On May 29, 2006, the head of the Center for African Studies of the Institute of Universal History of the Russian Academy of Sciences, A. B. Davidson, delivered a report on the topic "Afroasiatization of the world in the XXI century"at a meeting of the Sector of Theoretical Problems of Oriental History.

The speaker considered the question of how the process of self-affirmation of former colonial and dependent countries in the political, economic and cultural spheres, strengthening their role in the world, is going on after the collapse of empires. He recalled the defiant words of Libyan leader Gaddafi that in the future "blacks" will rule, whose number increases due to demographic growth. And from the" whites", Gaddafi believed, compensation should be demanded for colonialism, genocide, and the slave trade.

The current process, according to A. B. Davidson, can be called the Afro-Asianization of the world, and we will have to reckon with this more and more every year. The main task facing Europe is to learn how to exist in these conditions. The speaker quoted the words of the outstanding Russian historian V. O. Klyuchevsky, who said a hundred years ago:: "Asia enlightened Europe, and Europe conquered Asia. Now Europe is enlightening Asia. Will Asia repeat the same operation over Europe?"

A. B. Davidson reminded the audience about O. Spengler's famous book "The Decline of Europe", published after the First World War. In it, the author talked about the death of European culture: in a few centuries, he argued, and there will not be a single German, Englishman and Frenchman on the globe, as in the time of Justinian there was no longer a single Roman. The speaker quoted another statement from this book: "Dying, the ancient world did not know that it was dying, and therefore enjoyed every dying day as a gift from the gods. But our gift is the gift of foreseeing our own inevitable fate. We will die consciously, following each stage of our decomposition with the sharp eyes of an experienced doctor." Spengler's ideas were immediately supported by Russian philosophers N. A. Berdyaev, J. M. Bukshpan, F. A. Stepun, and S. L. Frank.

Of course, A. B. Davidson said, now one can endlessly argue how true such predictions are, but, of course, one cannot help but see how quickly the role of the world that was seemingly recently called colonial and dependent countries - Asia, Africa, Latin America-is growing. According to him, this is most clearly seen in the example of demographic indicators. Since 1950, Africa's population has quadrupled, and India's has tripled.

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According to UN forecasts (of course, these forecasts should be treated cautiously, but the most likely trends are still reflected in them), in 2050 the population of India will be more than one and a half billion people, Pakistan - 350 million, Indonesia - about 300 million, Nigeria - about 260 million. Despite the influx from Asia and Africa, Europe's population is falling. So, by 2050, only the United States and Russia will be included in the list of the first 18 countries out of North American and European countries in terms of population, while the rest will be countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Our homeland is predicted to be the last in this list, but if the number of inhabitants of Russia is determined only at 101.5 million, then Bangladesh - 255 million, Ethiopia - 171 million, Congo - 151 million.

The speaker said that, unfortunately, until recently, politicians, the public and even the scientific world paid insufficient attention to demographic processes. But it's not just about demographics. The usual Eurocentric vision sometimes makes it difficult to fully understand how rapidly the role of "non-Europe" is growing in the global economy and politics. And this growth is increasing every year. Labor-intensive industries are moving from Europe to Asia. European markets are full of Asian goods. In the UK, even traditional English Christmas decorations can be found with a "made in China" sticker.

As A. B. Davidson noted, race relations are becoming increasingly complex. If earlier there was "white" racism, then, of course, other varieties appear in contrast. The expression "anti - racist racism" also appeared. From the speaker's point of view, this expression is illegitimate - racism is still racism. Ideologues of anti-white, anti-Christian movements find social support in their countries, because the standard of living there is strikingly different from those in which the so - called golden billion lives-the United States, Europe. And this is already overlaid with differences in religions, mores, and customs.

In the world of former colonial and dependent countries, the protest against Europe is strong because it has ruled the world for five centuries. And now even the expression "Great Geographical Discoveries" causes discontent in "non-Europe", because, in the opinion of "open" peoples, such a formulation humiliates them: "Why did you open us? We used to live here." According to the speaker, this discontent in itself may not be so great and not so dangerous, but many politicians of Afro-Asian states use it to hide their mistakes, mistakes, crimes, divert the attention of their peoples from them, and make industrialized countries "scapegoats". Hence the widespread demand that Europe pay "compensation" for colonialism and the slave trade.

Migration processes are also rapidly changing the face of the world. So much so that the official authorities and scientists do not have time to properly comprehend what is happening. It is estimated that there are now approximately 20 million Asians and Africans in Europe. The first generation is people who were willing to be scavengers. The second one already has full civil rights. And the third generation of Asians and Africans demands not only civil rights, but also that European countries respect their national and religious traditions and adapt to their customs. Europe could not have foreseen such a turn of events.

Speaking about the growth of racial identity, the speaker focused on the ideas of Afrocentrism, noted that these ideas are developing, taking on new forms and expanding their spheres of influence. From the point of view of A. B. Davidson, in Afrocentrism, as in any ideas based on the exaltation of one's race or nation, one can find everything from patriotism to chauvinism and racism. But whatever prevails in Afrocentrism, as in the varieties of orientocentrism , is a reality that the rest of humanity will have to reckon with.

The main conclusion that A. B. Davidson made at the end of his report is that these changes in the world are not yet sufficiently taken into account in our national education system. Thus, the history of Russia, Europe, and the United States, i.e. about one-eighth of modern humanity, is studied most of all in the history departments of universities. In our country, there are only two state Oriental studies educational institutions - the ISAA at Moscow State University and the Oriental Faculty of St. Petersburg University, but even there the study of languages is a priority. If this continues, every new Taliban will be a mystery to us. We need to pay much more attention to the dissemination of knowledge about the East and Africa, the traditions and trends of their relations with Europe, and especially with our country, than we do now. According to A. B. Davidson, the Institutes of Oriental Studies, Africa, and the Far East should insist on this more vigorously.

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The report of A. B. Davidson aroused great interest among the participants of the seminar. E. N. Komarov (IB RAS) asked the question: how does the Western world today build its line of behavior in relation to migration from Asia and Africa and its possible consequences? The speaker replied that at the moment countries are legalizing migration, despite the existing strict laws. So, in the United States, Latinos are legalized every five years. At the same time, Americans are trying to restrain this process with the help of exams. According to A. B. Davidson, the most active emigration to Europe began in the 60s of the XX century. Back then, they were people looking for a living. The second generation of migrants is already talking about their rights. Now Western European countries are taking a kind of Munich position (as in 1937). Russian experts disagree: some believe that the process is moving towards convergence, while others think that the opposite is true.

D. N. Lelyukhin (IB RAS) expressed the opinion that A. B. Davidson in his statements adheres to the thesis: "The East is coming!"At the same time, the West is directed to the East. If we take into account the current situation in Africa or Iraq, perhaps the West is coming after all, i.e. this is just another round of colonial conquest. From the point of view of Dmitry Lelyukhin, now there is a situation where national and religious issues are being tried to be included in politics. In addition, there is a feeling that racial juxtaposition is an artificial phenomenon. In addition to the above, the seminar participants suggested that emphasizing the role of religions leads to a weakening of democracy: for example, "cartoon wars" weaken the freedom of media actions, and the problem of the relationship between science and religion becomes more complicated.

In conclusion, A. L. Ryabinin (IB RAS) noted that the issues raised during the discussion are very important and require detailed research. For example, is it likely that people who migrated to the West will accept its values and then abandon their own? Or is there a possible way to combine them? The main thing is that, from the point of view of A. L. Ryabinin, many specialists are now interested in-is the East coming or the West? Seminars dedicated to such topical topics, he stressed, will continue to be held in the future.

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