7 Of the Most Ruthless European Colonialists

When we think of the evil atrocities that have been committed against humanity, one person is frequently called the most evil to ever live, Hitler.  But why is his name the only one synonymous with evil? When you kill more than 10 million Africans or Native Americans why are you not symbolized as evil?

Europe has a long history of colonialism, imperialism, slavery and genocide and Hitler wasn’t alone with his vile acts against humanity.

Here is a list of European Colonialists other than Hitler, who have managed to exterminate groups of people, all for the sake of land, greed and wealth:

 

Leopold II of BelgumKing Leopold II of Belgium

Leopold of Belgium amassed a huge personal fortune by exploiting the Congo, initially by the harvesting of ivory and rubber by the Congolese people. One of his most heinous acts was in forcing villages to meet quotas on ivory collection; if the villagers didn’t meet their numbers, their hands were cut off.

His regime was responsible for the effective enslavement of the native population, beatings, widespread killing and frequent mutilations that led to the deaths of an estimated 15 million Congolese.

This became one of the most infamous international scandals of the early 20th century.

Independent journalism still matters.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Back to top