@drdanisanchez tweeting for @tweetistorian about WWIII in Africa again. We are finally going to talk about getting drunk in WWII Free French Africa. YAY! Stick around and I'll give you a faux palm wine recipe that you can make at home in less than 72 hours. #QuarantinePalmWine 1/
On Monday, I broke down the rise of Free France in Africa. This thread is going to build on that by talking about social transformations. I already talked about surveillance and the policing of non-elite Congolese communities through sanitary police. 2/
This is also the case with leisure in Brazzaville, Congo during WWII. Eboué pushed for a new form of discipline for elites- indoctrination through leisure, church, schools, recreation (like scouting). Very Foucauldian. The approach was different for non-elites. 3/
Free France depended on forced labor and positive PR. This led to the stifling of non-elite leisure opportunities, particularly when alcohol was involved. This wasn't the 1st time France tried to squash alcohol consumption in its colonies, by the way. It never seemed to stick. 4/
Paternalistic anti-alc efforts tried to take all imported alc beverages away and prevent Congolese people from tapping for palm wine- a safe and sustainable practice done around the world. While Free France claimed it was a moral decision, they really wanted palm control. 5/
Elite politics became complicated here. France ascribed to the mission civilisatrice model- racial uplift propaganda to justify colonialism. Congolese elites earned évolué (evolved) status and wanted to open bars with French music where they could drink wine and dance. 6/
Admin responses were complex. 2 Congolese neighborhoods in BZV: Poto-Poto and Bacongo. Admins thought Bacongo was "capable of uplift" and more ethnically homogenous. They thought Poto-Poto was more unruly and heterogeneous... impossible to create elite class. 7/
When Congolese and West African immigrants petitioned to open bars, their residency mattered because of the admin's assumptions about Poto-Poto and Bacongo. Elites from Poto-Poto who wanted to open bars with Euro music and non-alc beverages were shut down by administrators, 8/
Even when petitioners offered to make large donations to the war cause. Admins were concerned about security and surveillance, even though the bars would cater to elites. Bacongo had more freedom to open elite dancing/drinking/leisure establishments. 9/
What about non-elites? They resisited. Women brewed palm wine, people opened illegal bars, communities secretly tapped for palm wine, and others smoked MJ, individuals bought/sold/consumed alcohol and marijuana despite stringent bans and the possibility of fines/jail. 10/
People even crossed the Congo Riv into Léopoldville for nightlife options in Belgian Congo. Elites looked down on non-elite consumption and local musical styles. Instead, they looked to the Free French admin for approval within the problematic évolué system. 11/
Still, non-elites didn't care. They recognized that these laws were arbitrary at best and the war effort was not mutually beneficial. Demands to stop tapping and halt social life were nonsensical. 12/
By looking at debates over alc consumption, we can tease out class tensions, wartime consumerism, tensions in colonial policy, and the construction of difference. Congolese society was nuanced- pockets of both resistance and compliance in the wartime city. 13/
So much more on this in my article in the Journal of African Military History from Dec 2020. #JAMH Now we can talk about the fun stuff: FAUX PALM WINE!!! You need a few things: 200mL cool H20, 50mL warm H20, 10-12 tsp sugar, 3g yeast, balloon/condom, a clean bottle. 14/
Dissolve the yeast in warm water, then add sugar and mix. Pour the yeast mixture into the bottle containing the cool water, cover with the cap and shake lightly. Replace cap with balloon. Seal the top with rubber band. Store in a dark place for 48-72 hrs. 15/
It will turn white/bubbly and the balloon will inflate. Replace balloon with cap, then shake wine and drink it. If you have the right type of palm, you can tap it and get a much more authentic wine in less than 4 hrs. Comment with pics/successes/failures either way. DS
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