The Persistence of Imperialism

The Persistence of Imperialism

Following World War II, the concrete nature of imperialism, or the subjection of people or groups based on a social, economical, or racial hierarchy, was seemingly in decline. For instance, India and Pakistan had both gained their independence from Britain in 1947 (p.761), and the French, though unwillingly, gave up their colonies in Vietnam (p.754), but with the development of the Cold War there became a need to ideologically separate the free “First World”, which was made up of western Europe and the United States, from the communist “Second World”, which was primarily made up by the Soviet Union. This separation unintentionally formed yet another hierarchy, and further perpetuated imperialistic notions. While the Soviets attempted to continue political imperialism in surrounding states to form a political and economic buffer from democratic nations, which due to globalization, or the mass integration of cultural and economic practices, would have been necessary to accomplish, many nations, such as the U.S., who subscribed to these democratic beliefs still counterintuitively practiced imperialism in their attempts to forcefully liberate communist nations based on the notion that their free way of life was superior to other’s communist status quo. Therefore, imperialism continued to surface through the dualist political line drawn by the Cold War, but also later through a need to stay competitive culturally and economically in a growing global community in states both subject to past colonizing nations, as well as the nations who relinquished their control over them.

Cold War
Though the tensions, characterized by the Cold War, between the Soviet Union and the U.S. never escalated to direct viol...

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...durable peace in the region was emphasized.” Though this decision put an end to Israeli imperialism over Palestinian people, the need for sustained peace by withdrawing support from Israel was of indirect influence by OPEC’s imperialistic decision to increase oil prices in 1973 following the fourth Arab - Israeli war.
Though colonial imperialism was in stark decline following the turn of the 19th century, its theme perpetuates even today through mass privatization and rigid global capitalism. The need for personal, racial, and national superiority arises from a need to stay competitive culturally and economically. The question is: why does this need perpetuate? I believe the answer to be quite simple. Personal interests and a desire to maintain ones own standard of living places the needs and cultural interests of others second in the global race for more capital.