Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 395 views

    We Slaves of Suriname

    Uploaded by

    Lena Głowińska
    The document summarizes Anton de Kom's 1934 book "We Slaves of Suriname". The book describes the colonial history of Suriname and the struggles of its oppressed people against slavery, imperialism, and racism under Dutch colonial rule. It discusses the poor living and working conditions of Surinamese laborers and farmers following the abolition of slavery. De Kom calls on the Surinamese people to develop class consciousness and unity to reconstruct their nation and fight for their rights and autonomy.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    We Slaves of Suriname

    Uploaded by

    Lena Głowińska
    395 views11 pages
    The document summarizes Anton de Kom's 1934 book "We Slaves of Suriname". The book describes the colonial history of Suriname and the struggles of its oppressed people against slavery, imperialism, and racism under Dutch colonial rule. It discusses the poor living and working conditions of Surinamese laborers and farmers following the abolition of slavery. De Kom calls on the Surinamese people to develop class consciousness and unity to reconstruct their nation and fight for their rights and autonomy.

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    The document summarizes Anton de Kom's 1934 book "We Slaves of Suriname". The book describes the colonial history of Suriname and the struggles of its oppressed people against slavery, imperialism, and racism under Dutch colonial rule. It discusses the poor living and working conditions of Surinamese laborers and farmers following the abolition of slavery. De Kom calls on the Surinamese people to develop class consciousness and unity to reconstruct their nation and fight for their rights and autonomy.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    395 views11 pages

    We Slaves of Suriname

    Uploaded by

    Lena Głowińska
    The document summarizes Anton de Kom's 1934 book "We Slaves of Suriname". The book describes the colonial history of Suriname and the struggles of its oppressed people against slavery, imperialism, and racism under Dutch colonial rule. It discusses the poor living and working conditions of Surinamese laborers and farmers following the abolition of slavery. De Kom calls on the Surinamese people to develop class consciousness and unity to reconstruct their nation and fight for their rights and autonomy.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 11

    We Slaves

    of Suriname
    Oral Presentation
    The Making of Crucial Diffrences: Race,
    Sexuality, Gender and Race in Hisotrical
    Perspective
    Harvey Saralis-Wheatley
    Lena Głowińska
    Nik Schulz
    Jo Cioni
    The Book
    We Slave of Suriname
    Anton de Kom
    1934

    Colonial history of Suriname


    Struggles against slavery, imperialism, and racism
    Influence of Dutch Colonial
    How autonomy really looked like for Suriname
    Experience of Suriname’s oppressed people into the
    greater history of South America
    Where? Here.
    The Author
    Anton de Kom

    Born in 1898 in Paramaribo, Suriname


    Anti-Colonial work
    Arrested and sent to the Netherlands
    Part of the Communist Party
    Resistance against Nazi-Fascism
    Died in 1945 in a Prison of War camp
    The Chapter
    The Era of “Freedom”
    Surinamese proletarian Exploitation of Immigrants
    No property False ‘protection’ - used to exploit.
    Nothing to sell but labour Forced labour used as punishment
    Balata Compagnie Lack of effecive healthcare or
    “The mainstay of the colony”
    labour rights
    Works until compelled by the Children malnourished
    expiration of his contract or by illness No trade unions
    1931 - Unemployment Protest
    Farmers with smallholding
    Children of Suriname
    taxed highly
    Difficulty avoiding indented labour or small-farming
    fighting for self-interest
    Job discrimination in public sector and teaching
    The Chapter
    The Era of “Freedom”
    Intervention of Dutch state
    Poor administrative decisions
    Over exploitation of workers
    Failure of new business
    Famine and economic failure
    suffering, need of assistance
    protests repressed with brutality

    De Kom calles Surinamese people to action!


    calls for the development of class consciousness to
    reconstruct the nation
    Class, Race and ‘Freedom’
    Anton de Kom favours:
    Free immigration; opposes Agricultural education.
    exploitation, seen as evil. Unemployment protest.
    A proper wage for workers. More job security and diversity
    Rent cancellation/reduction for small in Suriname
    farmers.

    “Slavery has been abolished in Suriname but can you call those
    who are forced to work under such a contract truly free?”
    [p.152] (Balata Compagnie)

    “We aim to show just one thing: colored compatriots, thou once
    wert slaves, and thou shalt go on living in poverty and misery as
    long as thou dost not put thy faith in thine own proletarian unity”
    [p.198]
    Today’s
    Relevance
    202
    English translation of the book 0

    Related to the "Black Lives Matter”movement


    De Kom back in public focus
    De Kom-clusion
    Class and Race
    Anton de Kom in favour of Surinamese ‘uprising’
    revolution of the proletariat
    more working-class family autonomy
    Advocates for independent workers against monopolies
    Supports free movement and trade
    Parallel between European and Surinamese societies (from
    class and race perspective)
    European - bourgeoisie and proletariat
    Suriname - the colonisers and the Surinamese people
    Thank you!
    Resources
    De Kom, A. (2022). We Slaves of Suriname. Polity
    Monthly pick: “We Slaves of Suriname” — RURAL IMAGINATIONS. (n.d.). RURAL IMAGINATIONS.
    https://www.ruralimaginations.com/we-slaves-of-suriname
    We slaves of Suriname. (n.d.). Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26153548-
    we-slaves-of-suriname
    why Anton de Kom’s “We slaves of Suriname” never ceases to inspire. (n.d.).
    https://www.sonsbeek20-24.org/en/editorial-room/grinding-slow-grinding-still-keti-koti/why-
    anton-de-koms-we-slaves-suriname-never-ceases-inspire/

    You might also like