I Think I Might Be A Colonizer, and I'm Not Exactly Sure How To Feel About It.
It's kind of funny when you think about it. We're all sitting in our homes, probably on land that once belonged to someone else, calling out “Colonizers” on TikTok and Instagram.
Ever notice how it seems everyone on social media is calling out colonists left and right? It's kind of funny when you think about it. We're all sitting in our homes, probably on land that once belonged to someone else, calling out history on TikTok or Instagram, which is a byproduct of colonization. You could even look at social media as a new kind of vehicle for technological colonization (but that's another article).
This whole Colonization name calling got me thinking: isn't the whole idea of "colonizing" something humans have always done? Are the people we call "Colonizers" just the most recent winners? Should it be inappropriate to rename every country's defense budget and call it an "anti-colonization budget?"
History: It's Not Just About Europeans
First off, it's more than just Europeans who've moved around, taking over places. This has been a human thing worldwide since time began. Granted, Europeans were pretty damn good at it, and their unwitting use of disease took things to a whole new level. Haven't tribes and civilizations been doing this all over the globe forever? The Romans, the Mongols, you name it. Even in America, Native American tribes had their own battles over land. It makes you wonder, at what point in history does one indigenous people have the official right to a particular section of land?
Why Do Humans Like to Move So Much?
So, why do we do it? Why move into someone else's space? It seems like it's part of who we are as humans - wanting more land, natural resources, or just a change of scenery. Power, religion, culture, and politics are additional reasons for our history of global expansionist policies as humans.
The Big Questions
And here's where the big questions come in. Like, when does someone become a place's "real" owner? If your family has lived in your house for generations, does that spot become truly yours? What about the people who were there before? And if we're all living on land that used to belong to someone else, what does that make us? And while I'm at it, what about all the trees and animals that the first human settlers dispersed?
Looking at Ourselves
It's strange to think of myself as part of this colonization thing. By living my everyday life, I continue what people did hundreds of years ago. And with all the stuff I buy and the social media I use, am I part of a new kind of taking over?
So, What Now?
I don't have the answers, but I am intrigued by the problem. I'm 17 and just trying to figure this stuff out like everyone else. But it's important to ask these questions, right? To think about how our history shapes where we live now and how we see the world. It's not about blaming or pointing fingers, but trying to understand the bigger picture. Is there true right and wrong, and if so, where and when does it start?