Postcolonial Politics

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Arts & Culture

Black Soil Poems: Wangechi Mutu at the Borghese Gallery

Black Soil Poems: Wangechi Mutu at the Borghese Gallery

In the heat of July in Rome, we discussed the exhibition ‘Black Soil Poems’ (brilliantly curated by Cloé Perrone) by Kenyan artist Wangechi Mutu at the Galleria Borghese. A certain dissonance was inevitable in the conversation with the writer and journalist Igiaba Scego and Andrea Viliani, director of the Museum

Gaza and the banality... of the West

Gaza and the banality... of the West

I cannot speak for and on behalf of Palestine. But I can try to say a few words in light of the atrocious ongoing massacre in the eastern Mediterranean. Do you condemn Hamas? No, otherwise, I have to condemn the FLN in Algeria, the Vietcong, FRELIMO in Mozambique, the Cuban

What is the ‘black’ in the ‘Black Mediterranean’?

What is the ‘black’ in the ‘Black Mediterranean’?

Bodies cast into the sea, left to die. This time, not by unscrupulous sea captains but by European legislation. Moving back and forward between the slave trade of yesterday’s Atlantic and those expelled and cast overboard in today’s global order certainly encourages us to interrupt and crease our

Britain Needs Mr Gruber... and Of Course Paddington!

Britain Needs Mr Gruber... and Of Course Paddington!

For the last decade or so, we have been hearing news and reports on the UK government’s immigration policies—policies to reduce the number of immigrants, not ones to welcome immigrants. According to an article in The Guardian on 30 November 2023, Rishi Sunak “says he will ‘do what

Narrating and Displaying China and Chineseness: White Dominance, White Saviourism and Decoloniality

Narrating and Displaying China and Chineseness: White Dominance, White Saviourism and Decoloniality

Who are the Chinese and what is China? These are seemingly irreverent and vacuous questions. Surely, the answers are evident to any Cartesian-minded person. And yet these are questions I have increasingly felt the need to address over the past three decades, from the moment I started questioning my own

Critical Pedagogy in the Age of Fascist Politics

Critical Pedagogy in the Age of Fascist Politics

The long shadow of domestic fascism, defined as a project of racial and cultural cleansing, is with us once again both in North America and abroad. Educators have seen the ghosts of fascism before in acts of savage colonialism and dispossession, in an era of slavery marked by the brutality

Algerians’ Anti-French Attitude: A Postcolonial Reaction?

Algerians’ Anti-French Attitude: A Postcolonial Reaction?

Last month, Algeria hosted the 19th edition of the Mediterranean Games in the city of Oran. One particular incident that marked this event was when Algerian fans in the stadium— mostly young people—who were watching a football match during which Algeria was playing against France, lacked respect for the