this post was submitted on 18 May 2026
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History

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An Ivorian man dressed as a member of an African tribe is exhibited at the "Villa Bamboula" human zoo in France in 1994, where Black people were portrayed as "savages" living in mud huts as a tourist attraction for white people.

These mud huts with thatched roofs weren't even a set; the Ivorians were actually slaves living in them in appalling conditions and paid a pittance. Their owners confiscated their passports and forbade them from leaving the compound freely.

Even the name of the human zoo, "Bamboula," was a racist term used pejoratively for Black people during the French colonial era. Yes, until a few decades ago, these human zoos still existed in Europe, operating as a "legal" racist attraction where white people paid admission as if it were a safari.

Source where I found this -> https://xcancel.com/DaniMayakovski/status/2056278557752479847#m

Source backing this up -> https://www.vice.com/en/article/human-zoo-france-safari-africain/

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[–] dazaroo@lemmygrad.ml 6 points 2 days ago

Europe is probably the least "civilised" continent

[–] Tomato_Queen@lemmygrad.ml 6 points 3 days ago (1 children)

When they got sick the zoo vets treated them. also they got compensated a single centime or a ridiculously low amount.

[–] REEEEvolution@lemmygrad.ml 9 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

They got fuck all. When the thing started to gather negative pr (thanks to the french communists), the zoo quietly sat them into a plane home. In the end the zoo had to pay a gargantuan 1 franc. Mind you the fr*nch government would not have done anything had it not been for the french communists making a huge fuss about it.

[–] REEEEvolution@lemmygrad.ml 5 points 3 days ago

The name is even more stupid, its the name of some soft buiscuit. The entire thing existed as a marketing gag for some sweet treat.

[–] Lussy@hexbear.net 2 points 3 days ago

‘You need to lift heavy to gain muscle

You need 10000 grams of protein per lb of body weight’

Then there’s this guy