Pagina 64 van fotoboek van de Algemeene Vereeniging van Rubberplanters ter Oostkust van Sumatra (A.V.R.O.S.) c. 1924 - 1925

This is a photograph of a page from an album by J.W. Meyster, part of a series commissioned by the General Association of Rubber Planters on the East Coast of Sumatra. The image depicts a rubber processing plant in Bandar Bedjamboe. These plantations, established during Dutch colonial rule, were a source of immense wealth for the colonizers, built on the exploitation of indigenous labor. Here, the stark architecture speaks volumes about power and control. It symbolizes the systematic extraction of resources and labor that defined colonialism. The seemingly innocuous image of a factory belies a complex web of social, economic, and racial hierarchies. These images remind us to reflect on the legacies of colonialism and the human cost of globalization. They urge us to consider the perspectives of those whose stories are often marginalized in historical narratives.