THE WESTERN SUPERIORITY COMPLEX

In a striking critique, Shaeed Bolsen (@shahidkbolsen on X), founder of @MiddleNation_, challenged the Western narrative of superiority based on material wealth.

He noted that the West prides itself on its technological advances and ‘nice things,’ but this argument rings hollow for much of the Global South. Bolsen reminds those in the Global North that the resources extracted from Africa, Asia and Latin America are required to build sought-after technologies. It’s our minerals, our labour and our lands.

Just in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, foreign states, militias and corporations have been fighting it out to access the country's estimated $24 trillion in untapped mineral reserves over the past three decades. It has come at a cost of at least 6 million dead Congolese and 7 million internally displaced people.

Bolsen urges Westerners to reconsider their tired argument, as it only serves to expose the violent, exploitative systems that underpin the wealth of the Global North.

Video Credit: @MiddleNation_ (X)Sources:1. https://medium.com/notes-and-theories/the-wests-embarrassing-complex-of-superiority-3fbf00b8bc2f

2. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/eurocentrism#:~:text=Eurocentrism%20is%20defined%20as%20the,and%20representing%20progress%20and%20development.

3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YqBXqjYfMc

4. https://www.iom.int/news/world-must-not-ignore-dr-congos-worsening-humanitarian-crisis-iom