HISTORY OF ‘THE WHITE MAN’S BURDEN’

Englishman Rudyard Kipling first published his poem, ‘The White Man’s Burden,’ in 1899. The term was used to justify the supposed moral obligation of Western, predominantly white, colonial powers to bring their perceived superior culture and values to non-white, non-Western societies. All this paternalistic concept really did was make the case for imperialism and colonisation over the course of decades, in service of Western profit margins.

Here, we dive a little deeper to uncover the meaning of the poem. Let us know how you see the white man’s burden playing out today.