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Racism in History

According to Oxford Dictionaries Online, Racism is:  “Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.” And then there is another meaning: “The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races.”

Unfortunately, there has been racism since the beginning of history. And if you really get into it you will find facts that you did not want to know, for example, when you realize that even one of your favourite philosophers like the Greek Aristotle said that Greeks are free by nature while Barbarians (non-Greeks) are slaves because they are more willing to submit to a despotic government! This statement is published in a book by Kevin Reilly called ‘Racism: A Globar Reader’.

Just imagine how popular Aristotle would be if he had said that in 2019, he would probably lose all his credibility or would only be supported by the few racists that mingle with us in the 21st century. Or ar they not so few? Many people think that the United States of America, Spain or even Great Britain are still racist countries…

Racism in the United States has been there since the very beginning, we are talking about the Colonial Era. Only white Americans had privileges and rights while all other races had no rights at all. Education, voting rights, citizenship, land acquisition, etc, were exclusive privileges for white Americans. These kind of things remind us that we are true animals indeed, and that we don’t know anything about humans and how we really are. Racism in history still makes black people want revenge in America, let alone native Indians.

But black people and Indians weren’t the only ones who’ve suffered from racism throughout history, what about Jews after World War I ? Anti-semitism “was successfully exploited by the Nazi Party, which seized power in 1933 and implemented policies of systematic discrimination, persecution, and eventual mass murder of Jews in Germany and in the territories occupied by the country during World War II (see Holocaust)”, according to britannica.com.

Did you know that even National Geographic had a Racist Coverage for decades? And how do we know it? Because they have acknowledged it in an article by Susan Goldberg (Editor in Chief). This is what she wrote: “It is November 2, 1930, and National Geographic has sent a reporter and a photographer to cover a magnificent occasion: the crowning of Haile Selassie, King of Kings of Ethiopia, Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah. There are trumpets, incense, priests, spear-wielding warriors. The story runs 14,000 words, with 83 images. If a ceremony in 1930 honoring a black man had taken place in America, instead of Ethiopia, you can pretty much guarantee there wouldn’t have been a story at all. Even worse, if Haile Selassie had lived in the United States, he would almost certainly have been denied entry to our lectures in segregated Washington, D.C., and he might not have been allowed to be a National Geographic member.”

The architecture throughout history

Architecture exists since the first time someone had the idea of planning, designing and constructing a building of any type anywhere. Just think about it, when was the first time someone decided to change his own environment for good and with what knowledge? Who was the first architect on Earth? These are questions that might not have an answer but we are lucky we can enjoy buildings and constructions that can easily have more than 8,000 years of age…

When was Architecture created? It must have been during the Neolitic (more than 10,000 years BC), and thanks to this new type of men we now call architects, people could now become sedentary, as now they had new shelters, walls, houses and organized crops to be able to stay in a recently built town instead of having to move elsewhere from time to time. The era of moving from one place to another was a thing of the past.

These new constructions and buildings were created by men who could transform their environment into anything that was needed: a defensive castle, an independent or self-sufficient place, etc. People who had the ability of seeing these images on their head and making them real weren’t called architects yet, but now it is one of the most important professions in the world.

Then of course came the unbelievable constructions of the Ancient Mesopotamia with the Ziggurat of Ur, the Assyrian palace of Ashurnasrirpal II or the Ishtar Gate, which are buildings that can impress you even now, 5,000 years later.

Architecture was booming at that time, people with money wanted to become eternal and leave their footprint forever. This is how the pyramids of Giza were created or the Temple of Horus at Edfu, a typical example of Egyptian architecture.

But the trend wasn’t over yet, now it was time for the Greeks and their Agoras, surrounded by their buildings and temples. The Partenon in the Acropolis still rises as one of the most beautiful buildings of all time.

But what about the Colosseum or Coliseum? Romans took advantage of the architectural knowledge of the Greeks and even perfected it. The Roman’s aqueduct of Segovia is a good example of how important architecture can be to save or improve the lives of many people in towns and cities. The interior of the Pantheon in Rome, is also something that can amaze you now in 2018.

By then everybody knew that ‘something as external as a building could really have an impact on our daily mood’. Architecture was absolutely necessary by then and it’s still the same way today. Society needs good architects and especially the ones that go into things that aren’t mainstream like the professionals who choose to study a Master of architecture in Collective Housing.

There is such a competition nowadays that if you want to be the best you need to offer something different. This is why many students are now specialising themselves. A good example of this is what we said before: An architect that needs to specialize in Collective Housing or an Asian Historian who wants to specialize in Spanish History, for example. The fact remains, architecs are one of the most important professions today, at the same level as doctors. And from General-History we’d like to thank you all for your passion, time and effort.

By | 2018-12-21T16:57:27+00:00 December 21st, 2018|History|0 Comments

William Turner (Painter)

 

William Turner VeniceJoseph Mallord William Turner (1775-1851) was an English painter who stood out thanks to his extraordinary watercolour landscapes and oil paintings.

The particular confusion between brilliance and madness was very obvious in the biography of William Turner. An academic painter during his origins, Turner developed his art until reaching a free, atmospheric and in occasions, abstract style that made critics reject his creations until they finally understood he was just a genious. (more…)

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