this post was submitted on 24 Jun 2025
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I mean lots of it was very nice land managed by the original inhabitants in ways that adapted to the climate and conditions. It mainly sucks for colonizers because they tried to basically just transpose their western methods of construction, farming and civilization in general onto the new territory.
That’s definitely a big part of it but there is a level to which white people straight up didn’t evolve to live in southern latitudes with intense sunlight. I have skin made for a rainy northern island where you need to scavenge any bit of vitamin D you can find. I burn in 5 minutes in Florida and even when I’m not burning the sun hurts.
Like, as a 1600s peasant who’s never left England going off to find your fortune in the new world how do you not take that as a sign from God that you’re in a place you don’t belong?
Until the early 2000s when they started a huge sun protection campaign, Israel had one of the highest skin cancer rates in the world. But “God promised you this land”?
There is definitely an association with skin pigmentation and skin cancer (and rickets the opposite way). But skin pigmentation is not why colonists are bad, the colonialism is. There are dark skinned Israelis and light skinned Palestinians (and Lebanese and other middle eastern minority national groups).
There are also places in the low latitude Southern Hemisphere (Parts of Africa, South America, New Zealand, Australia) and high latitude North America (Canada, border US states) that are perfect for white colonists "genetically", they still shouldn't be there.
Finally while middle eastern and South Asian people may have a lower pre-disposition to skin cancer, they still get skin cancer, but material factors like the clothing they wear and the hours of the day they work affects this too. An Israeli doing a 9-5 going in and out of AC controlled buildings in a t-shirt and shorts is going to burn more than a Palestinian wearing a headscarf, and long sleeves and pants, taking a break to rest inside a traditional house at the middle of the day when it's hottest and the UV is worse.
(also I imagine skin cancer is also under treated in Palestinians due to significant shortages in all medical care)