How did european imperialism change life for the people of africa?
The effects of imperialism were generally negative, but there were a few positives as well. Negatives legacies: – Political immaturity. After being under direct rule (British) and indirect (rule), African societies never got a chance to develop or experiment with different forms of government- elections, polling, legislatures, checks and balances, etc. Therefore contemporary corruption in African politics often has its roots in imperialism. Likewise it established the precedent of “gatekeeper states”, basically oppressive regimes run by dictators whose governments are incapable of addressing domestic social issues and are propped up by taxing the natural resources that leave the country. The tradition of simply killing/exiling/intimidating your political opponents rather than reasoning or cooperating with them has its roots in the way the European administrators dealt with stubborn African tribes. – Extraction of natural resources and material wealth OUT of Africa. The Europeans built