Showing results for "Rubber" in History

Empire of Rubber tells a sweeping story of capitalism, racial exploitation, and environmental devastation, as the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company transformed Liberia into America's rubber empire. Scouring remote archives, historian and filmmaker Gregg Mitman reveals a history of racial segregation and medical experimentation that reflected Jim Crow America—on African soil. As Firestone reaped fortunes, wealth and power concentrated in the hands of a few elites, fostering widespread inequalities that fed unrest, rebellions and, eventually, civil war.

Blood Rubber: How the Amazon Died tells the extraordinary story of one of the blackest episodes in Amazonian history, known as the Putumayo Affair. In 1907, Walter Hardenburg, a young American explorer and engineer, was canoeing slowly down a meandering tributary of the great river, in deepest Amazonia, in search of adventure. The realm of Captain Kurtz’s Apocalypse Now seems tame by comparison with what he found through the mist up ahead.

In this riveting account, Morel unveils the dark history of the Congo Free State, a territory privately controlled by King Leopold II. He delves into the unspeakable atrocities committed through the enslavement of the native populace, leading to a death toll that reached half of the population. Penned in the early 20th century, Morel passionately argues for Britains involvement in halting these severe human rights violations. This summary is brought to you by Elsie Selwyn.