prejudice and stigma while the government ignored with no public attention. Those who were affected were even denied schooling opportunities. The ignorance of President Reagan and administration caused the activists to blame them on the death of gay men all over the country (The History of HIV and Aids in American, n.d.). The public mention of the disease took