Faces of colonialism: the story of an imperialist propaganda | DW Documentary

For a long time, photographer Robert Lohmeyer shaped the European view of Africa. During his travels, from 1907 to 1909, he photographed the German colonies -- in color, for the first time. In doing so, he laid the photographic foundations of racism.

The young photographer‘s trip to the German colonies of Togo, Cameroon, German Southwest Africa (now Namibia) and German East Africa (now Tanzania) was taken at the height of German imperialism. In his photographs of his travels, Robert Lohmeyer generated enthusiasm for these distant lands that Germany considered its possessions.
Making use of the most up-to-date photographic equipment at the time, Lohmeyer’s project was a meticulously planned PR campaign. Its goal? A celebration of colonialism and empire.
Lohmeyer’s resulting photography books were seen by huge numbers of people. Even today, the pictures are still in circulation. Lohmeyer's photos convey the image of a "peaceful savage" in a paradisiacal landscape. A colonial idyll. Because the images are in color, they evoke a feeling of authenticity and truthfulness. War, disease, hunger and death do not appear in Lohmeyer's pictures.
Based on unpublished written sources and photographs, the documentary follows Lohmeyer's journey. It tells the story of a chapter in the history of photography. But it also tells the story of a propaganda coup. Finally, the film explores Lohmeyer’s contribution to a new kind of racism -- in color - the effects of which can still be felt today.

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[justinanthenge]

As an African, I have been visiting other African countries very often as I feel accepted. I recently visited Namibia based on very good advertisement by a blogger. Yes Namibia is beautiful, the nature, the vastness, the food, the best steak ever. However I was saddened by what I saw. Vast tracts of land owned by Boers and Germans alike with a constitution that says that one cannot reclaim his ancestral land. If this is not colonialism what

[tipitii]

How the photographies were used was problematic but the photographies themselves are beautiful and so are the people in them.

[lolakepi]

As an african lady, I will never let slavery and colonialism define who I am. We had a life before those tragic events.

[Ratinevo]

💔💔💔 This documentary proves that it's far much better to honestly face our historic prejudices than side-step them or hide from them. The only way to heal past cruelty is to own up to such injustices and racists agendas perpetrated in history.

[dmnkwedhi]

Thank you DW for enlightening us on one of the tentacles of colonialism. As a Namibian and an African, I feel like history never really remain in the past, it has a way of repeating itself if not continuing. I mean, to this day, the faces of colonialism still exists. The use photography to show Africa's inferiority just evolved and the western media are at the forefront of showing the worst possible photograghs they can find, which does not really depict the true nature of Africa and Africans.

[MultiRingtail]

How come we are never talking
about Ottoman colonialization which lasted as long?

[jessicahijarunguru]

I love how DW Documentary is getting more interested in the Namibia - German history, next time go deeper into the lives of children of mixed race born during the German era to the local Nama and Herero women, you will be interested to know how those little babies were hidden and survived seperation from their black mothers

[jwh]

6:50 family of man (hierarchy)
8:02 farmers of different ethnic groups -> easier to control
12:14 3-colour camera, colonial expansion, ethnography
19:52 Togo
25:31 Herero and Nama genocide (1904->1908)
27:34 Kolmanskop (diamant mining)
29:28 Tanzania, Maasai people, askari
32:34 WWI, black infamy
34:47 Nazi vs colonialism
40:37 responsible ways of exhibiting colonial photos

[Nikkijs]

Referencing 17:52 it’s so bewildering that based on the “manifold experience “ they thought each race should keep to it’s own, all the while colonizing other people’s land.
Smh!

[debashistalukdar]

I truly commend the team for making this documentary with such detailed depiction of the diabolical racist history. It takes a great deal of honesty and morality for the existing generation to accept and acknowledge the cruelty done by their preceding generation onto others. This also educates the former population about the reality of colonialism, that it was not just remotely trade, but lowest of human standard. I also commend the German people for embracing their past in entirety and not cherry coating the ugly. I am from India and my country was under British colonial rule and never ever have I stumbled upon a documentary made by the British depicting the unthinkable crimes they did in the name of racist supremacy, that it was the white man's burden to civilize the savages. Irony is, they turned out to be the savages.

[paleesemendy]

It baffles me how you make a documentary without a direct dialogue with the victims

[ShlomoGoldbergStein]

Were it not for colonialism, nobody in Africa would have running water or indoor plumbing, or know how to read or write. They would not have modern dentistry, or modern medicine either.

[jasayehan]

I mean... have the Namibians gotten any compensation? If not, then a simple apology really doesn't cut it does it?

[heavencatholictalkseries]

Why isn't Dr. Kokoo Azamede referred to as such. Would it be too much for the white reporter to call a black historian "Doctor"? What has changed between then and now?

[hezorex]

Its really sad that our grandparents have to suffer all these from imperialism and colonialism. But if you look today, nothing much has changed. Africa is still controlled by the west. Our leaders are controlled by the west. Our minerals are taking away and the continent have the highest poverty ratio. Look how young African men and women dying in the sea just to reach the shores of Europe. I think we Africans are also sometimes responsible for other races to look low upon us. We don't like each other. We are so much into tribalism. We hate each other. Our politicians are the most wicked people in the planet. If we don't change from these ways, we will always be consider the lowest in the human chain. United we strong and divided we fall.

[dominiqpowell]

SOUTH AFRICA AND NAMIBIA NEEDS TO RECLAIM ALL THERE LAND. PERIOD AND YES BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY.

[bruceangel]

Can we not accept that racism and racists exist? Parsing every scrap and dissecting every statement seems like an exercise in futility and a quick way to end up in the madhouse.

[Dan-xxjq]

Germany could have ruled the world if the WWl and WWll had not crushed Germany. Today we all would be speaking German and not English around the world.

[MountH]

Africa had great kingdoms before slavery, eg the kingdoms of Benin, Ashanti, Timbuktu, Zimbabwe, Nubia, Kemet, etc

[simplelife]

It really feels like all Europeans are recovering memory of their dark ugly past...Good thing