Kimba Syndrome
This essay is part of a series on offensive horticulture.
The first time Disney stole a lion (by accident), it stole the whole Lion King. This documentary makes a solid case that the Lion King directors were unaware of Kimba, but it's still a fun conspiracy theory.
The second time Disney stole a lion (by accident), it stole the lion from Solomon Linda. In 1939, Linda improvised The Lion Sleeps Tonight in sub-saharan Africa's only recording studio. RCA executives colluded with Gallo to obfuscate the origins of the song; Linda died penniless. Of course there's a documentary on this too.
Songs are frequently stolen in the music industry. Labels wield asymmetric information against publishers/studios, who wield asymmetric information against musicians. It's a chain of middlemen, where everybody is incentivized to misinform sellers and collude with buyers.
Exploitation abounds wherever the following is true:
- something is valuable, but its rightsholders cannot accurately appraise it
- rightsholders lack the knowledge/resources to assert ownership
- acquisition methods/contracts are opaque
- plausible deniability is maintained via ephemeral communications
Multinationals employ scientists to scour the world for nifty chemicals to sell. But sometimes indigenous peoples aren't fairly attributed/compensated for their roles in scientific discoveries and related profits.
| Rosy Periwinkle | Madagascar’s gem, has been a significant source for cancer drugs, profiting Big Pharma while the locals who cultivated it saw no financial benefit |
| Neem Tree | treasured in India for its medicinal properties, was patented by W.R. Grace, leading to prolonged legal battles over biopiracy |
| Turmeric | known for its ancient medicinal use in India, was controversially patented in the US, only for the patent to be revoked after significant protest |
| Ayahuasca | a sacred brew of Amazonian tribes, was granted a US patent, which was later canceled following an outcry over the appropriation of indigenous knowledge |
| Enola Bean | a staple food in Mexico, was patented by a US citizen, but Mexico eventually won the legal fight to protect its agricultural heritage |
| Hoodia | a plant from the Kalahari Desert used as an appetite suppressant, saw the San tribes exploited when commercial interests took over its use |
| Quinoa | an Andean superfood, experienced a surge in Western demand, which in turn caused local prices to soar, making it less accessible to the native populations who cultivated it |
| Teff | a grain from Ethiopia, was patented by a Dutch company, leading to backlash and debates over the ethics of patenting traditional crops |
| Thermus aquaticus | a bacterium producing the enzyme Taq used in DNA replication, was commercialized without any financial benefit to the park where it was discovered |
| Rooibos | a South African herbal tea, faced a patent claim in Japan that was later revoked after challenges over the rights to traditional knowledge |
| Basmati Rice | a long-grain rice from India and Pakistan, faced controversy when a US company attempted to patent a strain, leading to international disputes over intellectual property |
| Kava | a ceremonial drink in Pacific Island cultures, saw increased commercial interest and attempts to patent its use, raising concerns over the exploitation of indigenous practices |
| Lapacho | a tree with medicinal bark used by indigenous South Americans, became the subject of patents by foreign companies, leading to debates on biopiracy |
| Açaí | a berry from the Amazon rainforest, gained global popularity for its health benefits, prompting patent claims and concerns over fair trade and benefit-sharing with local communities |
| Sacha Inchi | an oil-rich seed from the Amazon, saw foreign patenting efforts, sparking debates on the protection of indigenous agricultural knowledge and practices |
| Manuka Honey | from New Zealand, faced trademark battles over the use of the name and origin, highlighting issues of geographical indication and biopiracy |
| Maca | a root crop from the Andes known for its medicinal properties, encountered patent claims by foreign companies, causing disputes over traditional knowledge and bioprospecting |
| Yacon | an Andean root vegetable prized for its health benefits, was subject to international patent claims, raising concerns over biopiracy and benefit-sharing |
| Kiwifruit | originally from China, was commercialized and patented in New Zealand, leading to discussions on the fair distribution of profits derived from genetic resources |
| Cupuaçu | an Amazonian fruit, faced patenting attempts by foreign entities, resulting in legal challenges and calls for the protection of indigenous resources and knowledge |
Pardon me -- the table was generated by GPT-4o.
Of course we want to reward scientific exploration. Of course we want to share the bounties of technological progress with humanity. And while we do all that, we should respect the wants/needs of peoples in those supply chains and fairly share spoils.
There is no prescriptive solution here. How do we "share spoils" with a culture that rejects personal property? Should we publish discoveries about secret/sacred traditions?
Sure, maybe all this is legal; maybe it's also super shitty. There will always be more ways to be shitty than jurisprudence can formalize. Don't be an asshole, please.
The simplest inoculation for assholes is an enema called transparency. Publish research. Incentivize kindness. Flatten hirearchies. Maintain records. Simplify agreements. Murder middlemen. And so on.
Sorry for the sermon, folks -- just stop stealing lions, okay? Maybe I should lay off the peace pipe --