HOSCHILD'S LAMENT Patrice Lumumba, assassinated by the CIA and Eisenhower, photo by ..... To the Editors, New York Review of Books: I have a few minor points to make about Adam Hochschild's interesting and valuable account of the big Congo exhibition in Belgium (In the Heart of Darkness, NYRB, 6 October 2005). He describes how: "Again and again, both the Royal Museum's exhibit and its catalogue pass glancingly over the darker side of an aspect of the Congo's history, and then stress its benign side." This is so recognisable, as the way revisionists everywhere are emboldened these days to recast African colonial history -- let alone ignore the existence of post-independence neo-colonialism and its relentless savaging of some African leaders of real quality and courage in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Africa is once again some dark generalised landmass. The only difference is that these days, you feel sorry for it. With the cry "Make Poverty History...
Left wing commentary from the heart and the head