Length: 55 minutes

Objectives: Students will be able to

- grasp and apply the concept of assimilation by analyzing example situations from the
colonization of Africa after the Berlin Conference
- understand the positive and negative ways in which assimilation is viewed by discussing
cartoons representative of assimilation

Overview:
- Challenge (5-7 minutes)
- Picture Analysis (20-25 minutes)
- “You Be The Judge” Big Debate Game (20-25 minutes)

Challenge question:
How would you respond to someone that said they did not value or respect your culture? (SEE cartoon)
What is assimilation?

Picture Analysis:
-Review Pictures/ Ask questions/ Discuss positive and negative aspects/ Assimilation traits
1st picture: melting pot (Positive: unite people, equal rights/ Negative: forced/ culture loss)
2nd picture: Natives (Positive: common language, culture/ negative: forced/ culture loss)
3rd picture: Racist Baseball (positive: culture adaptation/ Negative: racist, forced, stereotyped)

“You Be The Judge” Big Debate Game: YOU BE THE JUDGE, IS THIS ASSIMILATION? Yes or No?
1) AFRICA: 1877, Cecil Rhodes (English Businessman) Says, “We Britons are the first race in the
world, and the more of the world we inhabit, the better it is for the human race…it is our duty
to seize more territory, which simply means more of the best, the most human, most honorable
race the world possesses.”

2) CONGO: 1879, King Leopold of Belgium sends advisors to the Congo to gain control of new lands and
people. He gains these lands through trickery and forces Africans to complete hard labor. The Africans
collect sap from rubber trees to send back to increase King Leopold’s wealth.

3) SOUTH AFRICA: 1948, South African Whites impose new racial laws. These laws allow for 7% of the
total land to be owned by Blacks. They outlaw marriage between different races. They categorized
everyone into one race that defined their rights.

4) ETHIOPIA: 1889, Menelik II builds up a large mass of weapons used by European nations. He utilizes
these foreign weapons to maintain control of Ethiopia and fight the Italians. Ethiopia keeps it lands
through the use of European military tactics.

5) NIGERIA: 1914, England claims Nigeria as their colony. In order to control the 250 different ethnic
groups living there, they allowed local rulers to stay in power. However, these rulers were under the
control of English desires and rules.
 Assimilation

YOUR RESPONSE:

ASSIMILATION DEFINITION:

Your Response:

Characteristics:

Your Response:

Characteristics:
Your Response:

Characteristics:

Africa:

The Congo:

South Africa:

Ethiopia:

Nigeria: