PDF-[EBOOK]-In the Forest of No Joy: The Congo-Océan Railroad and the Tragedy of French Colonialism

The CongoOcéan railroad stretches across the Republic of Congo from Brazzaville to the Atlantic port of PointeNoir It was completed in 1934 when Equatorial Africa was a French colony and it stands as one of the deadliest construction projects in history Colonial workers were subjects of an ostensibly democratic nation whose motto read Liberty Equality Fraternity but liberal ideals were savaged by a cruelly indifferent administrative stateAfrican workers were forcibly conscripted and separated from their families and subjected to hellish conditions as they hacked their way through dense tropical foliagea forest of no joy excavated by hand thousands of tons of earth in order to lay down track blasted their way through rock to construct tunnels or risked their lives building bridges over otherwise impassable rivers In the process they suffered disease malnutrition and rampant physical abuse likely resulting in at least 20000 deathsIn the Forest of No Joy captures in vivid detail the experiences of the men women and children who toiled on the railroad and forces a reassessment of the moral relationship between modern industrialized empires and what could be called global humanitarian impulsesthe desire to improve the lives of people outside of Europe Drawing on exhaustive research in French and Congolese archives a chilling documentary record and heartbreaking photographic evidence JP Daughton tells the epic story of the CongoOcéan railroad and in doing so reveals the human costs and contradictions of modern empire. HIST 4339. Wednesday Citation Workshop. Identify a tricky citation (e.g. primary source). Look it up. Bring complete citation to class Wed. Outline. Congo . Free State. Belgian . Congo. Independent . Case Study. By Giovanni, Lauriane and Jessica.. % decrease in forest cover per year between 2000 and 2005.. Change in deforestation in Congo. Human importance of the rainforest. Rich and diverse ecosystem provides food, shelter, fresh water and medicine for more than 75 million people. http://www.snopes.com/photos/sunset.asp. Africa’s Unique Physical Geography. Intro. Africa is really a plateau continent with escarpments and rift valleys- . Below is a picture of the Great Escarpment (Drakensberg) in South Africa . Skill: reading a graph.. Which country has the most rainforest coverage? Which has the least?. The Congo Rainforest. The Congo Rainforest has 70% of Africa’s plant cover. It comprises a large portion of Africa’s biodiversity with over 600 tree species and 10,000 Animal species. With the Equator running through the region, the rainforest climate is warm and humid. It rains about 117 days/year with about 70 inches of rainfall total. The Congo River flows through central Africa and the Congo Rainforest.. © Student Handouts, Inc. www.studenthandouts.com. THE “DARK” CONTINENT. “Dark Continent” – racist terminology referred to both the peoples of Africa and their alleged ignorance. Endless stories…. Social 10. Chapter 6. The Scramble For Africa. In 1884 the United States, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Britain, Italy and the Netherlands met to divide Africa amongst themselves. . Michael J. Boyle. Introduction. The story of France’s involvement in Vietnam, and its subsequent withdrawal, is important for understanding how the stage was set for the Vietnam war. Throughout the Vietnam war, France remained critical of the United States for not learning what it saw were its obvious mistakes. Modern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Third largest country in Africa. Congo River . Home to Africa’s Rainforest. Mineral deposits of gold, diamonds, manganese, copper. First settlers in the Congo area were “hunter –gatherer” tribes called Pygmies – some still live in the rainforests to this day – 40,000 BCE. Africa’s Size. Second largest continent .  11,700,000 sq. mi.. 10% of the world’s population.. 2 ½ times the size of the U. S.. 5. 0. 0. 0. M. I. L. E. S. 4 6 0 0 M I L E S. Bodies. Of. in . one territory by people from another territory. It is a set of unequal relationships between the colonial power and the colony and often between the colonists and the indigenous population.. Picasso, . Exploring the Mississippi. French wanted to expand their trading area by finding passage to China or the Indies – “Northwest Passage”. In 1673, Joliet and Marquette left Quebec and made it to the Mississippi. They floated down to Arkansas river and turned around when they found natives with Spanish guns. Congo Free State (1877-1908). Belgian Congo (1908-1960). Independence Flag (1960-1963). 1963-1966 Flag. 1966-1971 Flag. Flag of Zaire (1971-1997). 1997-2003 Flag. 2003-2006 Flag. Types of Volcanoes. Nyamuragira. The Geography of Africa A Satellite View Africa’s Size Second largest continent  11,700,000 sq. mi. 10% of the world’s population. 2 ½ times the size of the U. S. 5 0 0 0 M I L E S 4 6 0 0 M I L E S The Congo-Océan railroad stretches across the Republic of Congo from Brazzaville to the Atlantic port of Pointe-Noir. It was completed in 1934, when Equatorial Africa was a French colony, and it stands as one of the deadliest construction projects in history. Colonial workers were subjects of an ostensibly democratic nation whose motto read “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity,” but liberal ideals were savaged by a cruelly indifferent administrative state.African workers were forcibly conscripted and separated from their families, and subjected to hellish conditions as they hacked their way through dense tropical foliage—a “forest of no joy” excavated by hand thousands of tons of earth in order to lay down track blasted their way through rock to construct tunnels or risked their lives building bridges over otherwise impassable rivers. In the process, they suffered disease, malnutrition, and rampant physical abuse, likely resulting in at least 20,000 deaths.In the Forest of No Joy captures in vivid detail the experiences of the men, women, and children who toiled on the railroad, and forces a reassessment of the moral relationship between modern industrialized empires and what could be called global humanitarian impulses—the desire to improve the lives of people outside of Europe. Drawing on exhaustive research in French and Congolese archives, a chilling documentary record, and heartbreaking photographic evidence, J.P. Daughton tells the epic story of the Congo-Océan railroad, and in doing so reveals the human costs and contradictions of modern empire.