Decolonial and Postcolonial Approaches: A Conversation

Feminist Studies Call for Contributions (Deadline March 1 2016)

Decolonial and postcolonial approaches have long informed and animated feminist scholarship and activism, but often not at once nor in the same spaces. They each bear the markings of the regional and historical affiliations of their respective scholars. The decolonial turn is often (though sometimes inaccurately) associated with indigenous scholars and those from the Americas while postcolonialism is usually linked to South Asia, Africa, and Middle East scholars. The decolonial turn frequently privileges an analysis of settler colonialism while postcolonialism focuses on the problematics of migration and hybridity. Feminist Studies seeks to promote new theoretical engagements by asking how these approaches speak to each other and about each other: What are some common preoccupations? What are some differences? How might focusing on the place of women of color within each of these approaches generate a reassessment of both? What forms of political effectiveness do they enable or foreclose? How might we assess their respective contributions to understanding indigeneity, subalternity, diaspora, sovereignty, territoriality, imperialism, and culture? We are interested in short commentaries (3000 words) that will be peer reviewed and eventually pulled together as a forum. Please contact editorial director Ashwini Tambe at atambe@umd.edu if you plan to submit a piece.   Deadline: March 1, 2016