Reference no: EM133469551

Question

Colonialism had an impact on the former colonies' economies, cultures, and politics. Religion and language were colonialism's most obvious effects. Latin America is a prime example; colonialism brought the Catholic Church there, and the region now has the highest percentage of Catholic nations. Another outcome of colonization was the growth of the Spanish and Portuguese languages. More people speak the languages today in Latin America than on the Iberian Peninsula, where they first emerged. Historians will also argue that the poverty in some former colonies is the result of colonialism. A clear example of this theory is Haiti. The French recognized Haiti's independence in 1825 but in return demanded a hefty indemnity of 100 million francs, approximately $21 billion (USD) today. It took Haitians more than a century to pay off the debt to its former slave owners and lenders including the City Bank of New York. (Choi, 2021) Due to this debt, Haiti has not been able to progress economically, and consequently, its government has failed many times, immersing the country in extreme poverty and violence. Because some nations refuse to adopt colonial-era concepts and search for alternatives, colonialism continues to have an impact on many nations' politics today. On the other hand, other nations have discovered that adopting these ideas and establishing trade and political alliances with former colonizers has helped their economies grow.