Myths around Mining and Imperialism

• What links can be made between the mining industry and imperialism?

Today like yesterday, the mining industry is and has been one of the defining goals of imperialism and colonialism. Mines are underpinned by a history of extractivism, colonialism, capitalism, and ecocide to perpetuate the exploitation of marginalised populations and the destruction and plunder of their territory.

The following sections will examine the various ways that North-South and South-North relations are enmeshed in the mining industry. The differing histories and contemporary forms of colonialism and the exploitation of different population groups will be explored, without an attempt to be exhaustive. We will learn in what way the capitalist mining industry an inseparable part of colonial conquest and an ever-present example of colonialism today.

• What is the learning objective of this article?

This text is part of a series of articles which aims to deconstruct the various myths upheld by the political and economic elites and the mining industry as they pursue their project of ‘energy transition’. This project is being pushed through as quickly as it can by governments, lobbyists, and the international institutions of neoliberalism, all under the cover of protecting the environment. However, it remains important to understand the logistical and industrial issues at the root of the ‘energy transition’, as well as the real interests at play.

By legitimizing the continued existence and growth of the mining sector, these myths are directly in service of capital and the State. It is vital that we deconstruct the myths that threaten both the human population and the whole of the living world. The goal of this series of articles is to offer a counter-discourse to the greenwashing propaganda being pumped out by the forces of colonial capitalism.

• How to navigate this article?

The myths that we will explore can be read separately, alone, backwards, upside-down, or in your pyjamas. Each section is independent of the others. Feel free to only read about the myths that interest you the most, or browse the article in its entirety.

• What are our sources?

The majority of the information in this article comes from the book La ruée minière au XXIe siècle : Enquête sur les métaux à l'ère de la transition, written by the investigative journalist Celia Izoard and published by éditions de la rue Dorion in 2024. This article is a summary of the exhaustive research she undertook and published. At the end of this article, you will find citations for the sections of the book that are cited. Links to other resources used to debunk these myths are also included throughout the text.