Oil, power and a sign of hope. Klaus Stieglitz

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      In May, 1847, Johannes von Müller, a researching botanist from southwestern Germany, embarked upon an expedition in Africa. He was accompanied by his secretary and trusty helper Alfred Brehm, who was the son of an ornithologist. The expedition started in Egypt. Its plan was to traverse the entire continent of Africa, and to research its fauna in the process. In January, 1848, von Müller and Brehm arrived in Sudan, which was under the control of the Ottoman Empire in those days. The Ottoman had expanded their sway over the Sudan from their base in Egypt ten years previously. Brehm made a copious amount of notes about and sketches of the people encountered in his travels. Brehm was especially moved and distressed by the slave trade, which was widespread in the Sudan of those days. Especially distressing to him was the exacting and unscrupulous treatment of the slaves by the Europeans living in the Sudan. During Brehm’s sojourn in the Sudan, he was witness to the arrival of slaves from a march that had started in the south of the region. The state of the dark-skinned humans, who were member of the Dinka ethnic group, especially bothered Brehm: “It was a ghastly sight, one that no words suffice to describe. It remained in my soul for weeks—as the epitome of horror. It took place on January 12, 1848.”1 As Brehm noted: “This fate of being regarded as objects of sale applies to all the ethnic groups of Abyssinia, including the Galla, Shewa, Makate, Amhara, […], the Shilluk, Dinka, Takhallaui, Darfuri, Sheibuni, Kik and Nuer.”2

      In his notes, Brehm described the cycle of violence and counter-violence prevailing in Africa. According to Brehm the former stemmed from the whites, who employed slavery as one of their means of ruthlessly oppressing the people of Sub-Saharan Africa. This oppression produced a widespread hostility towards whites—an attitude that Brehm found completely understandable—among the Africans. This hostility prevented von Müller and Brehm from proceeding upon their travels in Southern Sudan. As he noted resignedly: “The hunting for slaves bars the way for researchers seeking to explore the central lands of Africa.”3

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      Daniele Comboni was a Catholic priest. In 1857, he embarked upon his first trip to Africa. He was accompanied by five other missionaries. Their trip brought them to Southern Sudan, where he experienced first hand the misery and the enslavement of Africans. These experiences led him to found a mission. Comboni’s main objective was to put an end to slavery. His approach to missionary work sounds like it could have been formulated today: “Enabling Africa to rescue Africa.”4 Overcoming strong objections from within the ranks of his own church, Comboni recruited women and laypersons to participate in missionary work.5 The greatest difference between Comboni’s approach and those of previous missions was that he granted Africans full respect by viewing them as equals, ones well capable of being responsible for the managing of their affairs. One of Comboni’s main principles was that the Europeans could well support and teach their counterparts—but should not patronize striving to form Africans according to European model.6

      Comboni’s missionary work proved to be a huge success. The ethnic groups living in Southern Sudan are cultures highly open to the Christians’ visions of divinity. The effects have proved lasting. Southern Sudan is still the realm of nature-based religions and of Christianity—in contrast to northern Sudan, in which Islam predominantly prevails.

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      June 11, 1955. 4 pm. The start of the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans. The weather is hot and humid. A thunderstorm is in the offing — as shown by the dark clouds crowding the horizon. The sun is still, however, shining over the race course.

      More than 200,000 spectators are lining the 13 kilometers of the race course, which is, on non-race days, comprised of normal-use roads. Case-in-point: the long straightaway. It is part of the road connecting Le Mans and Tours. The fastest cars reach speeds of nearly 300 kilometers an hour on the straightaway. Not surprisingly, this is the most popular place from which to watch the race. These “Populaires” are cheap. That’s because fans have to stand. The “Populaires” are located in front of the more expensive bleachers. The former offer, however, the best views of the starting positions and the pits. The crowd in the Populaires gets to hear the yelling of the race managers and the mechanics, and gets to sample the odor of fuels and of abraded clutches and brakes. The crowd is comprised of thousands of people, all thronging the race course, from which they are separated only by a nearly one meter-high fence made of bales of hay and of planks. The crowd is enjoying itself. The race is being covered on-site by the world’s media, many of which are reporting live from Le Mans. Among the media are film teams, which are shooting full-color, Cinemascope news flashes for the weekly reports shown in cinemas.

      174 minutes after the race has commenced, several race cars zoom into the narrow stretch in front of the bleachers. The crowd cranes to get a good view. This is because the race’s leaders are in the pack. Among the leaders: the UK’s Mike Hawthorn, who is driving a Jaguar, and the drivers of both of the Mercedes “Silver Arrows”. These three are in a neck-on-neck battle for victory. The cars’ manufacturers —Jaguar and Mercedes—are contending for both the World Cup’s drivers’ and manufacturer’s championships. Mercedes is under pressure. It has to notch a victory in Le Mans if it plans on retaining its opportunity to win the title.7 At first glance, this battle is about prestige and about gaining incentives that convince potential buyers to purchase the manufacturers’ vehicles. These incentives constitute powerful, not-to-be-underestimated advertising. A victory in Le Mans showcases the technical superiority of the manufacturer’s products—in an era in which the automobile industry is embarking upon its boom.

      This battle is also about something more, something deeper. World War II concluded a scant ten years previously. This battle is thus between the UK and Germany.8 Mike Hawthorn’s nationalism is well-known. During the days preceding the race, Hawthorn repeatedly proclaims that he will never allow himself to be beaten by a German. The flanks of his Jaguar D-Type are emblazoned with the national emblems of the British army. There are those who still remember that the Mercedes Silver Arrows were vehicles for the Nazis’ propaganda in the pre-World War II era.9 The Nazis were the main sponsors of the Sliver Arrows10, providing millions of marks to the racing department of the Stuttgart-based manufacturer of automobiles.11 The Nazis viewed car racing as a “kind of mental armament, one preparing the people to wage war”12 . Headed by Albert Neumann, the Mercedes team had been highly successful in the pre-World War II era. Once the war was over, the team—featuring the same personnel—set forth its successes. The only difference: it had “converted to democracy”, as Guido Knopp, a historian working for Germany’s “ZDF” national broadcaster, described it in a work published several decades subsequently.13

      Mercedes’ managing board has given its racing team unmistakable marching orders. The team is to win both titles in Formula 1—the driver’s and the manufacturer’s championships. Mercedes has backed these plans with generous funds and other resources. The company has founded a dedicated racing department, and has hired what has come to be more than 200 persons to staff it. This staff consults with a further 300 specialists—who