ABC News Discovers International Land Theft, Omits Who Funded It
ABC News delicately reports on Kenyan women whose husbands died, leaving them vulnerable to land theft, then fighting back. A heartwarming tale of resilience, to be sure. What's not mentioned is the long, sordid history of foreign direct investment, often backed by US companies and political maneuvering, that has systematically dispossessed indigenous communities, particularly women, across
Africa. These 'lost' lands didn't just vanish; they were often appropriated for large-scale agricultural projects, mining operations, or lucrative development schemes that benefit multinational corporations, not local residents. The same global economic structures that allow US corporations to operate with impunity, often supported by US foreign policy aiding 'friendly' autocratic regimes, are the
root cause for much of this 'land crisis'. It's almost as if some media outlets prefer narratives of valiant individual struggle over inconvenient truths about neo-colonial economic policies. One might wonder who profits from such simplified storytelling—certainly not a deeper understanding of economic injustice and the role of powerful external actors. How many more 'human interest' stories will
we consume before the context of systematic global exploitation is finally considered 'newsworthy'?