We will not forget, nor be forgotten.

You simply cannot write certain portions of history and leave Africa and its people out of the picture. With 2009 marking the 70th anniversary of WWII, it pains me to think of the African veterans that faught in this second great world war, and were never given the recognition they deserve. From Ethiopia in the east, Nigeria in the west, South Africa, Algeria, the Congo and all over Africa, men of all ages either enlisted or fought out of indoctrinated duty to their colonialists, or against invaders of their country. I'm shocked that despite studying history in in British-African school, this portion was left out of the curriculum. Purposefully? I hope not. After all, it wasn't called a WORLD war for no reason.




Here are some excerpts from the article in the BBC that I read:

"...Africans learnt what Fascism could mean for them. Among them was John Henry Smythe of Sierra Leone. His teacher gave him Adolf Hitler's book, Mein Kampf.

"We read what this man was going to do to the blacks if he gets into power. And he attacked the British and Americans for encouraging the blacks to become doctors and lawyers," Mr Smythe said.

"It was a book which would put any black man's back up and it put mine up."

He volunteered to join the Royal Air Force, becoming a navigator, flying bombers over Germany..."

"Don't forget in those days we were very loyal Brits - stupid as that may sound now," Mr Culverwell says. "We were brainwashed into being little brown Britishers."

"As a colonial soldier I had very rough treatment. At that time we hadn't even a single Nigerian officer, all were British. And many of us revolted against injustice, what I might call man's inhumanity to man."

"Every soldier who went to India got new ideas and learnt new things. We came back with improved ideas about life. We, the ex-servicemen, gave this country the freedom it's enjoying today. We gave this freedom and handed it over to our country."






source: BBC