redistribution of wealth in our Era

Carina Schmitt says, “Nowadays, around 70% of all developing countries have at least one social assistance program in place . . . . Social assistance programs are public and noncontributory schemes funded from general tax revenues to guarantee access to essential health care and basic income security to individuals and families in need” These seem to be generous plans, which do though involve the redistribution of wealth. The West and/or North have had considerably more wealth over the centuries, but this is subject to change as the world, especially the Global South, will do all that it can to secure the meeting of basic needs.   This has not always been the case; there used to be the silk road that went into the East and offered treasure from the East.  The Byzantine Empire was in place until the fall of Constantinople in 1453.   Consider the Baduspanids, who ruled until 1598, and the Safavids, who ruled until 1736 and were a gunpowder empire in the Middle East.   How about Sisodia in India, who ruled until 1884.  Now many many Empires were destroyed by the West (and Global North) during the period of colonization.

Nonetheless, people were warring over land and wealth before this period. Egypt has been a powerful Empire and Country down through all the ages.  There have been great civilizations in Africa. According to the Black Egyptian hypothesis Egypt with its great wealth and strength, was a black homogeneous civilization (though scholars outweigh this theory).  The reason “scholars” state that race was not a distinction in the ancient world is because whiteness is considered to indicate strength, and Black people are and were backward and not capable of sustaining a great empire. It seems that those scholars who hold to this notion are trying to hold to the hegemonic thought that only white people can be civilized and Egypt was part of the white North. Regardless, the notion that those in the Global North carried civilization into all corners of the world is racist. The idea that the formerly colonized world or postcolonial people are continuously poor remains a stigma.  There are people in the world who need help with gaining wealth, and assistance from the West can help with that, as we remember to hold those who have or end up having wealth responsible.  In other words, some seek power in the Global South and wish to use the redistribution of wealth to gain power in their region.