My New Year's Reading Plans In the 19th and mid-20th centuries, there was a form of exhibition called "Human Zoos" that was very popular in Europe and the United States. The exhibits feature people from Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Native America, placed in a setting that mimics their native environment.
The human zoo originally originated in the era of colonialism, when Western powers expanded and came into contact with people of all colors and cultural backgrounds. The Western powers occupied their lands, and many men and women were reduced to slavery and could be disposed of at will.
With the development of science, especially the popularization of Darwinian evolutionary thought, the concept of "white superiority" began to emerge and became a major ideology in Western society. This has led to a false but widely accepted belief that there is a "civilized hierarchy" led by Caucasians, while other ethnic groups are on a lower level.
Against this backdrop, imperialists and business entrepreneurs saw an opportunity to make profits and educate the public by presenting what they called "uncivilized" or "savage" tribesmen. "Living" non-European individuals are transported from their areas of origin and placed in specially crafted environments – often simulating traditional villages or natural vernacular customs – so that visitors can get an up-close look at their daily behavior.
For example, at the 1889 Paris Universal Exposition there was a section called"negro village"(Black Village); The 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis also featured Filipino tribal members as exhibits; In 1914, in Oslo, Norway, there were also Samis (formerly known as lapps) used as a performance project.
As "exhibits" in cages, some ethnic groups from the tropics wear very revealing clothing, and there is nothing to cover their private parts. This is true even in the cold winters, and many people suffer from frostbite and die as a result.
To add to the gimmick, the human zoo will describe some ordinary aborigines as local kings or queens, or princes and princesses, in order to attract more people to visit. Like slaves, many of the indigenous people died on their ships during the long voyages to Europe and the United States.
Although we today think that human zoos are extremely immoral racism, at the time, the vast majority of the Western public was unaware that there were problems of exploitation and inequality. On the contrary, in an age of curiosity and lack of direct communication, many ordinary citizens saw going to these events as an act of knowledge acquisition or even patriotism.
By the beginning of the 20th century, voices against human zoos began to emerge widely. James H. Gordon, a black pastor in New York, USA, said that "our race is oppressive enough" and that black people cannot be kept in cages and exhibited with apes, who are also "human beings with souls."
After World War II, the concept of a human zoo gradually lost its support, and it sparked a broader discussion about racial equality movements, the review of colonial history, and the reconstruction of the concept of global coexistence. With the establishment of new values, the promulgation of the Charter of the United Nations and the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the human zoo has become completely intolerable by the international community and has finally disappeared into the long river of history.
Even so, the shadow of the human zoo has long been looming over certain communities and collective memories. Identity politics, postcolonial theories, multiculturalism, and even the current issue of illegal immigration are all examples of the interlinkages.
Uncle Cao believes that the concept of a human zoo is a desecration of nature and life. All human beings are created equal and deserve the same freedom, not because of the color of their skin. For those backward peoples, we should help them develop, instead of simply treating them as animals or tools for profit.