Simon makes horrific historical events engaging for everyone and brings light to events that should never be forgotten. All of his channels are doing a solid public service and I commend them!
I know, right? I keep coming back to his videos like I've always done with videos on history's worst, like the Nazis; they are so compelling that you want to learn more so that you can maybe prevent these things from happening again.
I love Simon's videos on any channel as an encyclopedia of knowledge. My boss let's us play "podcasts/documentaries" at work...she HATES Simon 😅😅😅 she's also a boomer so... #AngryAboutFactsAndReality
I love all simons channels, however I think it would be good if all his channels where in one go to lace, where you can select at your pleasure what channel you want to view
I love the honesty of Simon's delivery. If you were looking for a silver lining you will have to paint one yourself. I have seen the surgery ship visit the DRC and its so sad to see the people suffering from preventable and treatable illness/disease. Can only hope next 150 years are better than the last 150 years.
Well there's your silver lining if you like cynicism: It's gonna be pretty tough for the next 150 to match or outdo the last 150 years in suckage. You'd be trying hard to make it happen and at that point, I envy your competitiveness but question your morals ;)
@UCgfZ--uyRaK80qU3rTJl8Pg For starters clearly my name is female. My original post was a genuine heartfelt one of well wishes for the DRC, I was not being cynical or sarcastic in anyway. If you read the post in full that is obvious. Why you are the ONLY person to read it and not understand my genuine well wishes for the future of the country and read it as a nasty remark I do not know.
This seems like it should be the biggest ongoing humanitarian crisis of all time. Amazing that it never gets more than an occasional blurb buried under "more important issues". Just mind blowing and tragic.
It’s really sad. A country that should have a high standard of living available to it has just been screwed over so much by outside forces for their own gain.
The developed world doesn't really care about any tragedy that goes on for more than a few months so long as its not directly affected. The situations in the Congo got boring a very long time ago, so as long as the coltan, spodumene, gold, and other minerals necessary for the functioning of modern, high-tech societies keeps flowing and electronics companies keep making massive profits, no one cares.
The powers that be are making way too much money keeping things as they are. Like it or not, very powerful corporations and families do control the world. If there's enough profit in something.. They'll distract people away from it.. Works every time..
Simon's videos are always consistently excellent. His wilder channels with ad-libbings are always hilarious -- but even the more sober channels offer serious and thorough explanations into topics with excellent writing, with the crucial difference being Simon's credible and capable delivery. Always welcome fresh videos off the all the Whistler channels! 👍
I can't be the only one who notices and appreciates the small changes simon incorporates into his channels. Sure it's the same set but the dressings are so subtle but so impactful. The way megaprojects color correction makes it look like he's sitting next to a giant window in a high rise. The intimate Spacing of biographics, as though were talking about a familiar acquaintance. The distance and departure of this channel giving each video a quiet despair at the darkness in the world. Just world class framing that makes each channel unique, despite the unified focus on a fascinating world.
@@cripplious I can ask mine if you like. He seems pretty servile. But that might just be because he's a little orange bitch, I'm not sure if his whole race is like that.
@@markzuckergecko621 I think individually they are pretty docile, but in groups can be sadistic, singing and dancing every time there's a workplace incident.
History? Slavery is as old as man, which is to say Africa. Africa has a slavery problem, it exported this problem to the world. The rest of the world has moved on and yet Africa, the whole continent, has more slaves 5han ever. Africa got richer from colonial slavery than Europe, true story. Corrupt tribal bullshit keeps them wallowing in it. It's so sad.
I love that you use your multifaceted platform to bring awareness to subjects you recognize as being legitimately important to cover. It's so much better than the way many creators just try too hard all the time to make content based on keywords-this-and-trending-that. Please always stick to your integrity and your passions. Your humor and general likeability are great, yeah -- but your sense of humanity, and your ability to discuss complex topics with objectivity and nuance, are what really make you special and important to us all. 💚
Simon, thank you so much for making these videos and bringing attention to these tragedies. Such a horrific, sad mess. To think of all the people; entire generations, having lived and continue to live through a miserable, sad existence paints such a bleak portrait of humanity 😔 The DRC and North Korea are really sad places where the horrendous conditions that the population must endure have gone largely unopposed by the rest of the world.
Love the channel, and this video is a particularly good one. I remember hearing about the struggles of the Congo in my middle school years. It's so sad that the violence and exploitation have continued this whole time. Thank you for covering this important topic.
I met the kid of one of mombutu's generals while working at a rural Walmart on the east coast. It was VERY weird to talk with her as her dad died when she was very young and she has a very glowing opinion of him. She was a really sweet lady 🤷
P.M. LeMumba was a good man. His ascension was the one shining moment when it appeared that the country might have a chance. Then the U.S./Soviet Cold War destabilized The Congo Republic. Lemumba made the mistake of accepting Soviet assistance and America funded his opposition as a consequence. Brave man. The film of him in the hands of his captors is chilling. He knew he was a dead man and accepted it with disgusted resignation.
@The Most Illusive Man "God only knows what would have happened to the surrounding countries, had the Soviets got a foot-hold in Congo." Idk maybe Lumumba wouldn't have been murdered and Mobutu (whom the United States supported) wouldn't have risen to power, thus avoiding countless deaths Choosing to align yourself with the Soviet Union or requesting its assistance (as Nasser or Nehru once did) didn't mean you'd become its puppets, even less convert to marxism-leninism North Korea wasn't exactly a Soviet puppet either, its a bit more complicated than that, the USSR never enjoyed the same degree of influence in NK that they did over the GDR for instance, 'cept maybe in the late 40s - early 50s "More people died at Stalin's hands than all the tragedy that the Congo has endured." Could be, although we can't know for sure (it's widely estimated that around 10 million Congolese people died during the period of the Free State alone, could be more, could be less - about half of the population, which is more than Stalin ever caused proportionally) But that's not really the subject here Also gulags were no longer a thing in the 60s Not to defend the Soviet Union or anything but please, just don't insult the dead
@The Most Illusive Man LeMumba didn't care where the food and military aid came from. He was very A-political in regards to U.S./Soviet cold war, perhaps even naive on the topic. He knew that his people needed help and didn't realize that accepting food, medicine, and arms from Russia would doom him by proxy.
@@Carlton_Wilson Yeah naive'd be an understatement, with all due respect to the guy Lumumba had little to no experience in politics, he was in way over his head
@@Carlton_Wilson In Cuba, Castro himself was also largely a-political. The Bourgeois will never just let you walk away was what the Soviets warned him. Given that he had survived the most CIA assassination attempts I think they were proven right. Meanwhile just look at countries like Guatemala, Honduras, Bolivia, El Salvador at the time. All US backed dictatorships and in the case of Guatemala there were decades of genocide against the Indigenous Maya population. In Nicaragua the Sandinistas win the civil war and end the US backed dictatorship of Somoza only for the US to immediately smuggle drugs and guns in order to prop up the Contras and plunge the country into another civil war. The Socialists in Indonesia tried to be neutral and didn't accept any Soviet or Chinese help. Which didn't matter because the US also sponsored the Jakarta killings where the Indonesian government killed over 1 million "suspected" Communists. Basically, during the time of the Cold War you couldn't just be a a-political revolutionary movement. It suddenly makes sense why the Castro and Ho Chi Minh took foreign help when thats considered.
I feel like we need a hulu/netflix style subscriber system for all the different channels of Simon. Call it big brain network or the fact boi entertainment network. I love the fact simon is literally 1990s cable tv with all his channels
As someone who is Belgian with a father who is half Congolese (Congolese grandfather) and also has Belgian ancestors (grandmother) who directly profited from exploiting the Bantu people it's always interesting to hear/ read anything about it.
Being from Belgium myself, I’m glad we don’t really beat around the bush, from an early age we learn(ed) about the atrocities our country committed over there. Not sure if that’s still the case nowadays.
Another great documentary, but I was a bit surprised that the battle of Kolwezi was not mentioned, which happened in 1978, when FLNC Rebels took European and Congolese hostages in the mining town Kolwezi, and the French and Belgians had to rescue them (Operation Leopard)
Mr. Whistler, this video reminds me of one you made on the Herrero/Nama genocide in Mozambique. These are real pieces. I commend your courage and your research.
With Congo recently joining the East African community, it'd be interesting to see Simon talk about the proposed East African Federation as a mega project or something in a future video.
I remember ranting last year when Harry and Meghan's Oprah interview dropped. It made headlines worldwide, but the child soldiers and children mining cobalt in the DRC don't enter anyone's mind. People's priorities are super screwed up. Yes, it's horrible what goes on there, but that's exactly why we must look, why we should be talking about it. Keeping it in the shadows just allows it to continue. And maybe a few Simon Whistler addicts can't do much about it, but at the very least, this video will get people thinking. So, long story short, thanks for shining a light on something that really matters.
Thanks Simon I was born in DRC and I lived there for 11 years it's just unspeakable and ppl live in a very bad life style DRC is still explored by the developed countries and companies like Apple and countries like USA,China and France actually slavery is still in DRC I call for ppl to stop this unspeakable inhuman actions in the eastern part of the country every person who uses iPhones or apple products be aware someone's life was traded for that device and I hope one day this rich country will be another the best in the world and everyone who lost their lives will be remembered and honored sooner or later thanks again Simon
I was hoping you were going to mention how that ongoing mess in the DRC is also causing chaos with conservation efforts. A couple years ago an okapi conservation station was completely slaughtered including the animals in their care because of the warring factions in the area.
And then what. 90% of the world wouldn't give a damn bexause they got their own issues to deal with and the issues of another 2 dozen poor and war torn countries.
A terrible, sombre story beautifully told and presented. I'm so glad I found Simon's channels, they've taught me a lot about the depths humanity will sink to.
I remember as a kid that the Congo was basically synonymous the jungle. That and some older books in the library referred to it as the Belgian Congo. It was always cool to find an old map that still called it that.
I had a DNA match with a woman in Congo. She carried a typical mtDNA haplogroup of that region. It looked like we were half-4th or 5th cousins. Which got me thinking about a certain Belgian family in my ancestry. So, I started looking at half-brothers to my own immigrant ancestor (to the US). It turns out that down the line of one half brother, his son I believe, was an engineer renowned for his work at building railroads in Japan and the Congo. I tried to gently broach our DNA match with her telling her in my 1st short note that I lived in the Midwestern US. But even that must have struck a nerve over her ancestry, because she quickly privatized all her information.
for anyone interested, a great book about the congo is "all things must fight to survive." It touches on the colonial history but mainly focuses on the modern conflict that went on there.
It gets even worse when you take the history of the Kingdom of Kongo before King Leopold II came along into account too. It’s even more tragic. The Congolese were being enslaved and exploited in a similar way by their native king for hundreds of years before the Europeans before, then during colonization, and then were expected to “democratize” on their own afterward. How the heck are you supposed to do that with a history like that? It’s like asking a dog who was beaten since birth to suddenly be well-behaved once it became an adult. Impossible without a lot of intervention and compassion, which the international community didn’t give them.
I mean, that even exists outside of humans in a way. All animals have to eat, and something has to die for them to eat. That's kind of just the way it goes.
@@russellfitzpatrick503 I can more or less avoid buying blood diamonds but which part of an ingot, possibly from several sources, do I reject or accept. Stuff that just disappears into supply chains. I might not wear gold but it's in electronics and while I might not buy those devices myself places like hospitals do on my behalf.
I live in East Africa. In a country that is a former Belgian colony that borders the DRC. My country benefits from the instability of the DRC.... i know the history and can't imagine how hard it must be for DRC people
Thank you for shining a light on this. So important and so under discussed. Tim Butchers Blood River is a great book for those interested in modern and colonial Congolese history.
This channel deserves to be more popular, so please, take the greatest honor that I can bestow - a like and a comment to give it a boost in the algorithm
Look up the UK channel 4 documentary from 2019, Extreme Tribes. It follows one of the last Pygmy tribes in the DRC. The anthropologist is shocked when the Pygmies tell her that local Bantus see them as slaves and always have done. Shocked, she asks the local Bantus and confirm they see the Pygmies as slaves. That's race based slavery in the 21st century in Africa.
This must be the most heartbreaking video Ive seen by Simon across his many channels. I dont know what is worse, the tragedies themselves or the Wests desensitization towards the region and its plights. We want to colonize space, but we cant even help our own on this planet.
Exactly why I'm 100% against colonizing space. We are a despicable species and don't deserve it. Plus you know it'll only be the filthy rich who will get to go. It's like they'll get to leave Earth without consequences. I hope the Mars mission fails.
Yes Leopold ii of Belgium 🇧🇪 was a tyrant who mercilessly ruled over the Congolese and treated them by far the worst over rubber wasn't it? Such a dark past 😒 Such chaos in this country 🇨🇩 Pity
He didn't really have anything to do with it actually. He got that land, and leased it to companies who mercilessly exploited the local people. He was thousands of kilometers away in a pre internet and television era. It's like blaming the landlord because the renter turns out to be a serial killer.
@@BamBamGT1 nonetheless he had the power and position to understand what was really going on and he never did Both to cover his tracks of abuse and maintain his empire and prestige amongst major powers of Europe
According to Hochschild's King Leopold's Ghost, the thing with the hand chopping was even worse: Force Publique members were required to account for each bullet they fired, which must be used against "rebellious" Congolese. So, when they used their weapons for any other reason, like defending themselves against predators, they had to chop someone's hand in order to justify the bullets spent.
the famous and horrific old photo of the father sitting looking at his kids feet and hands cut off to force him to work and punish is burnt into my mind forever
Another good one, loving this channel. Thanks for providing us with all that big brain content plenty of stuff to watch while I wait for the next episode of Blaze.
I used to live in tenke fungarume in the katanga province in 2010 and at Lubumbashi airport I got to meet mr president….. well actually the army made us all face away from him when he was inspecting the airport. Absolutely nuts what happens when power goes to your head. And the country has no trees and no animals I didn’t even see birds for the 4 years I lived there. So sad.
If you don’t know, the photo at 6:13 is of Nsala, the hand and foot is from his five year old daughter who has been murdered because he didn’t meet the quota. Without the context the photo doesn’t really hit the same. It’s horrific.
This was Belgium telling the other colonial powers, 'Oh ya I'll get my own colonies, with blackjack and hookers', but you replace blackjack and hookers with death and suffering
Ow no, hookers were part of the deal. It's estimated that Leopold II has about 1000 bastards there. He spend more time in the Congo then in Belgium. It's also rumored that he wasn't afraid to chop of the hands and feet underperforming slaves himself. Darkest page of the history of my country.
We do learn about it at school. And yes, back in the day it was more on side note, but now ppl are actively moving to have his name removed from the public eye. His statues and bustes are being removed, streets, squares, tunnels renamed. Also not a good thing, because then you're hiding your history.
@@jempyke I'm glad to hear that is the case, last I had heard was a bit ago, at least 10 years so I'm out of date, I'm glad your going though and changing things, though like with us and the civil war statues, names, towns and counties named after it, you have to remember learning about the past is not in the monuments to those who did the bad things but in telling the truth of what went on, no mater how painful it is to know about the past. And to remember that now is the time to help those hurt by the actions of those in our past. In many cases here in the US and elsewhere we have to truly reach out and help.
@@jempyke It is a good thing lol. Statues and having streets named after you are celebrations. This man shouldn’t be celebrated. Hitler doesn’t have statues or streets named after him in Germany. He should be taught thoroughly in schools and put in museums for educational purposes only. It’s strange that you think his statues being taken down and streets being renamed is a bad thing😂. I’m not even surprised by stuff like that coming from white Europeans anymore though.
Something worth considering: Cobalt ends up in our mobile devices, and we 'could' make a choice which brand we buy. But the one brand that cared about where their cobalt came from was Nokia, and that's not exactly an option anymore... Apple doesn't care, and Samsung is even worse if rumours are true. corporations most often try to get the lowest price and don't care if child miners are forced to mine in a civil war territory without regard for their health or safety.
I had the opportunity to run security out there, really wish I would have gotten to go... I know it would have sucked and there's always the risk for disease/dismemberment but it's such a beautiful country. Would have loved to see it, especially at night. Afghanistan was gorgeous at night, in those moments of relative peace, in between attacks.
I'm conflicted! This channel is great and I like Simon at his most serious, but we haven't gotten any new BB lately and I blame this seriousness blocking out the patent pending "magic spoon add crazy Simon".
@@FluffyInsanity I don't check Twitter anymore, but I knew they were expecting. It's obvious BB is the channel that takes up the most time, so I guess I'll have to be patient.
@@FluffyInsanity ah I see that was in the replies. I missed it. 2 vacations and a new baby Guess that's why Danny and Sam escaped. The wife must've gone into labor and Simon rushed to the hospital and forgot to lock up
Mate, I really want to watch this one but I just struggled through Adam Hochschilds 'The Ghost of leopold II'. I felt is was my civic duty as a Belgian man but I need a break now. This channel is something else Whistle, my boy. Quality content as always but fuck me, does it weight on the mind...
No one Talks about the Congolese Republic which was unser frech Rule during That time But i guess the French could and can do whatever they like no matter how cruel they were
@@cherrydragon3120 Or I need new shoes vs I have no feet to put shoes on. 2020 was kinda funny, everyone bitching about lockdowns and tp shortages when in 3rd world shitholes disease outbreaks that kill 5% of the population are an annual event more or less and have been for centuries so no one that lives there pays much attention to it anymore.
Simon makes horrific historical events engaging for everyone and brings light to events that should never be forgotten. All of his channels are doing a solid public service and I commend them!
I know, right? I keep coming back to his videos like I've always done with videos on history's worst, like the Nazis; they are so compelling that you want to learn more so that you can maybe prevent these things from happening again.
Even Business Blaze!? Seriously though, you’re right. Simon needs to put all his videos on one channel so we can find them. I can’t keep track.
I love Simon's videos on any channel as an encyclopedia of knowledge. My boss let's us play "podcasts/documentaries" at work...she HATES Simon 😅😅😅 she's also a boomer so... #AngryAboutFactsAndReality
@@teacuptoe2143 Hey! I'm a boomer. I love Simon!!
I love all simons channels, however I think it would be good if all his channels where in one go to lace, where you can select at your pleasure what channel you want to view
I love the honesty of Simon's delivery. If you were looking for a silver lining you will have to paint one yourself. I have seen the surgery ship visit the DRC and its so sad to see the people suffering from preventable and treatable illness/disease. Can only hope next 150 years are better than the last 150 years.
Well there's your silver lining if you like cynicism: It's gonna be pretty tough for the next 150 to match or outdo the last 150 years in suckage. You'd be trying hard to make it happen and at that point, I envy your competitiveness but question your morals ;)
@@YeeSoest Obviously you just didn't understand the post.
@@shellshell942 huh?
Why?
@UCgfZ--uyRaK80qU3rTJl8Pg For starters clearly my name is female. My original post was a genuine heartfelt one of well wishes for the DRC, I was not being cynical or sarcastic in anyway. If you read the post in full that is obvious. Why you are the ONLY person to read it and not understand my genuine well wishes for the future of the country and read it as a nasty remark I do not know.
@Brad Patton I can't believe there's someone defending the brutal colonization of the Congo
I have a great deal of respect for the tone of this video. Monsignor Whislter doors a superb job of portraying the gravity of the situation.
This seems like it should be the biggest ongoing humanitarian crisis of all time. Amazing that it never gets more than an occasional blurb buried under "more important issues". Just mind blowing and tragic.
It’s really sad. A country that should have a high standard of living available to it has just been screwed over so much by outside forces for their own gain.
The developed world doesn't really care about any tragedy that goes on for more than a few months so long as its not directly affected. The situations in the Congo got boring a very long time ago, so as long as the coltan, spodumene, gold, and other minerals necessary for the functioning of modern, high-tech societies keeps flowing and electronics companies keep making massive profits, no one cares.
Ideology helps cover things up
The powers that be are making way too much money keeping things as they are. Like it or not, very powerful corporations and families do control the world. If there's enough profit in something.. They'll distract people away from it.. Works every time..
@The Most Illusive Man lmao strawman much?
Simon's videos are always consistently excellent. His wilder channels with ad-libbings are always hilarious -- but even the more sober channels offer serious and thorough explanations into topics with excellent writing, with the crucial difference being Simon's credible and capable delivery. Always welcome fresh videos off the all the Whistler channels! 👍
Yes. _The Siege of Jadotville_ is incredibly well-done. Watched it a few times, highly recommended.
Indeed!! Very good film indeed.
Even more impressive is Africa Addio, a documentary which has footage of the mercenaries who came in after.
I can't be the only one who notices and appreciates the small changes simon incorporates into his channels. Sure it's the same set but the dressings are so subtle but so impactful. The way megaprojects color correction makes it look like he's sitting next to a giant window in a high rise. The intimate Spacing of biographics, as though were talking about a familiar acquaintance. The distance and departure of this channel giving each video a quiet despair at the darkness in the world. Just world class framing that makes each channel unique, despite the unified focus on a fascinating world.
Simon: "Slavery is a hideous stain on history"
Danny locked up in the basement: "..."
Danny is an indentured servant
@@TheRatsintheWalls are oompa loompas really servile? It seems more like Wonka is their pet
@@cripplious I can ask mine if you like. He seems pretty servile. But that might just be because he's a little orange bitch, I'm not sure if his whole race is like that.
@@markzuckergecko621 I think individually they are pretty docile, but in groups can be sadistic, singing and dancing every time there's a workplace incident.
History?
Slavery is as old as man, which is to say Africa.
Africa has a slavery problem, it exported this problem to the world.
The rest of the world has moved on and yet Africa, the whole continent, has more slaves 5han ever.
Africa got richer from colonial slavery than Europe, true story.
Corrupt tribal bullshit keeps them wallowing in it.
It's so sad.
I love that you use your multifaceted platform to bring awareness to subjects you recognize as being legitimately important to cover. It's so much better than the way many creators just try too hard all the time to make content based on keywords-this-and-trending-that. Please always stick to your integrity and your passions. Your humor and general likeability are great, yeah -- but your sense of humanity, and your ability to discuss complex topics with objectivity and nuance, are what really make you special and important to us all. 💚
Simon, thank you so much for making these videos and bringing attention to these tragedies. Such a horrific, sad mess. To think of all the people; entire generations, having lived and continue to live through a miserable, sad existence paints such a bleak portrait of humanity 😔 The DRC and North Korea are really sad places where the horrendous conditions that the population must endure have gone largely unopposed by the rest of the world.
I love how he opens our eyes and doesn't pull any punches
Love the channel, and this video is a particularly good one. I remember hearing about the struggles of the Congo in my middle school years. It's so sad that the violence and exploitation have continued this whole time. Thank you for covering this important topic.
I met the kid of one of mombutu's generals while working at a rural Walmart on the east coast. It was VERY weird to talk with her as her dad died when she was very young and she has a very glowing opinion of him. She was a really sweet lady 🤷
P.M. LeMumba was a good man. His ascension was the one shining moment when it appeared that the country might have a chance. Then the U.S./Soviet Cold War destabilized The Congo Republic. Lemumba made the mistake of accepting Soviet assistance and America funded his opposition as a consequence. Brave man. The film of him in the hands of his captors is chilling. He knew he was a dead man and accepted it with disgusted resignation.
He didn't have any other choice really, the Soviets were the only ones who were willing to help
@The Most Illusive Man
"God only knows what would have happened to the surrounding countries, had the Soviets got a foot-hold in Congo."
Idk maybe Lumumba wouldn't have been murdered and Mobutu (whom the United States supported) wouldn't have risen to power, thus avoiding countless deaths
Choosing to align yourself with the Soviet Union or requesting its assistance (as Nasser or Nehru once did) didn't mean you'd become its puppets, even less convert to marxism-leninism
North Korea wasn't exactly a Soviet puppet either, its a bit more complicated than that, the USSR never enjoyed the same degree of influence in NK that they did over the GDR for instance, 'cept maybe in the late 40s - early 50s
"More people died at Stalin's hands than all the tragedy that the Congo has endured." Could be, although we can't know for sure (it's widely estimated that around 10 million Congolese people died during the period of the Free State alone, could be more, could be less - about half of the population, which is more than Stalin ever caused proportionally)
But that's not really the subject here
Also gulags were no longer a thing in the 60s
Not to defend the Soviet Union or anything but please, just don't insult the dead
@The Most Illusive Man LeMumba didn't care where the food and military aid came from. He was very A-political in regards to U.S./Soviet cold war, perhaps even naive on the topic. He knew that his people needed help and didn't realize that accepting food, medicine, and arms from Russia would doom him by proxy.
@@Carlton_Wilson Yeah naive'd be an understatement, with all due respect to the guy Lumumba had little to no experience in politics, he was in way over his head
@@Carlton_Wilson In Cuba, Castro himself was also largely a-political. The Bourgeois will never just let you walk away was what the Soviets warned him. Given that he had survived the most CIA assassination attempts I think they were proven right. Meanwhile just look at countries like Guatemala, Honduras, Bolivia, El Salvador at the time. All US backed dictatorships and in the case of Guatemala there were decades of genocide against the Indigenous Maya population. In Nicaragua the Sandinistas win the civil war and end the US backed dictatorship of Somoza only for the US to immediately smuggle drugs and guns in order to prop up the Contras and plunge the country into another civil war.
The Socialists in Indonesia tried to be neutral and didn't accept any Soviet or Chinese help. Which didn't matter because the US also sponsored the Jakarta killings where the Indonesian government killed over 1 million "suspected" Communists.
Basically, during the time of the Cold War you couldn't just be a a-political revolutionary movement. It suddenly makes sense why the Castro and Ho Chi Minh took foreign help when thats considered.
1:05 - Chapter 1 - The democratic republic of congo
2:25 - Chapter 2 - Early history
2:55 - Chapter 3 - Congo free state
6:55 - Chapter 4 - Belgium congo
8:05 - Chapter 5 - Independence
10:30 - Chapter 6 - A dictator emerges
13:20 - Chapter 7 - War
15:45 - Chapter 8 - Money
16:55 - Chapter 9 - Modern day
- Chapter 10 -
I feel like we need a hulu/netflix style subscriber system for all the different channels of Simon. Call it big brain network or the fact boi entertainment network. I love the fact simon is literally 1990s cable tv with all his channels
As someone who is Belgian with a father who is half Congolese (Congolese grandfather) and also has Belgian ancestors (grandmother) who directly profited from exploiting the Bantu people it's always interesting to hear/ read anything about it.
Being from Belgium myself, I’m glad we don’t really beat around the bush, from an early age we learn(ed) about the atrocities our country committed over there. Not sure if that’s still the case nowadays.
My parents are Belgian and it's so sad to hear of these atrocities.
What has Belgium done to rectify it?
Nothing. Which is based. Ns dont deserve nothing @@michaelpinson912
JACK NOTHING
Another great documentary, but I was a bit surprised that the battle of Kolwezi was not mentioned, which happened in 1978, when FLNC Rebels took European and Congolese hostages in the mining town Kolwezi, and the French and Belgians had to rescue them (Operation Leopard)
Mr. Whistler, this video reminds me of one you made on the Herrero/Nama genocide in Mozambique. These are real pieces. I commend your courage and your research.
The Herero Nama genocide was in Namibia.
Would be interesting to see a more in depth video on this, for sure.
@@Gis39 ua-cam.com/video/9gOOXzGtd2w/v-deo.html here's a link. It is chilling. Brace yourself.
@@Gis39 germany was also in Tanzania
Link please.
@@NHarmonik www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herero_and_Namaqua_genocide&ved=2ahUKEwjp08Tuz-H3AhWDKkQIHVgwBjAQFnoECC8QAQ&usg=AOvVaw1Tl65jyvHnkTInKAA9cVcs
www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3D5A5T02rmwvc&ved=2ahUKEwjp08Tuz-H3AhWDKkQIHVgwBjAQwqsBegQIRxAB&usg=AOvVaw0F1KrWlvFO0DHioGLoc2Ru
Enjoy.
Thank you Simon. Informative and engaging as always.
That was informatively dark. Appreciate the honesty.
Can you do one on the Armenian Genocide (1915-1923)?
Good news: ua-cam.com/video/aBTIb6qxJFk/v-deo.html
90 percent of comments "Simon this Simon that" whilst 10 percent actually comment on the horrific content described!
With Congo recently joining the East African community, it'd be interesting to see Simon talk about the proposed East African Federation as a mega project or something in a future video.
simon at it again diversifying himself across the algorithm
Even when I am well familiar with a topic you present, Simon, I find your presentations fascinating. Keep up the good work dear Sir!
one of the books I miss most, from my old library, is "The Dark Continent".
it was a vast reading experience..from the 1870s.
Okay, NOW I'm subbed to all your channels.
For sure this time
I remember ranting last year when Harry and Meghan's Oprah interview dropped. It made headlines worldwide, but the child soldiers and children mining cobalt in the DRC don't enter anyone's mind. People's priorities are super screwed up. Yes, it's horrible what goes on there, but that's exactly why we must look, why we should be talking about it. Keeping it in the shadows just allows it to continue. And maybe a few Simon Whistler addicts can't do much about it, but at the very least, this video will get people thinking.
So, long story short, thanks for shining a light on something that really matters.
Thanks Simon I was born in DRC and I lived there for 11 years it's just unspeakable and ppl live in a very bad life style DRC is still explored by the developed countries and companies like Apple and countries like USA,China and France actually slavery is still in DRC I call for ppl to stop this unspeakable inhuman actions in the eastern part of the country every person who uses iPhones or apple products be aware someone's life was traded for that device and I hope one day this rich country will be another the best in the world and everyone who lost their lives will be remembered and honored sooner or later thanks again Simon
That was a brilliant video, extremely well put together! Absolutely loved it.
I was hoping you were going to mention how that ongoing mess in the DRC is also causing chaos with conservation efforts. A couple years ago an okapi conservation station was completely slaughtered including the animals in their care because of the warring factions in the area.
Thank you for your Channel update 🙏God bless you
Thank you for this one. I hope this video gets recognized by the masses…
I never knew the Congo had such a horrific history. This country's history needs to be much wider broadcast.
And then what. 90% of the world wouldn't give a damn bexause they got their own issues to deal with and the issues of another 2 dozen poor and war torn countries.
Tribalism is killing the Congo now.
Have fun dying out
Absolutely love this new channel Simon
It’s difficult story I’m glad you’ve talked about it
Incredibly depressing and saddening. Gives a whole new meaning to the words "count your blessings." 😥
A terrible, sombre story beautifully told and presented. I'm so glad I found Simon's channels, they've taught me a lot about the depths humanity will sink to.
I remember as a kid that the Congo was basically synonymous the jungle. That and some older books in the library referred to it as the Belgian Congo. It was always cool to find an old map that still called it that.
I had a DNA match with a woman in Congo. She carried a typical mtDNA haplogroup of that region. It looked like we were half-4th or 5th cousins. Which got me thinking about a certain Belgian family in my ancestry. So, I started looking at half-brothers to my own immigrant ancestor (to the US). It turns out that down the line of one half brother, his son I believe, was an engineer renowned for his work at building railroads in Japan and the Congo. I tried to gently broach our DNA match with her telling her in my 1st short note that I lived in the Midwestern US. But even that must have struck a nerve over her ancestry, because she quickly privatized all her information.
Don't give up. Making friends with neighbors is tentative. A stranger with ties from far away, can be scary.
😮
That was a tough one... good reporting.
Greetings from Australia
Thank you for sharing this
My prayers go out to the victims. I wish the DR Congo can find peace and everything gets better there.
for anyone interested, a great book about the congo is "all things must fight to survive." It touches on the colonial history but mainly focuses on the modern conflict that went on there.
Fantastic and very educational!
Much appreciated, Dear Simon. Loving the 'Into the Shadows' series. Always look in the mirror before approaching another.
2:30 Wikipedia says the Ishango Bone dates to 20K years ago, not 200K. You say 20K, but the screen shows 200K.
I saw that. What is correct? @simon
It gets even worse when you take the history of the Kingdom of Kongo before King Leopold II came along into account too. It’s even more tragic. The Congolese were being enslaved and exploited in a similar way by their native king for hundreds of years before the Europeans before, then during colonization, and then were expected to “democratize” on their own afterward. How the heck are you supposed to do that with a history like that? It’s like asking a dog who was beaten since birth to suddenly be well-behaved once it became an adult. Impossible without a lot of intervention and compassion, which the international community didn’t give them.
This made me realise just how hard it is to be an "ethical consumer". Maybe it never was possible.
I mean, that even exists outside of humans in a way. All animals have to eat, and something has to die for them to eat. That's kind of just the way it goes.
as ever these days, it's down to how you define it
@@russellfitzpatrick503 I can more or less avoid buying blood diamonds but which part of an ingot, possibly from several sources, do I reject or accept. Stuff that just disappears into supply chains. I might not wear gold but it's in electronics and while I might not buy those devices myself places like hospitals do on my behalf.
It's extremely difficult to be an ethical consumer..
There is no ethical consumption under capitalism.
There is no ethical advancement under communism.
I live in East Africa. In a country that is a former Belgian colony that borders the DRC. My country benefits from the instability of the DRC.... i know the history and can't imagine how hard it must be for DRC people
Fantastic new chanel Simon. And a special thank you for mentioning the Irish involvement
When you're listing things that are in the Congo don't forget Adamantium, Mythrol, Unobtainium, and Vibranium
Amazing insight. Thanks for educating us.
Stay safe
Family first
Thank you for shining a light on this. So important and so under discussed. Tim Butchers Blood River is a great book for those interested in modern and colonial Congolese history.
Somehow I've just noticed this channel's title. Into the Shadows. Very nice, Simon.
This is heartbreaking. We genuinely value stones more than the lives of these people...
Great video as always Simon, one future video suggestion: The Rwandan Genocide.
Thank you for reminding us of this horror story needs to be told
This channel deserves to be more popular, so please, take the greatest honor that I can bestow - a like and a comment to give it a boost in the algorithm
Look up the UK channel 4 documentary from 2019, Extreme Tribes. It follows one of the last Pygmy tribes in the DRC. The anthropologist is shocked when the Pygmies tell her that local Bantus see them as slaves and always have done. Shocked, she asks the local Bantus and confirm they see the Pygmies as slaves.
That's race based slavery in the 21st century in Africa.
This must be the most heartbreaking video Ive seen by Simon across his many channels. I dont know what is worse, the tragedies themselves or the Wests desensitization towards the region and its plights. We want to colonize space, but we cant even help our own on this planet.
Exactly why I'm 100% against colonizing space. We are a despicable species and don't deserve it. Plus you know it'll only be the filthy rich who will get to go. It's like they'll get to leave Earth without consequences. I hope the Mars mission fails.
@@lazyhippie6139 me and you both.
Yes Leopold ii of Belgium 🇧🇪 was a tyrant who mercilessly ruled over the Congolese and treated them by far the worst over rubber wasn't it?
Such a dark past 😒
Such chaos in this country 🇨🇩
Pity
He didn't really have anything to do with it actually. He got that land, and leased it to companies who mercilessly exploited the local people. He was thousands of kilometers away in a pre internet and television era. It's like blaming the landlord because the renter turns out to be a serial killer.
@@BamBamGT1 nonetheless he had the power and position to understand what was really going on and he never did
Both to cover his tracks of abuse and maintain his empire and prestige amongst major powers of Europe
According to Hochschild's King Leopold's Ghost, the thing with the hand chopping was even worse: Force Publique members were required to account for each bullet they fired, which must be used against "rebellious" Congolese. So, when they used their weapons for any other reason, like defending themselves against predators, they had to chop someone's hand in order to justify the bullets spent.
visuals are fire Simone
the famous and horrific old photo of the father sitting looking at his kids feet and hands cut off to force him to work and punish is burnt into my mind forever
I love this channel so much
Really liking your new channel.
Good God, this video left my ears ringing and my head spinning.
Another good one, loving this channel. Thanks for providing us with all that big brain content plenty of stuff to watch while I wait for the next episode of Blaze.
Mark Twain wrote a piece satirizing the “humanitarian” called King Leopold’s Soliloquy.
It's well worth the read, even nowadays.
Maybe even more worth reading.
I used to live in tenke fungarume in the katanga province in 2010 and at Lubumbashi airport I got to meet mr president….. well actually the army made us all face away from him when he was inspecting the airport. Absolutely nuts what happens when power goes to your head. And the country has no trees and no animals I didn’t even see birds for the 4 years I lived there. So sad.
If you don’t know, the photo at 6:13 is of Nsala, the hand and foot is from his five year old daughter who has been murdered because he didn’t meet the quota. Without the context the photo doesn’t really hit the same. It’s horrific.
I just finished reading "How Beautiful we Were" by iImbolo Mbue. Might as well be set in the DRC, sounds so shockingly similar.
This was Belgium telling the other colonial powers, 'Oh ya I'll get my own colonies, with blackjack and hookers', but you replace blackjack and hookers with death and suffering
Bender Belgium Rodriguez
Ow no, hookers were part of the deal. It's estimated that Leopold II has about 1000 bastards there. He spend more time in the Congo then in Belgium. It's also rumored that he wasn't afraid to chop of the hands and feet underperforming slaves himself. Darkest page of the history of my country.
And yet the tribalism of today makes Leopold look tame.
Thank you
Simon's pronunciation of the Swedish name Dag Hammarskjöld is legendary. Man, he really slaughtered it. 9.55 into the video.
what is also sad is that the people of Belgium are not taught about this, to them Leopold was a great king and leader.
We do learn about it at school. And yes, back in the day it was more on side note, but now ppl are actively moving to have his name removed from the public eye. His statues and bustes are being removed, streets, squares, tunnels renamed. Also not a good thing, because then you're hiding your history.
@@jempyke I'm glad to hear that is the case, last I had heard was a bit ago, at least 10 years so I'm out of date, I'm glad your going though and changing things, though like with us and the civil war statues, names, towns and counties named after it, you have to remember learning about the past is not in the monuments to those who did the bad things but in telling the truth of what went on, no mater how painful it is to know about the past. And to remember that now is the time to help those hurt by the actions of those in our past. In many cases here in the US and elsewhere we have to truly reach out and help.
@@jempyke It is a good thing lol. Statues and having streets named after you are celebrations. This man shouldn’t be celebrated. Hitler doesn’t have statues or streets named after him in Germany. He should be taught thoroughly in schools and put in museums for educational purposes only. It’s strange that you think his statues being taken down and streets being renamed is a bad thing😂. I’m not even surprised by stuff like that coming from white Europeans anymore though.
Something worth considering: Cobalt ends up in our mobile devices, and we 'could' make a choice which brand we buy. But the one brand that cared about where their cobalt came from was Nokia, and that's not exactly an option anymore... Apple doesn't care, and Samsung is even worse if rumours are true. corporations most often try to get the lowest price and don't care if child miners are forced to mine in a civil war territory without regard for their health or safety.
Something I should look into, thank you.
Way to keep it light on a Monday, Whistler.
Why,because it's the start of the work week for you?
Irony; I work on the weekends, today is my "Friday"
@@Shinzon23 How is that ironic?
Good job, Simon
I had the opportunity to run security out there, really wish I would have gotten to go... I know it would have sucked and there's always the risk for disease/dismemberment but it's such a beautiful country. Would have loved to see it, especially at night. Afghanistan was gorgeous at night, in those moments of relative peace, in between attacks.
This story is so dark, even a black hole is amazed at how little light there is.
Human history is an unending tragedy, someone is always fighting somewhere for something and its all for nothing. 🤷♂️
Loving the new channel
How do you find the time to knock out content for all of your channels?
I admire your work ethic , fact boi
🔪🖤🔪
@@TheRatsintheWalls and cocaine... Can't forget the cocaine
I'm conflicted! This channel is great and I like Simon at his most serious, but we haven't gotten any new BB lately and I blame this seriousness blocking out the patent pending "magic spoon add crazy Simon".
Danny was on vacation. Simon sent him to Columbia to bring back some fuel for BB 😉. Source Danny Salter himself, in the Facebook group.
Didn't he say on Twitter that his baby was born as well? He's has his hands full... fullER than usual. 😂
@@FluffyInsanity I don't check Twitter anymore, but I knew they were expecting. It's obvious BB is the channel that takes up the most time, so I guess I'll have to be patient.
@@FluffyInsanity ah I see that was in the replies. I missed it. 2 vacations and a new baby
Guess that's why Danny and Sam escaped. The wife must've gone into labor and Simon rushed to the hospital and forgot to lock up
Mate, I really want to watch this one but I just struggled through Adam Hochschilds 'The Ghost of leopold II'. I felt is was my civic duty as a Belgian man but I need a break now. This channel is something else Whistle, my boy. Quality content as always but fuck me, does it weight on the mind...
Thank you please do Rwanda
10:33 "A strongman who promises to make everything better." -- the more things change...
So being born in the Congo over the last 2 centuries is essentially the equivalent of being spawncamped by every other team on the server.
The case of The people vs Larry Flynt. I think it would be best on either Decoding the Unknown, Brain Blaze, or Into the Shadows.
No one Talks about the Congolese Republic which was unser frech Rule during That time
But i guess the French could and can do whatever they like no matter how cruel they were
I really do enjoy all of Simmons chanles history is important good or bad it's what keeps us from making the same mistakes facts are facts
It's not pleasant viewing but it's an undertold . That certainly discribes this channel. I love it.
a horror story admirably told that needs to be better known
This is why "First World Problems" is an internet meme.
1st world problem: i dropped my burger.
3rd world problem: i got no burger
@@cherrydragon3120 Or I need new shoes vs I have no feet to put shoes on. 2020 was kinda funny, everyone bitching about lockdowns and tp shortages when in 3rd world shitholes disease outbreaks that kill 5% of the population are an annual event more or less and have been for centuries so no one that lives there pays much attention to it anymore.
Great video..
Can you guys make a video about the humaniatrian situation in Northkorea including the famime of the 2000s?
Man's inhumanity to Man knows no bounds.
Mobutu Sese Seko should be the subject of a vid on Biographics.