Decolonizing African studies : knowledge production, agency, and voice

Author / Creator

Falola, Toyin, author

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Summary

"The field of African Studies (the perception and representation of the African past) has played a central role in the different periods of Africa's liberation struggles. Having formed the basis fo...

"The field of African Studies (the perception and representation of the African past) has played a central role in the different periods of Africa's liberation struggles. Having formed the basis for the justification of centuries of Euro-American socio-economic onslaughts, it has been identified as the appropriate tool for reversing the damages wreaked on Africa during these periods. This is mainly because the structure of the Euro-American hegemony in Africa was designed to alter and dictate African knowledge production systems and its application to African reality, in a bid to keep the continent perpetually reliant on the Global North. This is why the field of African Studies is and has always been instrumental in presenting the African narrative and enhancing its prospects. Despite their importance, the African perspectives continue to be marginalized or excluded in research, creating a problem of misrepresentation of the continent. It is to this that this book has responded--the urgent need to eliminate the vestiges of colonialism in the academy and research methodologies"--

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