Masters of Self-Deception

I recently came across the news, in the links below, about a number of 'human zoos' that existed in Europe. One in France, where "in the furthest corner of the Vincennes woods of Paris, lies the remains of what was once a public exhibition to promote French colonialism over 100 years ago and what we can only refer to today as the equivalent of a human zoo." [1]. Another one in Oslo, in 1914 [2]. More existed across imperialist Europe. These 'exhibitions were quite popular in their times - judged by the estimated number of visitors - yet there is very little reference to them in today's history books, and the tales of the last century in Europe. Perhaps, due to understandable reasons, the collective memory chose to apply selectivity in this case.

"More than thirty-five thousand men, women and children left their homelands during the high noon of Imperialist Europe and took part in ‘exotic spectacles’ held in major cities like Paris, London and Berlin. Entire families recruited from the colonies were placed in replicas of their villages, given mock traditional costumes and paid to put on a show for spectators. An opportunity to demonstrate the power of the West over its colonies, the expositions became a regular part of international trade fairs and encouraged a taste for exoticism and remote travel." [1]

It is not the apparent, and repeatedly proven, dehumanizing arrogance of European colonialism that draws my attention here.. 

It is rather this interesting psychological phenomenon that made European-descendants, at a certain turn in history, believe that the same nations from the corners of the world, with whom they had long histories of exchange of knowledge and material goods, and to whom they owe a great deal of their 'civilization', are now sub-human compared to Europeans. 

If this phenomenon says anything, it tells how human beings are ultimate masters of self-deception. We can create utter lies, from sick fantasies, and totally believe them, and make others believe them too!

Furthermore, when we later discover how big a lie we lived and promoted, we struggle with the moral courage to face our dire errors, and their large consequences. We would prefer, if we can, to live and pretend that those things didn't happen, and we certainly hope that nobody knows about what we are hiding... All in all, we have serious psychological issues. 

source of image: http://ryo-hazuki.over-blog.com/article-30429159.html

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[1] - "UNCOVERED: The Haunting ‘Human Zoo’ of Paris", (retrieved April 29, 2013: http://www.messynessychic.com/2012/03/02/the-haunting-human-zoo-of-paris/

[2] - "European Attraction Limited", a project by Fadlabi (a Sudanese artist) and Lars Cuzner. (retrieved April 29, 2013): http://www.europeanattractionlimited.com/texts/