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:
King 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.
