When Language Colonizes In the landscape of African colonization, one recurring justification for conquest and domination has been the civilizing mission—carried out not just through force, but through language. From the French mission civilisatrice to the British insistence on “English education,” colonizers offered language as a “gift”—while using it as a tool of control. In…
1. Land of Mass Incarcerations and Extra-Judicial Executions Courtesy of the Prosperity Party (PP) government, Ethiopia—particularly the Oromia region—has become a land marked by mass incarcerations and extrajudicial executions. These events have become so routine that they rarely make the news anymore. Leading up to the last election, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed orchestrated a sweeping…
The premise stated in the title requires little effort to substantiate, as the evidence speaks for itself. 1. Historical Context: A Flag Rooted in Division The Ethiopian tricolor flag traces its origins to the reign of Emperor Yohannes IV (1872–1889), though it became more widely recognized during the reign of Emperor Menelik II in the…
