My landlord is a British imperialist?💀

Context: I live in BC, renting from an old British dude.

We were chatting while I was taking my laundry out, and he recommended a book called Indian Summer (which talks about one of the not-so-secret affairs of the first Indian prime minister with some rich white lady; I forgot who exactly. But it happens through the main events of the Indian independence and partition and stuff).

He ended it by saying, "It's about the British rule of the Raj, which not everybody likes."

I scoffed and a moment of silence followed. I go "What do you meaaannn, not everybody likes?!?!" He said, "Yeah," and then laughed...

I went back and started reading it, and omg? It's straight pro-British propaganda. It’s full-on blaming the Bengalis for the famine the British were responsible for. It also makes comments about the British-made partition of India like, "It would have been done anyways,". It has a very witty writing approach to the horrible events that happened at the end of the British rule of the subcontinent. It’s very Euro-centric and has a detached worldview. On top of that, the author is busy blaming the victims of centuries of unjust colonization, destruction, and life-indentured servitude while glazing up Britain and its warlords.

I couldn't continue to finish it. The way this author tells her story made my skin crawl. Callous,  It takes the British presence in the subcontinent very lightly when reality is far from that. Millions upon millions of deaths and premeditated famines. India, 400 years ago, was the richest place on Earth. Before the British, it produced 23% of the global output, more than the GDP of all European countries today. Socially stable, all religions and sects coexisted with deep ancient roots in all the different lands and regions. All that was gone in the hands of Western greed, leaving what you see today as India: the by-product of generations of oppressive colonial rule, ruthless exploitation, and cultural wreckage.

Imagine reading a witty, quirky interpretation of the horrors of Nazi Germany or the French in Algeria. What? And if you think that is not a fair comparison, why? Are atrocities only atrocities in Europe? Are those not humans deliberately, unjustly persecuted, tortured, enslaved, and killed by another group of human beings for reasons that remain unchangeable?

Going straight back to put it on his bookshelf, he saw me and laughed, asking why. I mentioned the same points above and how it is very uncomfortably horrible and deliberately does not mention the main culprit in all the events she talks about. Not to be like those sweaty red-pilled dudes, but I did Google her, and she has blue hair... and we all know that blue hair bad.

His reply to that was, "Ehhh I guess we can discuss that." Umm, what is there to discuss?

Anyway, I don't want to waste too much of my time and effort writing about this bullshit book, but omg, I don't know if I'm comfortable giving him my money now 💀💀💀 I might consider moving...

-❥Lumi