Decolonisation and Deracialisation in Universities
By Suren Pillay
Reflections on race, language, colonial, postcolonial and decolonial knowledge projects that explore the pitfalls and possibilities that face South African universities and a post-apartheid generation inventing the future of knowledge.
Predicaments of Knowledge explores the difficult questions South African universities face after apartheid: Is there a difference between Africanising a university and decolonising a university? Or between deracialising and decolonising curricula taught at universities across disciplines?
Inventing the future of knowledge
Through reflections on race, language, and knowledge projects, this book, Predicaments of Knowledge, explores post-apartheid challenges. It examines colonial, postcolonial, and decolonial frameworks, clarifying the pitfalls and possibilities in shaping future knowledge systems.
Current efforts to ‘decolonise’ universities often conflate three imperatives: decolonisation, deracialisation, and Africanisation. However, these distinctions are crucial and often misunderstood in political demands directed at universities.
By separating decolonisation, deracialisation and Africanisation, Suren Pillay highlights them as distinct yet equally significant imperatives. This nuanced approach ensures each imperative is addressed with the attention it requires.
The essays draw on more than two decades of the author’s involvement in these debates. They aim to intervene in ongoing discussions rather than foreclose debate or present definitive solutions. Importantly, the essays are dialogical in spirit, even if occasionally polemical in tone.
The book engages with African and Latin American experiences while reflecting on South African debates. Its purpose is to elucidate predicaments and contribute meaningfully to the broader discourse on knowledge transformation.
About the author
Suren Pillay is the A C Jordan Chair and Director of the Centre for African Studies at the University of Cape Town.
- Publisher | Wits University Press |
- ISBN | 9781776149056 |
- Recommended Price | R330.00 |
- Subject | History, Current Affairs |
For more information | Corina van der Spoel | +27 (0)11 717 8705/8700 | mail me |
