White Europeans have long obsessed over the supposed relationship between race, culture & climate. 19th century colonists (supported by scientific & medical opinion) believed “tropical” solar radiation attacked white people’s nervous systems & rendered them infertile. 2/
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Pith helmets were often worn by colonizers alongside other protective paraphernalia such as red vests & “spine pads” worn under the shirt to protect the nervous system from the feared “actinic ray.” Spine pads were standard issue in British Army kit in early 20th century. 3/
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Other convenient medical recommendations included no manual labour outdoors for whites, holidays to cooler climates & no white children in the colonies beyond age 5. The pith helmet was part of a pseudo-scientific discourse that enforced class as well as racial domination. 4/
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The pith helmet is sometimes used to denote a “frontier” spirit of adventure & exploration. This is wrong. Their historical social role was to emblematize white fragility and anxieties, as well as blurring the distinction between white civilians & colonial police/army. 5/
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Personally, I think the US First Lady's decision to wear a pith helmet is appropriate. The regime she's representing in Kenya is a white supremacist one whose policies & ideological grounding are a continuation of earlier forms of imperialism, represented by the pith helmet. 6/
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I found out more about the social history of the pith helmet and white settler "climatic theories" in Dane Kennedy's book "Islands of White: Settler Society and Culture in Kenya and Southern Rhodesia, 1890-1939" (1987). Other recommendations welcome. 7/
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This is the kind of thing I used to cover when I edited the "White History Month" series on Africa is a Country. I'm all for White History Month, because there's so much about the concrete history of white supremacism that is poorly remembered or conveniently forgotten. 8/
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I expanded on these thoughts re Melania Trump and the history of the pith helmet over at
@AJEnglish. Please read and share if of interest. 9/https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/melania-africa-wearing-pith-helmet-181007071847726.html …Näytä tämä ketju -
An England fan at Twickenham for today’s rugby match vs New Zealand, wearing a pith helmet. English culture has “forgotten” the history of Empire while simultaneously celebrating & trivializing its signifiers. Anything to avoid taking this history seriously. It’s demented.pic.twitter.com/iKaYqg2qpw
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how about relating the helmet and her entire outif to the mzungu ranchers of Laikipia? That is a current menace on the ground in Kenya! I think the pith helmet comparison and colonialism is way far-fetched for the current conservation crisis in Kenya! I give you a D for trial
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