商品簡介
The
Democratic Republic of Congo, the second-largest country in Africa by area, has
had a fractured and bloody history, variously undone by decades of colonialism,
civil war, corruption,
and totalitarian rule.In this comprehensive graphic history, author and illustrator
Edmund Trueman explores the fractious story of Congo. The country has played a crucial role in the
economic growth of the Global North, but has suffered immensely in doing so.
From rubber, to copper, to uranium, to coltan, so many seminal advances in
technology have only been made possible through the extraction of materials
from Congo. In each of these cases, the Congolese people paid a great price,
and until now that price has been paid silently - their story has rarely been
told outside of their own country.
Colonial exploitation began in in 1885, when Belgium's King Leopold
II declared the region his private property, naming it the Congo Free State. Under his brutal rule, millions died between
1885 and 1908. Congo finally achieved independence in 1960, but this led to
more suffering
under dictator Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled what became Zaire between 1965
and 1997. Mobutu was overthrown in a period of civil war which lasted between
1997 and 2003, during which an estimated 5 million people lost their lives.Through Trueman's
deft illustrations and storytelling, Congo's history - not widely known to
Western readers - comes vividly alive. We see how Congolese
musicians have spread their language across Africa by creating some of the most
popular music on the continent, and how Congolese women have spent decades
side-stepping sexist legislation to become leaders in local business. From
the resistance against colonialism, to the fight for independence, and to the
self-determination to make a life in an almost stateless state for decades, the
Congolese people have resisted and survived in order to take control of their
lives and the life of the country they call home.
The foreword
is by historian Didier Gondola, Professor of African History and Africana
Studies at Indiana University - Purdue University, Indianapolis.
