Geneser 1
Daniel Geneser
English 1102
April 23rd 2014
Global Unity?
Western Culture sits at the peak of progress in the modern world and has always been the
leader in global unity. History has proven that ethnocentrism (group superiority) makes
unification a near impossible goal. While the West strives to unify the global community
through processes of Globalization, political influence, foreign aid, economics, and technology,
they fail to recognize that ethnocentrism, ethnic lines, tribal dominance, and the fear of western
assimilation cause the rejection of these processes and inevitably make global unity an unfeasible
goal.
Globalization is the culmination of processes that take place in order to create a
homogenous mixture of cultures in the world (Green). In the 15th century it was called
colonization, followed by mercantilism. It subjugated people as imperialism in the 19th century,
and as communism throughout the 20th century, and finally globalization throughout the end of
the 20th century into the new millennium. Each of these processes differ in political ideology,
however each are fueled by a strong since of ethnocentrism, the idea of group superiority or the
assumptions of others based on personal experience (Barger, Ethnocentrism). Globalization is
rooted in politics, economies, and information technologies creating the global market that has
surfaced throughout the latter half of the 20th century (Green). Globalization has strengthened the
markets, however it is arguable that ethnocentrism continues to dominate how the dominate
countries acquire work and resources.
Geneser 2
Ethnocentrism has always been a tool of western politics as well as western capitalism,
and what makes ethnocentrism such a unique component is that everyone is guilty, and nobody
notices that it is taking place (Barger). Essentially what takes place is perception is reality and
dominance dictates. In the case of the Belgian Congo during the period of King Leopold’s rule
there was a conference in Berlin between the major imperialistic powers such as the United
Kingdom, Italy, Belgium, Germany, and France. They debated how to properly access the
resources and how to spread their own religion and ideologies to the natives (Morel 5). This was
not with the consent of the Congolese people, but dominance dictated and the imperialist powers
felt as though they were doing the people of the Congo a favor by spreading their culture to them
(5). By the end of Leopold’s rule
millions of African natives died at
the hands of the Belgians all in an
effort to retrieve resources, while the
rest of the western world denied that
the incident ever took place. This
process of ethnocentrism is also a
two way street. While dominance
determines who will generally be enveloped, both parties still feel the notion of group superiority
and it is at this crossroad is why globalization is unachievable. Ethnocentrism only has a chance
of ending if everyone is the same down to the last cultural norms and taboos, and even then it
could still exist. For example the Japanese still see the Okinawans as inferior and who are part of
the island nation of Japan (McRae). Overall ethnocentrism is a force that has shaped the world
and it will continue to, so the notion of global unity is a dream of the western world.
Geneser 3
One of the problems associated with the post-World War II world was the lack of
attention to detail with the undeveloped nations. At the end of the war the western powers
created new artificial nations throughout Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. In theory
their objective was to rid the world of the old colonialism and work towards new world
progression. Unfortunately they did not take into consideration the different ethnic groups living
within one nation and allowing conflicting groups to govern over each other, generally in a
dictatorial manner. During this time the Cold War dominated the world and no world powers
were necessarily interested in the political
or humanitarian development of these
nations, regardless if they were
communist or supporters of capitalism.
During this time there was funding from
the west to keep dictators in certain
countries in power as long as they
opposed Soviet aggression. This
continuously sent mixed messages to the peoples of these nations who grew leery of western
interaction (Geneser). This era gave birth the continuing ethnic conflicts between Israel and their
Arab neighbors, Pol Pots regime in Cambodia, Adhids civil war in Somalia, Hussein’s biological
attacks on the Kurds, and the genocide during the Bosnian crisis. With the current annexation of
Crimea by the Russian Federation it has become evident that ethnic ties and claims will always
seem to influence global conflict and decision while also proving no border is fixed (Green).
What also stems from the last seventy years is the conclusion that unity is not feasible especially
Geneser 4
when a superpower annexes an entire territory based on ethnic ties and claiming it for the sake of
national defense.
What the western world has yet to understand about ethnocentrism is it strongly
influences all parties involved, and like earlier forms of interaction, the main issue is tribal
thinking. By itself tribal ideology is broad and is group dependent; however, most nations who
are still strongly dominated by tribal influence tend to reject western advancement and ideology.
This is inherently seen in many nations who still fall under the category of the global south
which range anywhere from conflict zones in Africa to areas within the Middle East and
Southeast Asia (Green). Within the African conflict zones what tends to happen is the usurpation
of tribal governments from other tribes. These governments try to operate on a model that took
centuries to develop and attempt to do it overnight. Inherently this leads to the resource curse, a
concept that force the unification of globalization to go in reverse. Resource Curse is when one
nation uses another nation for resources for its own profit and does not pump money back into
the host nation economy through business or other forms of capital (Green). Additionally money
gets pumped in where the government holds on to the resources and denies access to the people
in order to benefit the ruling powers (Green). This is also easily done with foreign aid into
conflict zones where the dominant party hordes the aid in order to provide for their troops
denying aid to their actual people (Geneser). This is equally as common as the resource curse
and both problems are a product of the host nation government not being able to lead for the
people because they cannot move past their own individualistic ideologies. Until the
governments can provide institutions to strengthen their nations infrastructure than these
governments will never know true peace, which inherently means that globalization remains
unfeasible.
Geneser 5
Globalization dominated in the realm of information and communication technologies to
where global markets have emerged as an integral part of society (Green). While this has led to
the increased progression of western culture and standards of living it has arguably created a
more materialistic and individualistic culture especially within the United States. While the
United States is apathetic or accepting of this notion neither are necessarily bad. It simply means
that this is the culture of the United States; however, American capitalism spreads these ideals
viciously because of its status as a world leader. In India the younger generation is now
progressing towards Americanization with the outsourcing and creation of technological jobs
within India’s bigger cities (The World is Flat the Other Side of Outsourcing). This notion is
very much supported by advocates of globalization along with western markets. Advocates see
this progression as the inevitability of global processes that will increase our interactions. While
they are more than likely correct, one has to look at the cost of this transformation. Immediately
the new generation of workers in India have broken many of the old societal norms such as
women moving out of the house and providing for themselves (The World is Flat the Other Side
of Outsourcing). Not necessarily a bad thing in the eyes of the developed western world, but they
have also strayed away from the custom of regarding the advice and guidance of their elders
(The World is Flat the Other Side of Outsourcing). There is also a much greater expenditure on
western products with their newly acquired income creating a new line of consumers for western
markets.
In this new wave of technology producers have made movements to transfer parts of
their religion and culture onto the T.V. screen, much like the west, in order to preserve their
heritage (The World is Flat the Other Side of Outsourcing). However through historical insight it
can be determined that tradition will not be as pertinent within the society as it was before the
Geneser 6
incorporation of western products and ideology. This does not mean that the old is going to be
erased, rather altered or improved (Green). What these nations need to be leery of is the ultimate
loss in connection with tradition, something the American culture has nearly managed to do
within the new period of globalization. It is this principle is where the opposition of globalization
comes within these nations. The rural traditional peoples do not wish to lose their connection
with past traditions and cultural norms, they fear that in the end that this wave of globalization
will destroy their culture and arguably assimilate their culture into the western perception leaving
only remnants of their old culture. In the end it will be the resolution of these conflicting parties
that will determine whether true global unity is feasible.
Unity through Globalization. One cannot truly exist without the other, they are so
interdependent on each other that it is nearly impossible to establish. With the inherit nature of
ethnocentrism it seems like a dream, couple this with the still prominent ethnic lines and it seems
like faded idea. These are just two obstacles that globalization needs to overcome in order to
begin creating unity, except these two obstacles have roots through thousands of years of history.
This along with tribal influence and the fear of assimilation create a gauntlet of opposition for an
idea advocated by western intellectuals. The harsh reality is not for the west to decide what the
world is to be, it comes down to every individual nation to ultimately decide the fate of its
people. No one can say for sure what will happen or whether these processes are ultimately good
or bad for the people, in the end it will be up to the people to either accept or reject globalization
and its western ties.
Geneser 7
Works Cited
Aztececonomics. ‘The World is Flat the Other Side of Outsourcing.” Online video clip. Youtube.
Youtube, 31 May 2013. Web. 10 March 2014.
Barger, K. Ethnocentrism. Indiana University Indianapolis. 1 July. 2008. Web. 9 Mar. 2014.
http://www.iupui.edu/~anthkb/ethnocen.htm
Geneser. Personal Interview. 28 Feb. 2014
Green, Garth. Personal Interview. 28 Feb. 2014
McRae. Personal Interview. 02 Mar. 2014
Morel, Edmund. “The Berlin Act”. King Leopold’s Rule in Africa. London: William
Heinemann, 1904 1-6. Print.
Stroupe, Craig. Glocalization. Craig Stroupe. Web. 9 Mar. 2014
https://www.d.umn.edu/~cstroupe/ideas/glocalization.html\
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