WHITE PEOPLE COLONISED INTELLECTUAL PROPERTYv

In this clip, TikTok user Amy Chen (@circusfaery33) succinctly responds to an ignorant comment claiming that the Global South owes Europe for the invention of mobile phones. 

Western tactics of exploitation are numerous and often deeply embedded in global systems. Among these is the concept of patents, which allows entities from the Global North to monopolise the ownership of intellectual property, including inventions and cultural symbols that originate from the Global South. Appropriating intellectual property perpetuates the myth of Western superiority, resulting in a skewed historical narrative that wrongfully credits Europeans with innovations and civilisations.

For example, Western narratives often omit that Egyptian and Eastern civilisations influenced much of Greek philosophy. Moreover, although Greeks are typically credited for the study of philosophy, some of Europe's most notable scholars, such as Plato, travelled to Egypt to receive tutelage. Furthermore, the Dogon people of Mali were aware of the Sirius star system long before modern astronomy recognised it. 

What Europe really ‘accomplished’ was to help destroy African civilisations, perpetuating the falsehood that the continent was uncivilised before colonial contact, thereby justifying colonisation.
 
Video credit: @circusfaery33 (TikTok)