Have We Really Moved On?
By Jeff Cooper
For centuries, the story of human civilization has been written in conquest, destruction, and the erasure of entire peoples.
We like to think that colonization is over. That the days of empire-building, land-stealing, and racial supremacy are behind us. That the world has settled into its borders, and the great powers are content with what they own.
But then Trump openly suggested taking over Greenland—a land belonging to the Inuit and the Danish.
And then there was talk of absorbing Canada—as if nations could still be bought and sold.
The truth is, colonization never really ended.
✔ It changed its methods.
✔ It changed its language.
✔ It found new justifications.
But the mindset behind it—the belief that powerful nations have the right to take what they want, control who they want, and erase who they want—never disappeared.
It’s the same story, just with new characters.
Colonization Never Stopped—It Just Evolved
Throughout history, powerful groups have invaded, conquered, and reshaped entire civilizations.
Each time, the justifications were different, but the outcome was always the same:
✔ Take the land.
✔ Control the people.
✔ Erase the culture.
✔ Rewrite history to justify it.
Here are just a few examples of colonization’s long, bloody history—some of which continue to this day.
1. The Arab Conquest of North Africa (7th Century–Today)
Many people today don’t realize that North Africa was once entirely African.
✔ Before Islam and the Arab Empire, North Africa was home to indigenous Berber and Black African civilizations.
✔ When the Arabs expanded from the Middle East, they conquered Egypt, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, and Morocco—forcing Islamic rule, Arabic language, and cultural assimilation.
✔ Today, many indigenous North Africans face racism and discrimination in their own ancestral lands.
Colonization isn’t just about taking land—it’s about erasing identity.
And in North Africa, that erasure is still ongoing.
2. The European Scramble for Africa (1880s–1900s)
By the late 1800s, Europe had run out of land to conquer in its own region.
✔ Britain, France, Belgium, Germany, and Portugal met in the Berlin Conference of 1884 to divide up Africa—without a single African in the room.
✔ They didn’t care about existing African civilizations, nations, or cultures. They simply drew lines on a map and took whatever they wanted.
✔ Millions of Africans were enslaved, killed, or displaced, and the effects are still felt today in the form of artificial borders, resource theft, and political instability.
Africa was colonized because of greed—and when the colonizers left, they made sure the continent remained divided and weakened.
3. The Indigenous Genocide in the Americas (1400s–Present)
The colonization of the Americas by Spain, Britain, France, and Portugal led to one of the largest genocides in human history.
✔ Indigenous populations in North and South America were reduced by 90% due to war, disease, and forced labor.
✔ Native children were stolen from their families and forced into boarding schools, where they were beaten for speaking their language.
✔ Even today, Indigenous people face systemic erasure, from missing and murdered Native women to the continued exploitation of their land.
Colonization didn’t just take lives—it took futures.
And America still refuses to reckon with this past.
4. The Holocaust (1930s–1940s) – Hitler’s Attempt at Colonization Through Genocide
When we think of colonization, we often think of land.
But Hitler’s colonization project was about extermination.
✔ The Nazi ideology was based on Lebensraum—the belief that Germans had the right to expand and take over land from “lesser races.”
✔ This led to the systematic extermination of 6 million Jews and millions of others, including Romani people, disabled individuals, and political dissidents.
✔ The Holocaust was a brutal reminder that when one group believes it has the right to rule over another, genocide is never far behind.
We said never again.
But just decades later, history is repeating itself.
5. The Israeli Occupation of Palestine (1948–Present)
It is one of the most tragic ironies of history—a people who survived a genocide are now leading a brutal occupation and displacement of another people.
✔ In 1948, Israel was created, displacing 750,000 Palestinians.
✔ Today, Palestinian land continues to be taken, and those who resist are labeled terrorists.
✔ Israeli bombs destroy homes, hospitals, and refugee camps, while global leaders look the other way.
The world watches the systematic elimination of a people—and history repeats itself once again.
What has happened to Palestinians is colonization in real-time—and the world refuses to call it what it is.
6. America’s Global Imperialism (20th Century–Today)
America calls itself the land of the free, but its global influence has often looked like modern colonization.
✔ Regime Change Wars – The U.S. has overthrown dozens of governments in Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa to install leaders who serve American interests.
✔ Corporate Takeovers – U.S. companies control vast amounts of land, resources, and industries in developing nations, keeping them in economic dependency.
✔ Military Expansion – The U.S. has over 750 military bases around the world—more than any empire in history.
It’s not called colonization anymore—it’s called “national security.”
But the effects are the same.
Is the Urge to Conquer Inherent to Humanity?
This is the real question: Is colonization just part of human nature?
✔ Are we that power-hungry?
✔ Are we that greedy?
✔ Will there always be a group trying to dominate another?
Or is it possible to break the cycle and recognize that no one has the right to erase another people?
Because if we don’t, history will keep repeating.
Final Thought: The Future of Colonization
We like to think colonization ended with independence movements and new borders.
But history shows us that colonization never really stops—it just finds new names, new methods, and new justifications.
The real question is:
✔ When will humanity finally reject the belief that some people have the right to rule over others?
✔ When will we stop repeating the same brutal mistakes?
✔ And who will be the next people to suffer at the hands of unchecked power?
Because as long as greed and conquest remain part of our world, colonization is never truly over.
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