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After reading the previous writer's statements on this topic, I find that the topic "Racism in Africa," should not be the appropriate title that reflects most of it's(Africa) woes. Instead, it should read, "Ethnic tensions and prejudices in Africa." In Africa, long before the coming of the Europeans, various ethnic groups with animosities against each other had marked off territories to separate from each other. But, in circa 1880, many European nations convened at the Berlin Conference and divided up Africa as if it was a birthday cake. For example, the Belgium's claimed the Congo, while the British claimed Kenya. With no regard to ethnic hostilities and differences, these Europeans either favored one group over the other, or clumped them together despite centuries of tensions between these groups.

Furthermore, when the wave of independence swept the African sub-continent, the former colonizers packed up and left these newly independent countries with their newly drawn borders to fend for themselves.
As a consequence of this, years of resentment boiled over into all out ethnic wars. A good example of this was the 1994 clash between the Tutsi and the Hutu. The Hutu, who were basically farmers, hated the Tutsi for the treatment they received when the Belgium's placed the Tutsi minority over the Hutu majority. The reason for this favoritism was racist in it's reasoning. The Tutsi were favored because of their keen facial features(narrow nose, thin lips), which the Belgium's felt were closer to their own, and as a consequence, over 500,000 Tutsi and their Hutu sympathizers, were slaughtered due to years of ethnic tensions. Finally,today, the countries sub-continent Africa, are still dealing with ethnic tensions as they are now fledgling Democracies,who should be loyal to the state, instead of the tribe.

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