scholarly journals A Truly Free State in the Congo: Slavery and Abolition in Global Historical Perspective

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-76
Author(s):  
John Donoghue

The differences between slavery now and then are less important than the historical links that bind them, links in an awful chain of bondage that bind the history of the transatlantic slave trade from Africa to the resurgence of slavery in Africa today. As this article illustrates, nowhere is this truer, both in historical and contemporary terms, than in the Congo. The links binding the Congo to the history of human bondage were first forged in the crucible of early modern capitalism and they have been made fast by the proliferation of “free market reform” today, which despite the fundamentalist cant of its advocates, has hardly proven to be a force of human liberation; instead, placing the last 500 years of the Congo region in global context, we can see how capitalism has proven to be the world’s greatest purveyor of human bondage. The article concludes with an argument that the reconstruction of civil society in the Democratic Republic of Congo after decades of war, dictatorship, and neo-colonial rule depends crucially on the continued success of an already impressive Congolese abolitionist movement. Without making an end to slavery, once and for all, civil society can hardly prosper in a country where slavery has historically brought about its destruction.

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (suppl_1) ◽  
pp. S323-S323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hayley Ashbaugh ◽  
James D Cherry ◽  
Sue Gerber ◽  
Stephen G Higgins ◽  
Adva Gadoth ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Recent studies suggest a measles-induced immune amnesia that could have long-term immunosuppressive effects via preferential depletion of memory B and T CD150+ lymphocytes. Methods We examined the association between past measles and tetanus antibody levels among children participating in the 2013–2014 Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Demographic and Health Survey (DHS). Our sample consisted of 833 children aged 6–59 months whose mothers were selected for interview. Mothers reported (via recall) history of measles within the lifetime of the child. Classification of children who previously had measles was completed using maternal recall and measles immunoglobulin G (IgG) serostatus obtained via dried blood spot (DBS) analysis. A multiplex chemiluminescent immunoassay platform was used to obtain serologic results and Assay Score (AS) was calculated as a ratio to a positive control included in each run. Tetanus serostatus was categorized as being above or below the sample median serology AS value. Tetanus vaccination status was obtained via dated vaccination card and limited to children receiving the complete 3-dose vaccination series. Results The median AS for tetanus serology among the entire sample of 833 children was 0.085, while children with history of measles had a median AS of 0.053 (N = 41) and children with no history of measles had a median AS of 0.088 (N = 792), chi-square P-value < 0.05. A random intercept logistic regression model was used to examine the association between previous measles disease and odds of having below median levels of tetanus antibody. Controlling for potential confounding variables, the odds of a child with past history of measles having less than the median level of tetanus antibody was 3.86 (95% CI: 1.70, 8.78) among children fully vaccinated for tetanus. Conclusion The results suggest that, among children 6–59 months in DRC, measles may have a long-term impact on levels of pre-existing, vaccine-induced immunity to tetanus. These findings suggest the need for laboratory studies examining measles’ impact on pre-existing, vaccine-induced immunity and underscore the need for continued evaluation and improvement of DRC’s measles vaccination program. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


Author(s):  
Michael J. Pfeifer

This deeply researched prequel to the author's 2006 study Rough Justice: Lynching and American Society, 1874–1947, analyzes the foundations of lynching in American social history. Scrutinizing the vigilante movements and lynching violence that occurred in the middle decades of the nineteenth century on the Southern, Midwestern, and far Western frontiers, this book offers new insights into collective violence in the pre-Civil War era. The book examines the antecedents of American lynching in an early modern Anglo-European folk and legal heritage. This is the first book to consider the crucial emergence of the practice of lynching slaves in antebellum America, and it also leads the way in analyzing the history of American lynching in a global context. Arguing that the origins of lynching cannot be restricted to any particular region, the book shows how the national and transatlantic context is essential for understanding how whites used mob violence to enforce the racial and class hierarchies across the United States.


Werkwinkel ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julien Bobineau

Abstract This article examines so-called colonial discourses in Belgium related to the former Sub-Saharan colony owned by Leopold II of Belgium which today is known as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) or the Congo-Kinshasa. Having introduced the colonial history of the DR Congo from the 15th century until 1910, the study starts with a discussion of Van den Braembussche’s concept of a ‘historical taboo’ and four ways of engaging with such implicit interdictions. Finally, an empirical analysis of colonial discourses in Belgium from the 1890s until today will be presented in conjunction with Belgium’s linguistic-cultural division, taking into account age-related divergence.


Author(s):  
Michael Schiltz

Japan’s experience with modern capitalism and finance is characterized by a remarkable combination of shocks and adaptation. After being steamrolled by Western institutions and financial technologies, the country attempted to retaliate against this intrusion. However, regaining financial sovereignty proved a protracted process of trial and error. In the 1880s and 1890s, under the auspices of Matsukata Masayoshi, Tokyo seemed to get it right. The establishment of the Bank of Japan and related institutions, on the one hand, and the adoption of the gold standard, on the other, appeared designed to lift Japan out of its peripheral status. In reality, however, they mostly served to emphasize its role as an enabler of the British-led international order. Only in the 1930s, during the worldwide Great Depression, would it break with this role, if only to find that its autonomy had been compromised from the very beginning. Japan’s disastrous loss in World War II drove the country into the arms of the newly arisen global hegemon: the United States. In the early 21st-century, Japan remains a linchpin in the still surviving American-led world order and the corollary “dollar standard.”


2015 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 79-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Fulbert Ituna-Yudonago ◽  
J. M. Belman-Flores ◽  
V. Pérez-García

The development of refrigeration is a priority in all countries, given the multidimensional roles that it plays in the sustainable development of society. In developing countries, efforts are being made to catch up with the delayed experienced in the use of refrigeration. To achieve this goal, several countries are allowed to trace the history of refrigeration in their countries in order to understand the main causes of non-expansion, and then set up a new strategy of sustainable development for this technology. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is a developing country that has experienced a very interesting history of refrigeration, but is still less known by the Congolese themselves as well as by scientists. This paper has traced out the outline in the history of refrigeration in the DRC. Surveys were conducted in the industrial, health, residential, commercial, and tourism sectors during the colonial and post-colonial period. Results showed that the use of refrigeration in the DRC has been remarkably observed in the industrial sector, especially in breweries, with a cooling capacity ranging from 50.1 thousand to 2.88 million kWh, about 5 659 % between 1929 and 1957; from 3 million to 26.5 million kWh, about 783.3 % between 1958 and 1980, and then dropped to 6.5 million kWh in 2004 before resuming its growth up to 11 million kWh in 2009. The variations in the use of refrigeration during the above periods significantly influenced the economy, in the sense that the economic and social indicators of the country grew from 0.415 to 0.430 between 1975 and 1985, and then declined to 0.375 in 2000, due to political instability, before rising up to 0.410 in 2005.


2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (09) ◽  
pp. 1195-1200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kashosi T Mitima ◽  
Steve Ntamako ◽  
Achippe M Birindwa ◽  
Ntakwinja Mukanire ◽  
John M Kivukuto ◽  
...  

Introduction: Maternal vaginal colonization by Streptococcus agalactiae (GBS) has an important impact on neonatal health but has not been studied in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The aim of this study was to determine its frequency and influencing factors. Methodology: Vaginal samples (n = 509) for bacteriological analysis were collected from women in Bukavu, eastern DR Congo, during their third trimester of pregnancy, along with information about age, education and socio-economic status, and medical and obstetric-gynecological history. Results: The overall GBS colonization rate was 20%. Colonization was significantly associated with low education, history of urinary infection during the pregnancy, history of premature childbirth or abortion, and HIV-positive serology, but was not significantly associated with socio-economic level or parity. Conclusions: The GBS colonization rate is similar to that found elsewhere on the continent. Further studies, with follow-up of neonates of infected mothers and evaluation of prevention/treatment strategies, are needed.


Author(s):  
Nyimi Bushabu Fidele ◽  
Sekele Maboro Patrick ◽  
Ramazani Haruna ◽  
Kalala Kazadi ◽  
Sekele Isourady Bourley Jean Paul ◽  
...  

Aims: The present study aimed to estimate the occurrence of oral sex to prevent HPV-associated or opharyngeal cancer. Study design:  A prospective cohort study was conducted among the students in the Institut de Technique Medical de Kinshasa (ISTM-KIN), Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Place and Duration of Study: Participants were enrolled from March 2019 through April of the same year in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Kinshasa City. Methodology: Eligibility criteria included both men and women aged 15 to 45 years, enrolled in an educational program, and accepted voluntarily to respondent the survey.  Demographic data, history of sexual behavior, initiation times, and knowledge about risk factors of oropharyngeal cancer were evaluated. Differences between groups of sexual behavior were tested by chi-square tests and ANOVA test at significant level of 5%. Results:  Out of 1,196 participants, 412 (34.4%) were males and 784 (65.6%) females with an average (±SD) age of 20±2.4 years. A total of 964 respondents reported a history of sexually behavior (81%), of that, 53.1% had performed oral sex, 35.4% had vaginal sex and11.5% had practiced sodomy. Oral sex was the first sexual activity practiced with a significant difference among sexual behavior (P= .003). The respondents knew that oral sex is a risk factor for OPC (51.5%; n=616).      Conclusion: Oral sex is the first sexual activity performed by students of Kinshasa Nursing School. Therefore, the education program to avoid the risk of HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancers may be necessary.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Jacques Mbaz Musung ◽  
Placide Kambola Kakoma ◽  
Clarence Kaut Mukeng ◽  
Stéphane Lubamba Tshimanga ◽  
Jeef Paul Munkemena Banze ◽  
...  

Background. Hypertension is the leading cause of cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality worldwide. Its struggle involves knowing its prevalence. Insufficient data on hypertension in adults in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), prompted the conduct of this study. The objectives were to determine the prevalence of hypertension and to identify the associated factors in adults in Lubumbashi. Methodology. A cross-sectional study was carried out among 6,708 adults from October 15th to November 24th, 2018, in Lubumbashi. Anthropometric data, lifestyle, and medical history were collected. Hypertension was defined when the mean of the last two blood pressure (BP) measurements was greater than or equal for systolic (SBP) at 140 mmHg and for diastolic (DBP) at 90 mmHg or a history of taking antihypertensive medication whatever the value of the BP. Logistic regression was used to identify the relative effects of hypertension risk factors and all statistical tests were declared significant at a p value <0.05. Results. The female participants numbered 4479 (66.8%). The mean age of all participants was 47.9 ± 16.5 years. The mean SBP and DBP were 128.4 ± 25.9 mmHg and 79.1 ± 15.3 mmHg, respectively. The overall prevalence of hypertension was 33.6%. This prevalence was statistically higher in women than in men (34.5% vs. 31.7%; p = 0.024 ). After logistic regression, the risk of hypertension increased with age >50 years (aOR = 5.85 [5.19–6.60]), overweight (aOR = 1.25 [1.11–1.41]), obesity (aOR = 1.25 [1.11–1.41]), central obesity (aOR = 1.37 [1.16–1.61]), diabetes mellitus (aOR = 2.19 [1.63–2.95]), alcohol consumption (aOR = 1.21 [1.05–1.39]), nonconsumption of vegetables (aOR = 1.35 [1.02–1.80]), and history of stroke (aOR = 2.57 [1.88–3.51]). Hypertension was inversely associated with being underweight (aOR = 0.68 [0.53–0.87]). Conclusion. The prevalence of hypertension in the city of Lubumbashi is high as in other cities of the DRC and Africa. This situation requires the implementation of prevention, detection, and treatment programs for hypertension.


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