Decolonizing Philosophy is a two-day workshop at the University of Antwerp that aims to invite (young) researchers to think off the beaten path of the university. The first edition took place on April 15-16, 2021.
Workshop 1: "Curriculum and the Colonial Library"
Lecture by Aincre Maame-Fosua Evans
Discussion moderated by Nozizwe Dube
The Colonial Library, a concept developed by philosopher Valentin-Yves Mudimbe, refers to the literary canon and epistemological order that constructs the African continent as both ‘other’ and ‘inferior’. The idea of the colonial library allows us to conceptualize and frame the relationship between power and knowledge production in the relationship between the African continent and Euro-America. In order to explore decolonial pathways critically, this workshop will take a closer look at the concept of the colonial library and its far reaching implications for the curriculum. Ideas and examples around colonial fantasy, legacy, and epistemological ethnocentrism will frame our conversations around decoloniality and curriculum. By the end of the workshop participants should be able to grasp the concept of the colonial library and relate it to contemporary calls for decolonization in academia.
Aincre Maame-Fosua Evans is a Teaching Fellow at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. Aincre’s academic and activist work centers on de-colonial and feminist social change with particular attention paid to the African continent and its diaspora in Europe.
Nozizwe Dube is a Law student at KU Leuven, specialising in International and European Law and Public Law. She writes a thesis on the restitution of plundered colonial art and cultural goods from a human rights perspective. She is also a former president of the Flemish Youth Council and was nominated as Young European of 2017 by the Schwarzkopf Foundation. Nozizwe is the coordinator of UNDIVIDED for KU Leuven, a student-led organisation working on the decolonisation of curricula, gender and LGBTQ+ students from an intersectional perspective within the university.
