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RUNNING HEAD: BROWN HISTORY
Decolonising Brown History
The Power of Pluriversal Pedagogies
by
Arundathi de Saram
Erasmus University College
466243
Dr. Julien Kloeg
June 7, 2021
BROWN HISTORY 2
Abstract
While post-colonialism suggests the end of coloniality, the contemporary social
struggle concerning race and culture proves otherwise. Racism and colour prejudice are a direct
manifestation of the colonial order which places the West over non-West. By internalising this
hierarchical power dynamic, colonialism is continued beyond the physical realm thereby
effectively colonising the mind. Accordingly, deconstructing colonial rationality is necessary
to attain liberation from the oppressive Western framework which dictates Western
universality. Education is instrumental to this process of liberation as unlearning coloniality
and learning decoloniality is fundamental to decolonise the mind. To unleash this liberating
potential, the pedagogical nature must shift from universal to pluriversal thereby
acknowledging and embracing racial and cultural differences. A morally just education system
emphasising the virtues of respect and responsibility are of essence to create an equal society
liberated from colonial connotations.
BROWN HISTORY 3
Table of Content
Introduction 4
Defining Colonialism 8
European Exploration 11
Exploitation and Violence 13
The Rationality of Colonial Violence 16
II: Independence and Post-Colonialism 17
Towards Independence 18
The Problem of Post-Colonialism 20
Perpetual Colour Prejudice 21
III: Decolonisation & Education 23
The Colonised Mind 23
The Pedagogy of Decolonisation 26
Conclusion 29
Bibliography 31
BROWN HISTORY 4
Introduction
The colour of my skin speaks no truth of me, yet it paints a picture of how you perceive
me. And while my roots bear no meaning, it hints at a long history of colonial oppression. As
such, South Asia has endured a long colonial past of which the effects are still present today
(Ivison, 2010, p. 36). Haunted by racism, discrimination, inequality and injustice, the coloured
colonised have lived in submission to the West for centuries (Loomba, 1998, p. 22). Fostered
in the violent history of oppression and subordination, the colonial past of so-called ‘’Brown
History’’ is in adherence to the Western narrative. Charged by Eurocentrism, colonisation has
imposed the universality of Western ideology, materialising a hierarchical power dimension of
West over non-West (Walsh, 2015, p. 13). Internalising the asymmetry of colonialism allows
for the West to sustain its dominance, thereby giving rise to the inescapable framework of
Western hegemony (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). The conception of the West as the
ultimate ideal is a continuation of oppression thereby colonising the mind (Ndlovu-Gatsheni,
2019, p. 207).
For too long, South Asia has been considered to be part of the so-called ‘’Third World’’.
This derogatory terminology not only defines a nation’s economic status, it also allows for the
conception of inferiority through an evident pecking order placing the West at the top, the
‘’First World’’ (McClintock, 1992, p. 97). To do away with negative connotations, nowadays
the Third World is more commonly referred to as ‘’developing’’ or ‘’underdeveloped’’, thereby
still emphasising its work in progress nature in relation to the civilised and developed world of
the wealthy West. The invoked ‘’West is best’’ mentality portrays the remnants of colonialism
as a sense of inferiority still lingering in the non-Western rationale even after the proclamation
of political independence (McClintock, 1992, p. 86). Thus, liberation from the West requires a
more thorough approach. As such, decoloniality is aimed at deconstructing the oppressive
BROWN HISTORY 5
colonial rationality by which both body and mind are freed from colonial connotations
(Mignolo, 2007, p. 452).
The repercussions of the colonial past have become present by the persisted dominance
of white Western civilisation (McClintock, 1992, p. 94). In other words, the Western hegemony
is real and seems ever dominant (Walter, 2007, p. 451). As a result, the corresponding Western
ideals are imposed, internalised and applied as universal (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 208).
However, considering racial and cultural diversity, the white Western way simply cannot be
attained beyond the white Western world. Without an adequate and representable standard for
people of colour, the hierarchical power dynamic of West over non-West is maintained and
upheld (Connell, 2012, p. 681).
In this thesis I propose education as a tool to overcome this sense of subordination
which is deeply rooted in the colonial narrative of South Asia. As such, education houses the
decolonial potential of undoing coloniality, thereby overturning the colonial hierarchy of
oppression (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 1). Acknowledging and attributing the liberating
potential of education the following research question arises: Under what conditions can
education serve as a means towards liberation in South Asia, specifically focussing on
decolonising the mind.
For this I will treat my thesis as a conceptual analysis. Drawing upon the colonial
history of South Asia and its independence in relation to post-colonialism and decoloniality.
The theoretical framework of this thesis consists of three main parts. In the first section I will
define colonialism and highlight the respective opposing historical narratives of the West and
non-West. In the following section the focus will lay on the struggle for independence and the
false promise of post-colonial freedom. Lastly, I explore the relationship of continued
colonialism and Western hegemony and propose education as a means to decolonise the mind
thereby answering the aforementioned research question.
BROWN HISTORY 6
The social and academic relevance of this thesis is most profound in the Western
domination of the non-Western. As such, most literature concerning Brown History follows
the Western conception of liberation. The prevailing Western hegemony creates a framework
which dictates terms for the conception of universal ideology in both theory and practice
(Johnson, 2007, p. 30). From a Western perspective, one is locked up within this subjectivity
and can only escape through transcendence in the form of critical thinking. However, the non-
Western subject is instead locked out of the Western hegemony and will never be able to fully
realise the Western ideal. Perceiving this phenomena, even to the slightest, most minimal
extent, is sufficient to allow Western domination to prevail in a so-called post-colonial era
(McClintock, 1992, p. 86). The latter characterises the nature of our world’s contemporary
social struggle of racism and discrimination.
I: The West and The Rest
While a sphere knows no top nor down and has no sides, our world is divided and
segregated in ways that would in fact suggest such clear lines and sides. These marks of
segregation go against the laws of nature and, in a moral sense, the laws of justice and
humanity. While we speak so highly of equality, its universal application is yet to be perceived.
To count for this negligence, I look to a greater part of the world; the Africans, the Asians, the
Latin Americans and other so called ‘’minorities’’ who do not fit the norm (Loomba, 1998, p.
36). A norm that presents itself as fair for all while in reality it favours only a few: the West
(Walter, 2007, p. 451). This unfairness is ever so real in the mundaneness of mankind. The
Western norm is an inescapable given, dictating the terms and conditions of our daily lives.
Evident in the high regard to Western standards, it is practice and passion to adhere to this even
outside the Western realm. An example of this is the emphasis on the importance of the English
language and its vast international attribution. The ability to speak English hints at a certain
level of education and is often associated with a higher degree of personal development
BROWN HISTORY 7
(Nandy, 1983, p. 19). What is important to note here, is that these assumptions are relative and
restricted to the Western perspective. Despite its subjectivity, the inadequate and incomplete
Western ideology is presumed to be a critical principle to all (Johnson, 2007, p. 30).
Somehow and somewhere along the narrative of human history, the white man has
come to rule the world, its people and their mind, spirit and soul (Loomba, 1998, p. 22). This
process has created the notion of the ‘’Other’’ à la de Beauvoir (2009, p. 30; Loomba, 1998, p.
36). As proposed by Simone de Beauvoir, the Other has a deep philosophical connotation for
it gives rise to the possibility of oppression and subordination; the Other is always in relation
to the Subject, however it is not vice versa as this relationship is not reciprocated (2009, p. 27).
In other words, the Subject is obvious and therefore ever-dominant, whereas the Other
necessitates justification and emanibility of its sole existence (de Beauvoir, 2009, p. 26). We
perceive a hierarchical power dynamic in which Beauvoir explores male dominance as the
Subject and woman as the oppressed Other (2009, p. 31). This underlying notion of gender
discrimination and subordination can be stretched to a broader discussion of power play, which
in turn can be attributed to grasp the specifics of racial implications as a consequence of the
relationship between the dominant Subject and the inherently subordinate Other (Loomba,
1998, p. 33). As such, this Other has come to represent all non-white Westerners such as ‘’the
blacks’’, ‘’the yellows’’, ‘’the browns’’ and ‘’the reds’’. Simply reduced to the colour of their
skin, these ‘’coloureds’’ are seen as a minority as opposed to the white Subject within the
dominant Western framework (Darwin; 2009, p. 113).
To come to an understanding of moral Western superiority, we must look into the
West’s profound conquest of the physical world. Colonialism has played - and still plays - a
kernel role in the pervasive “West is Best” mentality. Given its potential and significance, one
must go beyond the common Western perspective to obtain a complete picture of yesterday’s
history and today’s present (Loomba, 1998, p. 33).
BROWN HISTORY 8
Before delving into the details of the Other, it is of essence to define colonialism and
lay the groundwork of its widely accepted Western narrative. Therefore I will begin by
clarifying the notions of colonialism and colonisation as referred to within the scope of this
thesis.
Defining Colonialism
Whilst the act of colonisation as a means for territorial expansion dates back to ancient
times, contemporary interpretation of colonialism sparks novel notions of overseas discovery
and exploration (Loomba, 1998, p. 20). As such it is most often associated with the century-
long history of European conquest and the conquering of new land (Young, 2001, p. 16).
However, it should be noted that this seemingly new land was in fact far from new, for it had
been walked on and inhabited by a wide range of primal tribes and sophisticated societies long
before the arrival of the Western explorers (Loomba, 1998, p. 19). Yet, with respect to
colonialism, textbook history suggests and highlights the necessity of formal discovery for true
acknowledgement and legitimisation of these territories. Understood as such, colonialism is
embedded in a bias which is heavily lopsided in favour of the coloniser (Loomba, 1998, p. 28).
Accordingly, it is the white Westerner who has unravelled the unknown regions, thereby
disregarding any sense of admission to its indigenous population (Loomba, 1998, p. 20). In
turn, this mentality justifies annexation and total authority of the coloniser. This aspect in
particular hints at the underlying subjectivity of colonial discourse that is so deeply rooted
within the imperative power dynamic of colonisation (Young, 2001, p. 18; Johnson, 2007, p.
36). As such, a hierarchy is established which neglects the position of the natives, subjugating
them to the rule of the Western newcomers (Young, 2001, p. 15). In other words; the colonial
narrative and its social implications are determined by the degree of affinity towards the roles
of either coloniser or colonised, which in turn bears the connotation of the oppressor and the
BROWN HISTORY 9
oppressed. The problem then arises as the contradictory nature of these opposing viewpoints is
most commonly disregarded and ignored in full, falsely presenting the perspective of the white
Western coloniser as the one and only objective truth (McClintock, 1992, p. 97).
Considering the long and complex history of colonialism, it is hard to adhere to one
definition (Loomba, 1998, p. 24). The different epochs through which colonialism has travelled
as well as the different backgrounds and nationalities of the travelers contribute to the
multiplicity of different forms, variations, and interpretations of colonialism (Loomba, 1998,
p. 20). While this diversity impedes the possibility of suscepting colonialism to a general
analysis, post-colonial theorists have distinguished two types of colonies: settlement and
exploitation colonies (Young, 2001, p. 17).
To understand this distinction it is necessary to start by further investigating the terms
colonialism and colonisation. Although, thus far I have not made explicit the difference
between the two, it is important to mention that colonialism is an ideology whereas colonisation
is the very practice driven by this ideology (Young, 2001, p. 16). This distinction will become
more evident in the following section which elaborates upon the notions of settlement and
exploitation colonisation. Thus, circling back to its definition, the pursuit and purpose of these
colonies is critical in shaping colonial ideology (i.e colonialism) and in turn the way in which
the colonial rule is imposed within the colonies (i.e the means of colonisation). As such, settler
colonialism was intended for settlement of the coloniser. In other words, the purpose of these
colonies was to establish a new society as a habitual expansion of Western territory such as the
British did by settling in North America, Australia and New Zealand. While this occurred
without any regard to the existing inhabitants and was mostly accompanied by excessive
violence, it cannot be compared to the prolonged cruelty of exploitation colonialism. As the
term already suggests, exploitation colonies were exposed to economic exploitation by their
colonisers (Young, 2001, p. 17). This entailed both the enslavement of the indegenous people
BROWN HISTORY 10
for their labour and the forceful extraction and appropriation of the fruitful lands and its
resources (Loomba, 1998, p. 25).
Once again, it should be noted that this explanation is a mere simplification of an overtly
complex concept. It is therefore salient to acknowledge the vast variety within colonialism as
distinct considerations. However, it is in theory possible to further categorise exploitation
colonialism in adherence to its broader ideology and purpose of either slavery or trade and
commerce. The former category is most commonly related to the African continent, where
black Africans were shackled and shipped off to the West where they often lived the rest of
their lives in servitude of a white master. The colonies for the purpose of trade and commerce
were often located in the tropical climates of the global South (Loomba, 1998, p. 25). This was
highly favourable for the cultivation of exotic goods and materials which in turn proved
profitable for both business and the Western economies (Loomba, 1998, p. 21). Asia, in
particular, was very rich in natural resources, a notion vastly exploited to serve the benefit of
the Western coloniser. The Europeans established multiple trading posts and trading companies
throughout the continent such as the East India Company, to extract the riches that they deemed
rightfully theirs (Loomba, 1998, p. 26). This simultaneously coincided with the economic
rationale which prescribed wealth and prosperity by accumulating a trade surplus (Loomba,
1998, p. 27). Colonial domination enabled the export of exotic goods as the Westerners’ own,
gaining the rents and revenues from the fruits reaped by the exploited colonised (Loomba,
1998, p. 21). In addition to this, the indigenous people were faced with the injustice of European
‘’free trade.’’ As such they were forced to buy back their homegrown products from their
superior rulers, thereby creating a dependency of their very own exploitation whilst
maintaining subjugation by the white Western colonisers (Loomba, 1998, p. 27).
To adhere to the scope of this thesis the focus lays mainly on the latter form of
exploitation colonialism as practiced in South Asia. The following section will provide a
BROWN HISTORY 11
concise discussion of colonial history. I will commence with what is presented and perceived
to be common knowledge of the West’s thriving centuries of colonisation. Followed by a more
unconventional perspective of the colonised (Johnson, 2007, p. 37). This will allow for
comparing and contrasting the different interpretations so that a further elaboration on the
colonial implications on society is made possible.
European Exploration
The 15th century marks the beginning of colonialism, a long lasting era that came to be
through an urge of curiosity. At the time, Europe faced both high heights and low depths in
terms of socio-economic conditions, the rich and the poor were juxtaposed as most nations
were confronted by serious inequalities. As a result, the search for riches began. Rumours of
abundance in the faraway lands of the so-called ‘’New World’’ lured the Europeans. The
Spaniards and the Portuguese set sail to discover and explore in the name of ‘’God, Gold and
Glory’’, a creed that stands central to First Wave Colonialism (Loomba, 1998, p. 20; Young,
2001, p.16). Accordingly, First Wave Colonialism is characterised by the conquest for wealth
and the conversion to Christianity (Gilmartin, 2009, p. 116). With newly acquired territory, the
Spanish and Portuguese explorers returned to their homelands as national heroes. The treasures
they had brought along with them from the Americas were unseen and unheard of. It sparked
a sense of competition amongst other European nations such as the French, the British and the
Dutch who could not stay behind in the pursuit to prosperity and travelled to the Americas as
well (Gilmartin, 2009, p. 115).
A century later, the Europeans traversed across the Atlantics to the Indian Ocean,
discovering Asia for the very first time in Western history. For many years, decades and even
centuries, it was the Dutch and Portuguese rule that reigned over the continent (Darwin, 2009,
p. 26). However, most of Asia’s colonial past is in fact remembered in relation to the most
BROWN HISTORY 12
profound and perdurable British Empire (Darwin, 2009, p. 17). As such, the British arrived in
India in the early 17th century taking over the country and eventually a greater part of the
Indian subcontinent including but certainly not restricted to Pakistan, Bangladesh, and what we
now have come to know as Sri Lanka and Myanmar (Young, 2001, p. 17). Furthermore, the
Empire counted various settlements and colonies that stretched over lands and seas so far apart
that the sun never set on its territories (Kolsky, 2010, p. 229).
The establishment of the East India Company in December 1600 matched the
rationality underlying Second Wave Colonialism which was driven by a strong incentive for
free trade. As such, the East India Company provided favourable conditions for trade for the
British in South Asia, thereby introducing the West to rare and exotic goods such as silk, tea,
sugar and other spices (Sanghera, 2021, p. 83).
Simultaneously, the East India Company allowed for the British to coordinate, impose
and enforce control over their colonies (Darwin, 2009, p. 180). This practice of power benefited
the British by establishing a clear hierarchy of coloniser and colonised, the British embodying
the role of the former. Here the Western gaze and the white man’s perception of the Other - the
colonised - become significantly relevant. Common condescending belief and patronising
perspectives find itself at the core of colonial oppression and domination (Curry, 2018, p. 32).
Upon arrival in the New World, the white Westerners were encountered by, what they deemed,
black and brown barbarians living in backward societies (Césaire, 1972, p. 2; Johnson, 2007,
p. 35). Consequently, the civilised coloniser felt compelled to share with these savage nations
the Western sense of sophistication and enlightenment. From the perspective of the Western
Subject, colonisation was an act of service. Thus, the notion of necessary civilisation was used
to serve as a justification for colonialism, something the so-called savages should have been
grateful for (Curry, 2018, p. 31; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211).
BROWN HISTORY 13
Exploitation and Violence
Much like a coin, every story has two sides, accordingly, history is no exception to this.
As mentioned before, colonialism has most certainly not been all glory for everyone. To
address this in full and provide complete comprehension of its subjectivity, I will continue by
shedding light on its darkest terrors and give a voice to the muted victims (Walter, 2007, p.
484). Thus, while the Westerners explored their power and prosperity in the self acclaimed new
regions of the South, the local population was forced to face the ugly truths of their oppression
(Sanghera, 2021, p. 21). Irrespective of when and where the white man first arrived, it seemed
as though it was their duty to dominate, and so they did. Ruthlessly. While the attribution of
violence during these conquests can hardly be denied, the true extent to which has been
obscured and obfuscated over time to the point of utter shock or even denial when confronted
with the history of excessive colonial brutality (Kolsky, 2010, p. 2). As such, for too long, the
biased tellings of history have concealed the menacing coercion and aggression of the Western
colonisers towards the indigenes on colonial territory. Hiding the horrific acts of hostility and
hatred, the pain and fear inflicted on the colonised coloureds is disregarded and its severity
silenced and suppressed.
With statues heralding the great heroes and national holidays celebrating the overseas
explorations of the Europeans, this particular perspective allows for continued triumph of white
man’s discovery of the rest of the world (Sanghera, 2021, p. 26). While, once again, these
revelations were redundant since human life had far preceded Western discovery and had long
prevailed in these lands. This latter, somewhat egalitarian, acknowledgement is on the rise and
has sparked recent commotion concerning the injustice and inhumanity surrounding
colonialism. Today’s date, in a similar fashion of a Renaissance revolt, statues of colonial
fathers and figures are taken down, street names and monuments with overt affiliation to the
white domination of colonialism are reconsidered and many activists are on the route to
BROWN HISTORY 14
redemption for what has happened in the past (Sanghera, 2021, p. 13). So what exactly did
happen?
While the secret abuse has often been done away as incidental and occasional, in
retrospect, violence was at the order of the day and simply cannot be separated from colonial
domination (Césaire, 1972, p. 4; Kolsky, 2010, p. 2; Price, 2018, p. 25). However, considering
the vast variety of coloniality, it is hardly possible to address colonial violence as singular or
static (Price, 2018, p. 26). Much like colonialism itself, the exact execution of its violence is
dependent on the different determinants of who, what, where and when. Yet it is in fact possible
to appoint similarities in the nature of the violent rapes, beatings, murders and other forms of
torture excercised to control the colonised (Price, 2018, p. 27).
As such, colonial violence was ubiquitous and quotidien and, in essence, always
directed at the indigenous population who fell victim to the gruesome ill treatment of the
Western colonisers (Price, 2018, p. 25). Understood as such, violence is intrinsic to colonialism
and is at the core of colonial domination (Césaire, 1972, p. 4). It was war and terror for the
colonised, from fighting for their freedom to being hunted down, abused, persecuted,
kidnapped and even killed in the safespace of their own homes. Accordingly, this type of
violence fosters a personal feature specific to the oppressed which is often argued and justified
in compliance to the colonial rule (Price, 2018, p. 28). The excessive attribution of violence
has rendered the possibility of exerting power and dominance over the colonised. Yet
simultaneously, the exerted violence extends far beyond the official authorities of the colonial
rule and thus exceeds its justification. This is most evident in the inhumaneness of colonial
violence which followed from the argument of barbarism as proposed by Aimé Césaire in
‘’Discourse on Colonialism’’ (1955, p. 2).
Confronted by the so-called savage societies upon conquest of the foreign lands, the
Europeans could not possibly acknowledge these coloureds as civilised human beings, let alone
BROWN HISTORY 15
somewhat akin to them. This pervasive racial condescension was borne by colonisation which
insisted on anything other than white and Western as inferior, less able and even less human
(Sanghera, 2021, p. 36). Thus, stripped from their humanity, the colonised were perceived as
brute barbarians, incompetent of accomodating to the civilised Western world and therefore in
desperate need of a firm push in the ‘’white’’ direction (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211). As
such, the superficial differences of skin colour, and the heavy load it bears, between the
coloniser and colonised gave rise to an inescapable hierarchy condoning the inequalities that
allowed for the harsh imposition of the colonial rule and its immoral violence against the
oppressed natives (Curry, 2018, p. 34; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203).
According to Césaire, the viciousness of the latter could only have been possible
through the dehumanising gaze of the West onto the colonised (1972, p. ). Consequently, the
element of colour and complexion appears so substantial to the eyes of the superior white man,
that he equates darkness to nothing other than barbarous, brute and beastly (Ndlovu-Gatsheni,
2019, p. 216). Accustomed to this self-painted picture, the coloniser viewed the indegenous
population as inhuman and animalistic and therefore unworthy of basic human morality. This
in turn would come to justify the inhumane treatment of the colonised and the violence
attributed against the coloureds. However, this gives rise to a dialectic confronting the
supposedly civilised and utmost sophisticated Western society and the savage-like nature of
violence inseparable from colonialism. Césaire argues that the brute treatment of the
barbarians, reduces and finally diminishes the colonisers’ humanity (1972, p. 5). Irrespective
of the colonised, the cruelty of colonial violence has uncovered true savagery of the West. In
other words, acting upon the idea of the colonised as uncivilised has led to the process of
‘’decivilisation’’ of the West, being guilty of exactly their own accusation of barbarism
(Césaire, 1972, p. 2; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211).
BROWN HISTORY 16
The Rationality of Colonial Violence
In order to gain full insight on the deeper impact and implications of colonial violence,
we must turn to its basic rationality. As such, the brutal violence is driven by various motives
from power to dominance and authority. On the other hand, the excessive attribution of
violence simultaneously hints at the attempt of concealing the true underlying fear and despair
constantly lurking over the coloniser’s shoulder, thereby posing a threat to colonial power
(Césaire, 1972, p. 1). In this section I will further elaborate on these motives central to the
psychology of colonial violence.
Essentially, colonial violence can be thought of as instrumental through its presumed
potential of establishing power. With violence on their side, the coloniser asserts his dominance
in adherence to the condescending attitude upheld against the colonised. This power structure
of coloniser over colonised, white over coloured and West over the Rest, fosters a hierarchical
order based on race and complexion (Johnson, 2007, p. 34). While this particular interpretation
is most straightforward, the analysis of colonial violence is complex and necessitates a closer
look.
In her book, On Violence, Hannah Arendt explores the relationship between power and
violence (1970). Although Arendt never explicitly comes to define power, it can be inferred as
a product of the collective and refers to the ability to act in coordination and collaboration
(1969, p. 44). Accordingly, power rests on the rule of shared ideology which in turn allows for
the assumption of voluntary adherence by its subject. Understood as such, power in its purest
form negates violence and coercion. (Arendt, 1970, p. 45). This goes against the common
belief of power and violence as synonymous. In fact, Arendt clearly distinguishes the two
(1970, p. 47). Violence is individualistic and embodies instrumentality which is in contrast to
power considering its collective nature and the necessity of plurality. For a position of power
can only be maintained in relation to others (Arendt, 1970, p. 44). In other words, power is the
BROWN HISTORY 17
coordination of all against one whereas violence is one against all. This particular insight
reveals a weakness in the often, falsely assumed relationship of violence as a means to establish
power (Arendt, 1970, p. 47). Accordingly, Arendt proposes violence as a threat to power rather
than complimentary to it. The attribution of violence from a position of power can be
interpreted as a sign of its instability (Arendt, 1970, p. 4).
Within the context of colonialism this would imply a continuous threat to colonial
dominance. While seemingly counterintuitive, along these lines, it can be argued that colonial
violence may have served to cope with the fear of losing power and authority over the
colonised. Furthermore, the intrinsic fear of the foreign coloureds also contributed to the
excessive attribution of colonial violence (Price, 2018, p. 31). After all, the white man assumed
barbarism from the uncivilised indigenes thus to prevent being overpowered and overthrown
the coloniser turned to barbarian violence himself, safeguarding their position as oppressor.
II: Independence and Post-Colonialism
In a world of binaries from Western and non-Western to coloniser and colonised, the
act of oppression is bound by opposition in the spirit of resistance (Nandy, 1983, p. 10; Freire,
1985, p. 183; Walsh, 2015, p. 16). An inevitable notion given the forceful nature underlying
this coercive form of domination to which its subjects cannot but succumb. As mentioned
before, the colonial rule relied much upon the attribution of violence to establish and maintain
power (Arendt, 1970, p. 35). Any sign of unwillingness was thus quick to be aggressed into
compliance, thereby treating the natives as pawns in the game of colonial conquest. The
prevailing secrecy surrounding colonial violence has led to the belief of the colonised’
voluntary submission, obfuscating the resistance and resilience against the oppressive West.
By means of this, it is suggested as though the colonised willingly submitted to their oppression
which in turn allows for the justification of white man’s history of colonisation (Freire, 1985,
BROWN HISTORY 18
p. 192). However, contrary to this belief, colonialism should in fact be characterised by the
ongoing struggle against the colonial power, for the indigenes did not simply give up the reigns
over their land to the Western explorer, evident in the endless violence for the pursuit and
preservation of power as part and parcel of colonisation. In adherence to Arendt’s analysis of
power and violence, the latter poses an existential threat to the colonial rule, bound to collapse
by the very violence of its power (1970, p. 4). As Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec ruler, allegedly
said when defeated by the Spaniards:‘’The face of our Sun has disappeared, and has left us in
complete darkness. But we know it will return again, that it will rise again, and it will begin to
illuminate us anew.’’ While these words echo dismay and despair, it is also hopeful and
confident that the oppression will eventually be overthrown and will cease to exist, as power
established through violence is fragile and seldom to be everlasting (Arendt, 1970, p. 47). As
such, it is almost laughable and ludicrous to consider 500 years of colonialism separate from
its resistance.
Towards Independence
The journey to colonial independence has been a long one. Despite uncertainty and
anxiety prevailing in the minds of the colonised, the sense of opposition against the oppressive
power has proven to be stronger. Considering the historical significance of the British Raj, I
will treat colonial India as a chief example for the conception of Brown History, the
colonisation of South Asia and eventual its independence.
From beginning to end, the Indian Independence movement lays bare the differences
between the Indians and the British colonisers. While the British posed their domination as
progressive and an aid to development, argued for instance by the newly constructed railroads
and improved infrastructure connecting the vast landscape of India, the Indians in fact endured
slavery and exploitation as a result of this, arguably causing more harm and damage to the
BROWN HISTORY 19
natives than anything else (Césaire, 1972, p. 6; Darwin, 2008, p. 10; Kolsky, 2010, p. 3). The
century-long resistance against the British Raj is thus a given and coincided with India's
colonisation from 1858 to 1947. Essentially, the Indian Independence movement was anti-
colonial, aimed at overthrowing British domination and regaining India’s freedom and
autonomy. The numerous rebellions and revolts against the colonial power covered the entire
subcontinent (Bayly, 1987, p. 171). Sparked by various distinct incidents, the movement
compiles a complex history. However, the importance of education should be emphasised as
an underlying drive for resistance (Bayly, 1987, p. 176; Darwin, 2009, p. 195; Walsh, 2015, p.
11). Learning about Western civilisation and the ideas of liberal democracy, the colonised
experienced significant discrepancies and even contradictions between what the colonisers
preached and practiced (Kolsky, 2010, p. 1; Walsh, 2015, p. 13). While the Enlightened
Westerners spoke profoundly of liberty and justice, they seemed to leave behind this sense of
morality when considering the coloureds (Kolsky, 2010, p. 2; Walter, 2007, p. 454). Falling
victim to white man’s violent hypocrisy, the Indians turned to various countermeasures
themselves, including violence in retaliation for their repression. The failures of the many
physical uprisings finally begged for a different approach to freedom, to which Mahatma
Gandhi appointed non-violence.
Gandhi, the anti-colonial nationalist and politician, played a pivotal role to attain
swaraj, Hindi for self-governance and eventually synonymous for India’s independence
(Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 3; Darwin, 2009, p. 193). Instead of relying on violence, his political
agenda was centered around the virtuous ahimsa which is the philosophy of non-violence
applied to all of life (Gandhi, 2012, p. 53). These moral teachings, contrasted by the colonial
immorality, contributed to the convocation of peaceful protests, hunger strikes and other non-
violent, anti-colonial movements to overthrow the British Raj (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 11).
This coincided with Gandhi’s philosophy of satyagraha, it emphasises the approach of non-
BROWN HISTORY 20
violence invoking a basic sense of humanity to which the attribution of oppressive violence
can no longer be justified. Satyagraha is the belief of overcoming injustice and oppression
which can be understood in the simple terms of ‘’peace not war’’. Raising an informed and
educated generation aware of their misfortune and maltreatment was of utmost importance to
invoke this potential in spirit and practice. Finally, on August 15th 1947, the victory of
resistance was assumed with the Indian Independence Act ending nearly a century of colonial
oppression (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 9).
The Problem of Post-Colonialism
Towards the second half of the twentieth century, a global pattern emerged amongst the
majority of Western colonies which were increasingly declared independent from the colonial
rule, thereby introducing a new era known as post-colonialism. By the very composition of the
word and the attribution of the prefix ‘’post-’’, post-colonialism suggests the end of
colonisation (McClintock, 1992, p. 85). While the latter may sustain in theory, reality begs to
differ. Thus, in light of the ever real aftermath of colonisation, I wish to elaborate upon the
problem of post-colonialism in what follows.
Initially post-colonial theory was intended in defence of the colonised, aimed at
understanding the underlying notions of colonisation and the subsequent racial power dynamics
that came to be, thereby exposing various narratives which have been long oppressed by the
colonial hegemony (Walter, 2007, p. 497). Furthermore, the implied temporal lense of post-
colonialism allows for it to flow seemingly naturally from colonialism as the result of increased
independence and the simultaneous collapse of the West’s colonial authority (McClintock,
1992, p. 94). Understood as such, post-colonialism gives rise to the false conception of a
liberated world, posing colonisation to be something of the past (McClintock, 1992, p. 86). On
the one hand, this can be argued by the prevailing physical independence which indeed, for
BROWN HISTORY 21
most part, implies a free world. On the other hand, the post-colonial condition is not as
straightforward and cannot simply be reduced to such optimism (McClintock, 1992, p. 91).
Dismissing colonialism as something of the past poses a threat which fails to acknowledge the
pressing social problems of contemporary society. As such, our modern world still bares the
burden of colonisation evident in a widerange of interrelated issues from injustice and
inequality to racism and discrimination. Post-colonialism aggravates this debacle by
maintaining certain power structures which clearly distinguish the colonial oppressor from the
oppressed (McClintock, 1992, p. 89). In doing so, the oppression is carried on beyond ‘’post-
colonialism’’, considering the ex-colonised only in relation to Western domination and their
colonial past. Drawing upon Beauvoir’s conception of the Other, this proves the discontinuity
and insignificance ascribed to their sole existence (McClintock, 1992, p. 86; Walter, 2007, p.
453). Contrary to the suggested ideal of independence, the colonised remain oppressed within
the realm of post-colonialism. Consequently, the hierarchy established in colonial history still
prevails in the structure and organisation of today’s world, administering the highest privilege
to the white Westerner and any other colour or culture as inferior (Walter 2007, p. 469).
Thus, while post-colonialism may be a product of good intentions and has certainly
proven insightful for a better understanding of colonialism, its theory is lacking as a means to
overthrow the negative social connotations rooted within colonialism (Walter, 2007, p. 452).
Before proposing a more complete and compatible theory for addressing this, I wish to first
define and elaborate upon the insinuated problem of colour prejudice, racism and ethnic
discrimination.
Perpetual Colour Prejudice
As mentioned before, our world is tainted by the prevailing inequalities fostered by the
perpetual colour prejudice of race and culture as analogous to the Western perspective of
BROWN HISTORY 22
colonialism (Césaire, 1972, p 8). The self-constructed conception of white dominance over the
rest, connotes to the belief of the West being further developed and more civilised, which in
turn adheres to the narrative attributed to justify colonisation (Walter, 2007, p. 453).
Accordingly, racism can be understood as a construct of colonialism which persists to oppress
the colourful Other despite the promise of independence. While colonialism is responsible for
creating such sense of discrimination, it has also purposely prevented and putrefied progress
and development in the global South, still marked by its hardship.
The ever long history of oppressive colonialism has imposed and demanded submission
from its subjects. The hierarchical subjugation of the colonised has been engraved in the minds
of man and internalised as a self-fulfilling prophecy that seems to be everlasting (Ndlovu-
Gatsheni, 2019, p. 207). In his essay Colonialism is a System, Jean Paul Sartre sets out to prove
just that. The underlying argument uncovers colonialism as a systematic structure of
oppression. As such, colonialism is in favour of the West, advocating its own advantage while
deliberately destroying and suppressing any form of development by the Other (Césaire, 1972,
p. 6). This enforced hierarchy invokes a sense of inescapable inferiority amongst the colonised,
in turn, coinciding perfectly with the predominant Western hegemony which poses the Western
perspective as a guiding principle for all of humanity (Walter, 2007, p. 493). The assumed
universality further contributes to the inferiority complex of the non-West (Césaire, 1972, p. 7;
Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). Understood as such, the extensive consequences of
colonialism are for most part intangible and a process of the mind into the practice of prejudice.
The attempt to overthrow colonial connotations thus demands more than physical liberation.
Consequently, total independence can only be attained successfully by decolonising the mind
(Mignolo, 2007, p.450).
BROWN HISTORY 23
III: Decolonisation & Education
In contrast to post-colonialism, decolonisation is explicitly aimed at deconstructing and
dismantling the logic of coloniality (Mignolo, 2007, p. 452; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, P. 214).
This logic is built upon the notions of racial, cultural and religious differences which are
considered to be inferior and subordinate if divergent from the West (Zembylas, 2020, p. 3).
The oppressive power and domination of the racial Other is a direct product of colonialism,
which first produced racism (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019 p. 203). Decolonisation thus addresses
racial discrimination as a pertinent problem of colonialism which in turn has come to rule the
reason of man (Zembylas, 2020, p. 18). Entrapped by the narratives still preserving injustice
and inequality, decolonisation must go beyond mere political independence to unleash its
liberating potential (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203). The very objective of decolonisation is
to transcend and overturn racial discrimination and the accompanying social hierarchies
intrinsic to the rationality of Western colonialism and its civilisation (Mignolo, 2007, p. 459).
In the following sections I will elaborate more upon the necessity to free the mind from
colonial connotations and how decolonisation can aid to attain liberation in full. For this, I will
draw upon the power and liberating potential of education as an instrument for decoloniality.
The Colonised Mind
To delve into the importance of decolonisation, colonialism must be understood as more
than solely a system of physical domination and oppression. While the foreign lands and its
indigenous population have been the direct victims of Western colonisation, the effects stretch
far beyond this territorial tangibility. As such, colonial ideology has perpetrated the cognitive
realm through its authoritative intervention with culture in its most extensive form. This
includes, yet is certainly not limited to the conception of knowledge, language, aesthetics and
even politics (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 206). The cognitive approach of exerting colonial
BROWN HISTORY 24
power is characteristic to so-called neo-colonialism (Loomba, 1998, p. 25). In contrast to
colonialism as discussed so far, neo-colonialism relies on non-physical forms of control to
effectively colonise the mind. While these provocations of neo-colonial power may seem
implicit and subtle, the oppression remains fierce and ferocious, penetrating deep into the soul
and persistently pestering the mind into submission (Nandy, 1983, p. 11; Freire, 1985, p. 192).
The peculiarity of neo-colonialism is that it can go unnoticed as it dominates both the conscious
and unconscious. Thus, as colonialism exceeds the physical domain, it becomes a product of
the mind by which the history of colonial oppression is continued. The latter is evident in our
global hierarchy and world order classified by colour and culture as analogous to the
underlying rationality of the power dynamic between coloniser and colonised. Thus, as the
white man once introduced humanity to civilisation, today he dictates the terms of
development, Western development (Nandy, 1983, p. 12). To give an example, the notions
Third World and Developing World are generally attributed in reference to non-Western,
impoverished countries (Freire, 1985, p. 188). This derogatory terminology expresses our
relative reality as the weight of the West appears critical in setting the standard for our world’s
wealth and welfare (Nandy, 1983, p. 26; McClintock, 1992, p. 93). Here the general insinuation
of the ‘’West is best’’ mentality returns as the Western world serves as a guiding principle and
ideology for the Rest ( Walsh, 2015, p. 15). As such, the latter implies an internalisation of the
former (Freire, 1985, p. 185). This is in line with the long term implications of Western
colonialism which disguises dependency as independence.
By successfully imposing Eurocentric power and preeminence over the many centuries
of colonisation, the oppressed subjects have eventually come to internalise their domination as
a natural consequence of their presumed lack of civilisation and deficiency of their dark
complexion (Freire, 1985, p. 192). Ashish Nandy articulates this as the birth of the ‘’Intimate
Enemy’’ who has come to believe in his own inferiority (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 208).
BROWN HISTORY 25
Humiliated by the constant badgering and bullying of colonialism, the Intimate Enemy is
provoked to dissociate from the Self as its sole perception is shame induced (Ndlovu-Gatsheni,
2019, p. 212). By acknowledging and accepting the condescension, it eventually becomes the
truth (Hall, 2016, p. 161). Thus, the oppression of the Other seems to be objectively rational,
in turn justifying the continuation of asymmetrical power relations even long after the alleged
colonial independence (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 213). This has contributed to an arbitrary
and lop-sided conception of the world which can be described as the dominant Western
hegemony.
Antonio Gramsci was the first to introduce the notion of cultural hegemony which he
defined as the manifestation of power through cultural institutions. Thereby, shaping moral
beliefs, norms and values as well as common knowledge and one's perception and
consciousness (1971, p. 10). By means of this, a hegemony ultimately enforces one perspective
as dominant over the other, establishing a hierarchical power dynamic by which the subaltern
is suppressed (Hall, 2016, p. 162). While Gramsci focuses his study of hegemony on the class
specific society of the capitalist bourgeoisie and the proletariat, many thinkers and theorists
have borrowed from his conception to explore various other relations of power and dominance.
Stuart Hall is one of them. In his book, Cultural Studies 1983, Hall delves into domination and
hegemony within the context of social formation (Hall, 2016, p. 155). Hall elaborates on
Gramsci’s process of hegemony as the alignment of interests between the dominant and
subaltern social groups which eventually, in the particular moment of hegemony, gives rise to
a universal code of conduct and the conception of a sole commanding world-view. However,
the coordination of interests essentially takes into consideration the dominant ideology which
is surreptitiously forced upon the subaltern to ensure that the dominant will becomes command.
Along these lines, hegemonic universality professes its power and oppression as the product of
collective conviction (Hall, 2016, p. 162).
BROWN HISTORY 26
The same universal rationality underlies the construction of Western hegemony which
in turn has come to dictate our global hierarchy and social dynamics (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019,
p. 208). Coloured by Eurocentrism, Western hegemony predicates the Western way as the only
way, thereby excluding alternate approaches to the realms of power, knowledge and being
(Walsh, 2015, p. 13; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 215). In doing so, the West once again
safeguards its position of power in relation to the subaltern Other (Walsh, 2015, p. 19). This is
only made possible as the everlong history of colonial oppression is normalised (Curry, 2019,
p. 36; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 206). Consequently, Western hegemony is both an
affirmation and continuation of coloniality by which the hierarchy of the West over the non-
West is labelled as common sense (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). Hall shows the intrinsic
danger of a hegemony as the argument of common sense solely arises when reason is lacking.
This in turn hints at the impaired ability to think, act and be critical of the system of power.
(2016, p. 165). In other words, the asymmetry of power is taken for granted and the oppression
of the (ex-)colonised seems to be nothing out of the ordinary (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). This is the
direct result of the reciprocal relationship between colonialism and Western hegemony by
which the mind is colonised into believing in the ubiquitous superiority of the West.
The Pedagogy of Decolonisation
In this final section I will establish the importance of education. Thereby emphasising
its emancipatory potential within the context of today’s racialised social struggle which is
deeply rooted in the remnants of colonialism (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 1). In other
words, I will explain how education is instrumental to decolonise the mind.
As briefly mentioned before, decoloniality goes against colonialism. While it is
essentially in resistance to the latter, decoloniality should be understood as more than a mere
theoretical critique. As such, decolonisation is the very act of delinking and undoing the
BROWN HISTORY 27
colonial condition (Mignolo, 2007, p. 452). Accordingly, debunking colonial rationality is of
utmost importance for the process of colonial independence and liberation (Walsh, 2015, p.
11). Thus far this rationality has sustained a dominant power structure in favour of the West.
Through the establishment of Western hegemony, the oppression of the colonised Other has
become a universal standard and by that, a universal problem (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203).
However, the problem in effect remains particular to the oppressed. In his book Politics of
Education, Paolo Freire articulates the dynamic between the dominant and subordinate culture
as ‘’being’’ and ‘’non-being’’ in an analogous fashion to Beauvoire’s conception of the Other
(Freire, 1985, p. 192; Beauvoire, 2009, p. 30). Thus, understood as such, the non-being ascribed
to the non-Western comes to expose the insignificance of the Other, in turn disregarding the
burden of its particular problem.
Remarkably, the inequality between West and non-West is further aggravated by
education (Connell, 2012, p. 681). The reason for this is twofold. Firstly, this can be attributed
to a presumed universal pedagogy. Drawing upon the notion of Western universality, this
implies that standard education is West-centered, thereby creating a fundamental gap between
the two worlds (Walsh, 2015, p. 12). Secondly, the sustenance of an asymmetrical power
structure is due to the performative nature of education (Connell, 2012, p. 681; Southwell &
Depaepe, 2019, p. 2). Within an educational system, knowledge is generally passed on from
educator to student under the common assumption of it being true (Freire, 1985, p. 189).
However, the universality of education poses the threat of unconsciously consuming subjective
knowledge which in turn is reproduced as the objective truth. Consequently, the real danger of
performative education is the birth of biased subjectivities which are inherently complicit to
the universal West (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). Here the reciprocity becomes clear between the
universal and performative character of education which are intended to further develop the
political agenda of the West and its domination over the Other. This is in line with Freire’s
BROWN HISTORY 28
understanding that pedagogy and politics are interrelated and cannot be considered separate
from one another (1985, p. 188). Thus, in order to overthrow the oppressive system of Western
power, we must unlearn the colonial teachings of condescension and replace these with
decolonial teachings (Walsh, 2015, p. 13).
For the purpose of decoloniality, it is necessary to be critical of the imposed knowledge
and to challenge Western hegemony. However, being truly critical is especially difficult when
the mind is entrapped and constrained by the Western doctrine (Walsh, 2015, p. 12; Southwell
& Depaepe, 2019, p. 2). As a result, it is hardly possible to formulate criticism beyond the
Eurocentric framework of critique (Bartholomew, 2018, p. 629). As such, the main pitfall in
Freire is returning to Marxism and modernity (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). Effectively decolonising
the mind thus requires departure from the Western realm. This implies leaving behind the
principle of Western universality which in turn gives rise to the significance of the Other and
its Other modes of existence (Freire, 1895, p. 189; Walsh, 2015, p. 12). It is at this moment
that the plurality and diversity of mankind is acknowledged. In order to materialise
decoloniality, this plurality should be accompanied by a corresponding multiplicity of
pedagogies (Walsh, 2015, p. 15). The shift from universality to pluriversality is a liberating one
which renders all subjects equal. Thereby doing away with hierarchical structures and
oppressive systems. In contrast to universalism, pluriversality embraces its racial, cultural and
ethnic differences and the vast variety of lived experiences it produces (Connell, 2012, p. 682;
Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 3). The latter is especially beneficial within the context of
transformative education as the transcultural encounters are materialised, thereby enhancing
the potential of shared learning. These social engagements are promising in their potential to
redefine the cultural dynamics, excluded from higher, hierarchical interventions. Understood
as such, education is instrumental to the novel conception of a collective bottom-up culture
BROWN HISTORY 29
instead of an imposed top-down culture (Connell, 2012, p. 682; Southwell & Depaepe, 2019,
p. 1).
However, generating and reproducing such a system of fairness and equality relies
strictly on the virtues of respect and responsibility (Connel, 2012, p. 682). These notions stand
central to racial and cultural justice. As such, mutual respect invokes a sense of similarity
thereby giving rise to the ability of sympathising with the Other (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019,
p. 4). In turn, personal responsibility ensures equal treatment of the Other as one cannot account
for unfairness and injustice on oneself (Connel, 2012, p. 681). By means of this, the Other is
no longer oppressed, liberated of condemnation and condescension from above. Thus, to
conclude, a morally righteous education system is trivial to overcome colonial injustice and
colour prejudice.
Conclusion
In conclusion, our contemporary social struggle is inseparable from the long history of
Western colonialism, which has divided the world based on racial and cultural differences. The
asymmetrical power of coloniality has come to oppress the Other, justified by the inference of
its racial inferiority to the West. Stripped from their humanity, the colonised is beaten down
and tamed to obey the Western order. Although this hierarchy is initially enforced through the
excessive physical aggression of colonial violence, it is effectively sustained by instilling the
sense of an inherent inferiority of the Other. Thereby colonising the body and mind as the
oppression is internalised. This is essential to comprehend the universal dominance of Western
hegemony which in turn sustains the oppressive dynamic of colonialism placing the West over
non-West. While post-colonialism draws upon political independence to declare the end of
colonialism, this is far from true. Our world is still coloured by racism, discrimination and
colour prejudice. In order to transcend these connotations and attain complete liberation,
BROWN HISTORY 30
coloniality must be undone. Decoloniality is aimed at exactly this, deconstructing and
debunking the pervasive colonial rationality. Here education can serve as a means to decolonise
the mind by the unlearning of colonial teachings and instead learning of decolonial teachings.
This requires leaving behind the universality of the hegemonic West and instead, embracing
the world’s diversity. Circling back to the central issue of this thesis; under what conditions
can education serve as a means of liberation thereby focussing especially on decolonising the
mind. To conclude by answering, decolonial pedagogies are essentially pluriversal and
necessitate the notions of mutual respect and responsibility to truly transcend and break free
from colonialism. Under these moral conditions education can serve as a means to liberate the
mind from colonial connotations closely associated to South Asia. Eventually giving rise to a
more just and equal world, free from racial discrimination and colour prejudice.
BROWN HISTORY 31
Bibliography
Atack, I. (2012). Nonviolence in political theory. Edinburgh University Press.
Arendt, H. (1970). On violence. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Bandyopadhyay, S. (2009). Decolonization in South Asia: Meanings of freedom in
post-independence West Bengal, 1947–52. Routledge.
Bartholomew, J. M. (2018). Decoloniality and decolonizing critical theory. Constellations, 25
(4) , 629-640.
Césaire, A. (1972). Discourse on Colonialism. 1955. Trans. Joan Pinkham. New York: Monthly
Review Press.
Connell, R. (2012). Just education. Journal of Education Policy, 27(5), 681-683.
Curry, T. J. (2018). Another White Man's Burden: Josiah Royce's Quest for a Philosophy of
White Racial Empire. SUNY Press.
Darwin, J. (2009). The empire project: the rise and fall of the British world-system,
1830–1970. Cambridge University Press.
De Beauvoir, S. L. (2009). Introduction In The Second Sex ( 23-39). Vintage Books.
Freire, P. (1985). The politics of education: Culture, power, and liberation. Greenwood
Publishing Group.
Gandhi, M. K. (2012). Non-violent resistance. Courier Corporation.
Gramsci, A. (1971). Selections from the prison notebooks (Q. Hoare & G. Nowell Smith,
Eds.). New York: International Publishers.
Hall, S. (2016). Cultural studies 1983: A theoretical history. Duke University Press.
Johnson, R. (2007). The British empire: Pomp, power and postcolonialism. Humanitie Ebooks.
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Kolsky, E. (2010). Colonial Justice in British India (p. 129). Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Loomba, A. (1998). Situating colonial and postcolonial studies(p. 1100). na.
McClintock, A. (1992). The angel of progress: Pitfalls of the term" post-colonialism".
Social text, (31/32), 84-98.
Mignolo, Walter D. "Delinking: The rhetoric of modernity, the logic of coloniality and the
grammar of de-coloniality." Cultural studies 21.2-3 (2007): 449-514.
Ndlovu-Gatsheni, S. J. (2019). Discourses of decolonization/decoloniality. Papers on
Language and Literature, 55(3), 201-226.
Price, R. N. (2018). The psychology of colonial violence. In violence, colonialism and
empire in the modern world (pp. 25-52). Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Ricoeur, P. (2010). Power and violence. Hannah Arendt: Critical Assessments of Leading
Political Philosophers, 3, 20-42.
Sanghera, S. (2021). Empireland. Penguin Books, United Kingdom.
Sartre, J. P. (2001). Colonialism is a System. interventions, 3(1), 127-140.
Southwell, M., & Depaepe, M. (2019). The relation between education and emancipation:
something like water and oil? Introducing the special issue. Paedagogica Historica,
55(1), 1-7.
Walsh, C. E. (2015). Decolonial pedagogies walking and asking. Notes to Paulo Freire from
AbyaYala. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 34(1), 9-21.
Young, R. J. (200). Concepts in History. In Postcolonialism: An historical introduction, 15
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Decolonising Brown History: The Power of Pluriversal Pedagogies

  • 1. RUNNING HEAD: BROWN HISTORY Decolonising Brown History The Power of Pluriversal Pedagogies by Arundathi de Saram Erasmus University College 466243 Dr. Julien Kloeg June 7, 2021
  • 2. BROWN HISTORY 2 Abstract While post-colonialism suggests the end of coloniality, the contemporary social struggle concerning race and culture proves otherwise. Racism and colour prejudice are a direct manifestation of the colonial order which places the West over non-West. By internalising this hierarchical power dynamic, colonialism is continued beyond the physical realm thereby effectively colonising the mind. Accordingly, deconstructing colonial rationality is necessary to attain liberation from the oppressive Western framework which dictates Western universality. Education is instrumental to this process of liberation as unlearning coloniality and learning decoloniality is fundamental to decolonise the mind. To unleash this liberating potential, the pedagogical nature must shift from universal to pluriversal thereby acknowledging and embracing racial and cultural differences. A morally just education system emphasising the virtues of respect and responsibility are of essence to create an equal society liberated from colonial connotations.
  • 3. BROWN HISTORY 3 Table of Content Introduction 4 Defining Colonialism 8 European Exploration 11 Exploitation and Violence 13 The Rationality of Colonial Violence 16 II: Independence and Post-Colonialism 17 Towards Independence 18 The Problem of Post-Colonialism 20 Perpetual Colour Prejudice 21 III: Decolonisation & Education 23 The Colonised Mind 23 The Pedagogy of Decolonisation 26 Conclusion 29 Bibliography 31
  • 4. BROWN HISTORY 4 Introduction The colour of my skin speaks no truth of me, yet it paints a picture of how you perceive me. And while my roots bear no meaning, it hints at a long history of colonial oppression. As such, South Asia has endured a long colonial past of which the effects are still present today (Ivison, 2010, p. 36). Haunted by racism, discrimination, inequality and injustice, the coloured colonised have lived in submission to the West for centuries (Loomba, 1998, p. 22). Fostered in the violent history of oppression and subordination, the colonial past of so-called ‘’Brown History’’ is in adherence to the Western narrative. Charged by Eurocentrism, colonisation has imposed the universality of Western ideology, materialising a hierarchical power dimension of West over non-West (Walsh, 2015, p. 13). Internalising the asymmetry of colonialism allows for the West to sustain its dominance, thereby giving rise to the inescapable framework of Western hegemony (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). The conception of the West as the ultimate ideal is a continuation of oppression thereby colonising the mind (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 207). For too long, South Asia has been considered to be part of the so-called ‘’Third World’’. This derogatory terminology not only defines a nation’s economic status, it also allows for the conception of inferiority through an evident pecking order placing the West at the top, the ‘’First World’’ (McClintock, 1992, p. 97). To do away with negative connotations, nowadays the Third World is more commonly referred to as ‘’developing’’ or ‘’underdeveloped’’, thereby still emphasising its work in progress nature in relation to the civilised and developed world of the wealthy West. The invoked ‘’West is best’’ mentality portrays the remnants of colonialism as a sense of inferiority still lingering in the non-Western rationale even after the proclamation of political independence (McClintock, 1992, p. 86). Thus, liberation from the West requires a more thorough approach. As such, decoloniality is aimed at deconstructing the oppressive
  • 5. BROWN HISTORY 5 colonial rationality by which both body and mind are freed from colonial connotations (Mignolo, 2007, p. 452). The repercussions of the colonial past have become present by the persisted dominance of white Western civilisation (McClintock, 1992, p. 94). In other words, the Western hegemony is real and seems ever dominant (Walter, 2007, p. 451). As a result, the corresponding Western ideals are imposed, internalised and applied as universal (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 208). However, considering racial and cultural diversity, the white Western way simply cannot be attained beyond the white Western world. Without an adequate and representable standard for people of colour, the hierarchical power dynamic of West over non-West is maintained and upheld (Connell, 2012, p. 681). In this thesis I propose education as a tool to overcome this sense of subordination which is deeply rooted in the colonial narrative of South Asia. As such, education houses the decolonial potential of undoing coloniality, thereby overturning the colonial hierarchy of oppression (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 1). Acknowledging and attributing the liberating potential of education the following research question arises: Under what conditions can education serve as a means towards liberation in South Asia, specifically focussing on decolonising the mind. For this I will treat my thesis as a conceptual analysis. Drawing upon the colonial history of South Asia and its independence in relation to post-colonialism and decoloniality. The theoretical framework of this thesis consists of three main parts. In the first section I will define colonialism and highlight the respective opposing historical narratives of the West and non-West. In the following section the focus will lay on the struggle for independence and the false promise of post-colonial freedom. Lastly, I explore the relationship of continued colonialism and Western hegemony and propose education as a means to decolonise the mind thereby answering the aforementioned research question.
  • 6. BROWN HISTORY 6 The social and academic relevance of this thesis is most profound in the Western domination of the non-Western. As such, most literature concerning Brown History follows the Western conception of liberation. The prevailing Western hegemony creates a framework which dictates terms for the conception of universal ideology in both theory and practice (Johnson, 2007, p. 30). From a Western perspective, one is locked up within this subjectivity and can only escape through transcendence in the form of critical thinking. However, the non- Western subject is instead locked out of the Western hegemony and will never be able to fully realise the Western ideal. Perceiving this phenomena, even to the slightest, most minimal extent, is sufficient to allow Western domination to prevail in a so-called post-colonial era (McClintock, 1992, p. 86). The latter characterises the nature of our world’s contemporary social struggle of racism and discrimination. I: The West and The Rest While a sphere knows no top nor down and has no sides, our world is divided and segregated in ways that would in fact suggest such clear lines and sides. These marks of segregation go against the laws of nature and, in a moral sense, the laws of justice and humanity. While we speak so highly of equality, its universal application is yet to be perceived. To count for this negligence, I look to a greater part of the world; the Africans, the Asians, the Latin Americans and other so called ‘’minorities’’ who do not fit the norm (Loomba, 1998, p. 36). A norm that presents itself as fair for all while in reality it favours only a few: the West (Walter, 2007, p. 451). This unfairness is ever so real in the mundaneness of mankind. The Western norm is an inescapable given, dictating the terms and conditions of our daily lives. Evident in the high regard to Western standards, it is practice and passion to adhere to this even outside the Western realm. An example of this is the emphasis on the importance of the English language and its vast international attribution. The ability to speak English hints at a certain level of education and is often associated with a higher degree of personal development
  • 7. BROWN HISTORY 7 (Nandy, 1983, p. 19). What is important to note here, is that these assumptions are relative and restricted to the Western perspective. Despite its subjectivity, the inadequate and incomplete Western ideology is presumed to be a critical principle to all (Johnson, 2007, p. 30). Somehow and somewhere along the narrative of human history, the white man has come to rule the world, its people and their mind, spirit and soul (Loomba, 1998, p. 22). This process has created the notion of the ‘’Other’’ à la de Beauvoir (2009, p. 30; Loomba, 1998, p. 36). As proposed by Simone de Beauvoir, the Other has a deep philosophical connotation for it gives rise to the possibility of oppression and subordination; the Other is always in relation to the Subject, however it is not vice versa as this relationship is not reciprocated (2009, p. 27). In other words, the Subject is obvious and therefore ever-dominant, whereas the Other necessitates justification and emanibility of its sole existence (de Beauvoir, 2009, p. 26). We perceive a hierarchical power dynamic in which Beauvoir explores male dominance as the Subject and woman as the oppressed Other (2009, p. 31). This underlying notion of gender discrimination and subordination can be stretched to a broader discussion of power play, which in turn can be attributed to grasp the specifics of racial implications as a consequence of the relationship between the dominant Subject and the inherently subordinate Other (Loomba, 1998, p. 33). As such, this Other has come to represent all non-white Westerners such as ‘’the blacks’’, ‘’the yellows’’, ‘’the browns’’ and ‘’the reds’’. Simply reduced to the colour of their skin, these ‘’coloureds’’ are seen as a minority as opposed to the white Subject within the dominant Western framework (Darwin; 2009, p. 113). To come to an understanding of moral Western superiority, we must look into the West’s profound conquest of the physical world. Colonialism has played - and still plays - a kernel role in the pervasive “West is Best” mentality. Given its potential and significance, one must go beyond the common Western perspective to obtain a complete picture of yesterday’s history and today’s present (Loomba, 1998, p. 33).
  • 8. BROWN HISTORY 8 Before delving into the details of the Other, it is of essence to define colonialism and lay the groundwork of its widely accepted Western narrative. Therefore I will begin by clarifying the notions of colonialism and colonisation as referred to within the scope of this thesis. Defining Colonialism Whilst the act of colonisation as a means for territorial expansion dates back to ancient times, contemporary interpretation of colonialism sparks novel notions of overseas discovery and exploration (Loomba, 1998, p. 20). As such it is most often associated with the century- long history of European conquest and the conquering of new land (Young, 2001, p. 16). However, it should be noted that this seemingly new land was in fact far from new, for it had been walked on and inhabited by a wide range of primal tribes and sophisticated societies long before the arrival of the Western explorers (Loomba, 1998, p. 19). Yet, with respect to colonialism, textbook history suggests and highlights the necessity of formal discovery for true acknowledgement and legitimisation of these territories. Understood as such, colonialism is embedded in a bias which is heavily lopsided in favour of the coloniser (Loomba, 1998, p. 28). Accordingly, it is the white Westerner who has unravelled the unknown regions, thereby disregarding any sense of admission to its indigenous population (Loomba, 1998, p. 20). In turn, this mentality justifies annexation and total authority of the coloniser. This aspect in particular hints at the underlying subjectivity of colonial discourse that is so deeply rooted within the imperative power dynamic of colonisation (Young, 2001, p. 18; Johnson, 2007, p. 36). As such, a hierarchy is established which neglects the position of the natives, subjugating them to the rule of the Western newcomers (Young, 2001, p. 15). In other words; the colonial narrative and its social implications are determined by the degree of affinity towards the roles of either coloniser or colonised, which in turn bears the connotation of the oppressor and the
  • 9. BROWN HISTORY 9 oppressed. The problem then arises as the contradictory nature of these opposing viewpoints is most commonly disregarded and ignored in full, falsely presenting the perspective of the white Western coloniser as the one and only objective truth (McClintock, 1992, p. 97). Considering the long and complex history of colonialism, it is hard to adhere to one definition (Loomba, 1998, p. 24). The different epochs through which colonialism has travelled as well as the different backgrounds and nationalities of the travelers contribute to the multiplicity of different forms, variations, and interpretations of colonialism (Loomba, 1998, p. 20). While this diversity impedes the possibility of suscepting colonialism to a general analysis, post-colonial theorists have distinguished two types of colonies: settlement and exploitation colonies (Young, 2001, p. 17). To understand this distinction it is necessary to start by further investigating the terms colonialism and colonisation. Although, thus far I have not made explicit the difference between the two, it is important to mention that colonialism is an ideology whereas colonisation is the very practice driven by this ideology (Young, 2001, p. 16). This distinction will become more evident in the following section which elaborates upon the notions of settlement and exploitation colonisation. Thus, circling back to its definition, the pursuit and purpose of these colonies is critical in shaping colonial ideology (i.e colonialism) and in turn the way in which the colonial rule is imposed within the colonies (i.e the means of colonisation). As such, settler colonialism was intended for settlement of the coloniser. In other words, the purpose of these colonies was to establish a new society as a habitual expansion of Western territory such as the British did by settling in North America, Australia and New Zealand. While this occurred without any regard to the existing inhabitants and was mostly accompanied by excessive violence, it cannot be compared to the prolonged cruelty of exploitation colonialism. As the term already suggests, exploitation colonies were exposed to economic exploitation by their colonisers (Young, 2001, p. 17). This entailed both the enslavement of the indegenous people
  • 10. BROWN HISTORY 10 for their labour and the forceful extraction and appropriation of the fruitful lands and its resources (Loomba, 1998, p. 25). Once again, it should be noted that this explanation is a mere simplification of an overtly complex concept. It is therefore salient to acknowledge the vast variety within colonialism as distinct considerations. However, it is in theory possible to further categorise exploitation colonialism in adherence to its broader ideology and purpose of either slavery or trade and commerce. The former category is most commonly related to the African continent, where black Africans were shackled and shipped off to the West where they often lived the rest of their lives in servitude of a white master. The colonies for the purpose of trade and commerce were often located in the tropical climates of the global South (Loomba, 1998, p. 25). This was highly favourable for the cultivation of exotic goods and materials which in turn proved profitable for both business and the Western economies (Loomba, 1998, p. 21). Asia, in particular, was very rich in natural resources, a notion vastly exploited to serve the benefit of the Western coloniser. The Europeans established multiple trading posts and trading companies throughout the continent such as the East India Company, to extract the riches that they deemed rightfully theirs (Loomba, 1998, p. 26). This simultaneously coincided with the economic rationale which prescribed wealth and prosperity by accumulating a trade surplus (Loomba, 1998, p. 27). Colonial domination enabled the export of exotic goods as the Westerners’ own, gaining the rents and revenues from the fruits reaped by the exploited colonised (Loomba, 1998, p. 21). In addition to this, the indigenous people were faced with the injustice of European ‘’free trade.’’ As such they were forced to buy back their homegrown products from their superior rulers, thereby creating a dependency of their very own exploitation whilst maintaining subjugation by the white Western colonisers (Loomba, 1998, p. 27). To adhere to the scope of this thesis the focus lays mainly on the latter form of exploitation colonialism as practiced in South Asia. The following section will provide a
  • 11. BROWN HISTORY 11 concise discussion of colonial history. I will commence with what is presented and perceived to be common knowledge of the West’s thriving centuries of colonisation. Followed by a more unconventional perspective of the colonised (Johnson, 2007, p. 37). This will allow for comparing and contrasting the different interpretations so that a further elaboration on the colonial implications on society is made possible. European Exploration The 15th century marks the beginning of colonialism, a long lasting era that came to be through an urge of curiosity. At the time, Europe faced both high heights and low depths in terms of socio-economic conditions, the rich and the poor were juxtaposed as most nations were confronted by serious inequalities. As a result, the search for riches began. Rumours of abundance in the faraway lands of the so-called ‘’New World’’ lured the Europeans. The Spaniards and the Portuguese set sail to discover and explore in the name of ‘’God, Gold and Glory’’, a creed that stands central to First Wave Colonialism (Loomba, 1998, p. 20; Young, 2001, p.16). Accordingly, First Wave Colonialism is characterised by the conquest for wealth and the conversion to Christianity (Gilmartin, 2009, p. 116). With newly acquired territory, the Spanish and Portuguese explorers returned to their homelands as national heroes. The treasures they had brought along with them from the Americas were unseen and unheard of. It sparked a sense of competition amongst other European nations such as the French, the British and the Dutch who could not stay behind in the pursuit to prosperity and travelled to the Americas as well (Gilmartin, 2009, p. 115). A century later, the Europeans traversed across the Atlantics to the Indian Ocean, discovering Asia for the very first time in Western history. For many years, decades and even centuries, it was the Dutch and Portuguese rule that reigned over the continent (Darwin, 2009, p. 26). However, most of Asia’s colonial past is in fact remembered in relation to the most
  • 12. BROWN HISTORY 12 profound and perdurable British Empire (Darwin, 2009, p. 17). As such, the British arrived in India in the early 17th century taking over the country and eventually a greater part of the Indian subcontinent including but certainly not restricted to Pakistan, Bangladesh, and what we now have come to know as Sri Lanka and Myanmar (Young, 2001, p. 17). Furthermore, the Empire counted various settlements and colonies that stretched over lands and seas so far apart that the sun never set on its territories (Kolsky, 2010, p. 229). The establishment of the East India Company in December 1600 matched the rationality underlying Second Wave Colonialism which was driven by a strong incentive for free trade. As such, the East India Company provided favourable conditions for trade for the British in South Asia, thereby introducing the West to rare and exotic goods such as silk, tea, sugar and other spices (Sanghera, 2021, p. 83). Simultaneously, the East India Company allowed for the British to coordinate, impose and enforce control over their colonies (Darwin, 2009, p. 180). This practice of power benefited the British by establishing a clear hierarchy of coloniser and colonised, the British embodying the role of the former. Here the Western gaze and the white man’s perception of the Other - the colonised - become significantly relevant. Common condescending belief and patronising perspectives find itself at the core of colonial oppression and domination (Curry, 2018, p. 32). Upon arrival in the New World, the white Westerners were encountered by, what they deemed, black and brown barbarians living in backward societies (Césaire, 1972, p. 2; Johnson, 2007, p. 35). Consequently, the civilised coloniser felt compelled to share with these savage nations the Western sense of sophistication and enlightenment. From the perspective of the Western Subject, colonisation was an act of service. Thus, the notion of necessary civilisation was used to serve as a justification for colonialism, something the so-called savages should have been grateful for (Curry, 2018, p. 31; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211).
  • 13. BROWN HISTORY 13 Exploitation and Violence Much like a coin, every story has two sides, accordingly, history is no exception to this. As mentioned before, colonialism has most certainly not been all glory for everyone. To address this in full and provide complete comprehension of its subjectivity, I will continue by shedding light on its darkest terrors and give a voice to the muted victims (Walter, 2007, p. 484). Thus, while the Westerners explored their power and prosperity in the self acclaimed new regions of the South, the local population was forced to face the ugly truths of their oppression (Sanghera, 2021, p. 21). Irrespective of when and where the white man first arrived, it seemed as though it was their duty to dominate, and so they did. Ruthlessly. While the attribution of violence during these conquests can hardly be denied, the true extent to which has been obscured and obfuscated over time to the point of utter shock or even denial when confronted with the history of excessive colonial brutality (Kolsky, 2010, p. 2). As such, for too long, the biased tellings of history have concealed the menacing coercion and aggression of the Western colonisers towards the indigenes on colonial territory. Hiding the horrific acts of hostility and hatred, the pain and fear inflicted on the colonised coloureds is disregarded and its severity silenced and suppressed. With statues heralding the great heroes and national holidays celebrating the overseas explorations of the Europeans, this particular perspective allows for continued triumph of white man’s discovery of the rest of the world (Sanghera, 2021, p. 26). While, once again, these revelations were redundant since human life had far preceded Western discovery and had long prevailed in these lands. This latter, somewhat egalitarian, acknowledgement is on the rise and has sparked recent commotion concerning the injustice and inhumanity surrounding colonialism. Today’s date, in a similar fashion of a Renaissance revolt, statues of colonial fathers and figures are taken down, street names and monuments with overt affiliation to the white domination of colonialism are reconsidered and many activists are on the route to
  • 14. BROWN HISTORY 14 redemption for what has happened in the past (Sanghera, 2021, p. 13). So what exactly did happen? While the secret abuse has often been done away as incidental and occasional, in retrospect, violence was at the order of the day and simply cannot be separated from colonial domination (Césaire, 1972, p. 4; Kolsky, 2010, p. 2; Price, 2018, p. 25). However, considering the vast variety of coloniality, it is hardly possible to address colonial violence as singular or static (Price, 2018, p. 26). Much like colonialism itself, the exact execution of its violence is dependent on the different determinants of who, what, where and when. Yet it is in fact possible to appoint similarities in the nature of the violent rapes, beatings, murders and other forms of torture excercised to control the colonised (Price, 2018, p. 27). As such, colonial violence was ubiquitous and quotidien and, in essence, always directed at the indigenous population who fell victim to the gruesome ill treatment of the Western colonisers (Price, 2018, p. 25). Understood as such, violence is intrinsic to colonialism and is at the core of colonial domination (Césaire, 1972, p. 4). It was war and terror for the colonised, from fighting for their freedom to being hunted down, abused, persecuted, kidnapped and even killed in the safespace of their own homes. Accordingly, this type of violence fosters a personal feature specific to the oppressed which is often argued and justified in compliance to the colonial rule (Price, 2018, p. 28). The excessive attribution of violence has rendered the possibility of exerting power and dominance over the colonised. Yet simultaneously, the exerted violence extends far beyond the official authorities of the colonial rule and thus exceeds its justification. This is most evident in the inhumaneness of colonial violence which followed from the argument of barbarism as proposed by Aimé Césaire in ‘’Discourse on Colonialism’’ (1955, p. 2). Confronted by the so-called savage societies upon conquest of the foreign lands, the Europeans could not possibly acknowledge these coloureds as civilised human beings, let alone
  • 15. BROWN HISTORY 15 somewhat akin to them. This pervasive racial condescension was borne by colonisation which insisted on anything other than white and Western as inferior, less able and even less human (Sanghera, 2021, p. 36). Thus, stripped from their humanity, the colonised were perceived as brute barbarians, incompetent of accomodating to the civilised Western world and therefore in desperate need of a firm push in the ‘’white’’ direction (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211). As such, the superficial differences of skin colour, and the heavy load it bears, between the coloniser and colonised gave rise to an inescapable hierarchy condoning the inequalities that allowed for the harsh imposition of the colonial rule and its immoral violence against the oppressed natives (Curry, 2018, p. 34; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203). According to Césaire, the viciousness of the latter could only have been possible through the dehumanising gaze of the West onto the colonised (1972, p. ). Consequently, the element of colour and complexion appears so substantial to the eyes of the superior white man, that he equates darkness to nothing other than barbarous, brute and beastly (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 216). Accustomed to this self-painted picture, the coloniser viewed the indegenous population as inhuman and animalistic and therefore unworthy of basic human morality. This in turn would come to justify the inhumane treatment of the colonised and the violence attributed against the coloureds. However, this gives rise to a dialectic confronting the supposedly civilised and utmost sophisticated Western society and the savage-like nature of violence inseparable from colonialism. Césaire argues that the brute treatment of the barbarians, reduces and finally diminishes the colonisers’ humanity (1972, p. 5). Irrespective of the colonised, the cruelty of colonial violence has uncovered true savagery of the West. In other words, acting upon the idea of the colonised as uncivilised has led to the process of ‘’decivilisation’’ of the West, being guilty of exactly their own accusation of barbarism (Césaire, 1972, p. 2; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 211).
  • 16. BROWN HISTORY 16 The Rationality of Colonial Violence In order to gain full insight on the deeper impact and implications of colonial violence, we must turn to its basic rationality. As such, the brutal violence is driven by various motives from power to dominance and authority. On the other hand, the excessive attribution of violence simultaneously hints at the attempt of concealing the true underlying fear and despair constantly lurking over the coloniser’s shoulder, thereby posing a threat to colonial power (Césaire, 1972, p. 1). In this section I will further elaborate on these motives central to the psychology of colonial violence. Essentially, colonial violence can be thought of as instrumental through its presumed potential of establishing power. With violence on their side, the coloniser asserts his dominance in adherence to the condescending attitude upheld against the colonised. This power structure of coloniser over colonised, white over coloured and West over the Rest, fosters a hierarchical order based on race and complexion (Johnson, 2007, p. 34). While this particular interpretation is most straightforward, the analysis of colonial violence is complex and necessitates a closer look. In her book, On Violence, Hannah Arendt explores the relationship between power and violence (1970). Although Arendt never explicitly comes to define power, it can be inferred as a product of the collective and refers to the ability to act in coordination and collaboration (1969, p. 44). Accordingly, power rests on the rule of shared ideology which in turn allows for the assumption of voluntary adherence by its subject. Understood as such, power in its purest form negates violence and coercion. (Arendt, 1970, p. 45). This goes against the common belief of power and violence as synonymous. In fact, Arendt clearly distinguishes the two (1970, p. 47). Violence is individualistic and embodies instrumentality which is in contrast to power considering its collective nature and the necessity of plurality. For a position of power can only be maintained in relation to others (Arendt, 1970, p. 44). In other words, power is the
  • 17. BROWN HISTORY 17 coordination of all against one whereas violence is one against all. This particular insight reveals a weakness in the often, falsely assumed relationship of violence as a means to establish power (Arendt, 1970, p. 47). Accordingly, Arendt proposes violence as a threat to power rather than complimentary to it. The attribution of violence from a position of power can be interpreted as a sign of its instability (Arendt, 1970, p. 4). Within the context of colonialism this would imply a continuous threat to colonial dominance. While seemingly counterintuitive, along these lines, it can be argued that colonial violence may have served to cope with the fear of losing power and authority over the colonised. Furthermore, the intrinsic fear of the foreign coloureds also contributed to the excessive attribution of colonial violence (Price, 2018, p. 31). After all, the white man assumed barbarism from the uncivilised indigenes thus to prevent being overpowered and overthrown the coloniser turned to barbarian violence himself, safeguarding their position as oppressor. II: Independence and Post-Colonialism In a world of binaries from Western and non-Western to coloniser and colonised, the act of oppression is bound by opposition in the spirit of resistance (Nandy, 1983, p. 10; Freire, 1985, p. 183; Walsh, 2015, p. 16). An inevitable notion given the forceful nature underlying this coercive form of domination to which its subjects cannot but succumb. As mentioned before, the colonial rule relied much upon the attribution of violence to establish and maintain power (Arendt, 1970, p. 35). Any sign of unwillingness was thus quick to be aggressed into compliance, thereby treating the natives as pawns in the game of colonial conquest. The prevailing secrecy surrounding colonial violence has led to the belief of the colonised’ voluntary submission, obfuscating the resistance and resilience against the oppressive West. By means of this, it is suggested as though the colonised willingly submitted to their oppression which in turn allows for the justification of white man’s history of colonisation (Freire, 1985,
  • 18. BROWN HISTORY 18 p. 192). However, contrary to this belief, colonialism should in fact be characterised by the ongoing struggle against the colonial power, for the indigenes did not simply give up the reigns over their land to the Western explorer, evident in the endless violence for the pursuit and preservation of power as part and parcel of colonisation. In adherence to Arendt’s analysis of power and violence, the latter poses an existential threat to the colonial rule, bound to collapse by the very violence of its power (1970, p. 4). As Cuauhtémoc, the last Aztec ruler, allegedly said when defeated by the Spaniards:‘’The face of our Sun has disappeared, and has left us in complete darkness. But we know it will return again, that it will rise again, and it will begin to illuminate us anew.’’ While these words echo dismay and despair, it is also hopeful and confident that the oppression will eventually be overthrown and will cease to exist, as power established through violence is fragile and seldom to be everlasting (Arendt, 1970, p. 47). As such, it is almost laughable and ludicrous to consider 500 years of colonialism separate from its resistance. Towards Independence The journey to colonial independence has been a long one. Despite uncertainty and anxiety prevailing in the minds of the colonised, the sense of opposition against the oppressive power has proven to be stronger. Considering the historical significance of the British Raj, I will treat colonial India as a chief example for the conception of Brown History, the colonisation of South Asia and eventual its independence. From beginning to end, the Indian Independence movement lays bare the differences between the Indians and the British colonisers. While the British posed their domination as progressive and an aid to development, argued for instance by the newly constructed railroads and improved infrastructure connecting the vast landscape of India, the Indians in fact endured slavery and exploitation as a result of this, arguably causing more harm and damage to the
  • 19. BROWN HISTORY 19 natives than anything else (Césaire, 1972, p. 6; Darwin, 2008, p. 10; Kolsky, 2010, p. 3). The century-long resistance against the British Raj is thus a given and coincided with India's colonisation from 1858 to 1947. Essentially, the Indian Independence movement was anti- colonial, aimed at overthrowing British domination and regaining India’s freedom and autonomy. The numerous rebellions and revolts against the colonial power covered the entire subcontinent (Bayly, 1987, p. 171). Sparked by various distinct incidents, the movement compiles a complex history. However, the importance of education should be emphasised as an underlying drive for resistance (Bayly, 1987, p. 176; Darwin, 2009, p. 195; Walsh, 2015, p. 11). Learning about Western civilisation and the ideas of liberal democracy, the colonised experienced significant discrepancies and even contradictions between what the colonisers preached and practiced (Kolsky, 2010, p. 1; Walsh, 2015, p. 13). While the Enlightened Westerners spoke profoundly of liberty and justice, they seemed to leave behind this sense of morality when considering the coloureds (Kolsky, 2010, p. 2; Walter, 2007, p. 454). Falling victim to white man’s violent hypocrisy, the Indians turned to various countermeasures themselves, including violence in retaliation for their repression. The failures of the many physical uprisings finally begged for a different approach to freedom, to which Mahatma Gandhi appointed non-violence. Gandhi, the anti-colonial nationalist and politician, played a pivotal role to attain swaraj, Hindi for self-governance and eventually synonymous for India’s independence (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 3; Darwin, 2009, p. 193). Instead of relying on violence, his political agenda was centered around the virtuous ahimsa which is the philosophy of non-violence applied to all of life (Gandhi, 2012, p. 53). These moral teachings, contrasted by the colonial immorality, contributed to the convocation of peaceful protests, hunger strikes and other non- violent, anti-colonial movements to overthrow the British Raj (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 11). This coincided with Gandhi’s philosophy of satyagraha, it emphasises the approach of non-
  • 20. BROWN HISTORY 20 violence invoking a basic sense of humanity to which the attribution of oppressive violence can no longer be justified. Satyagraha is the belief of overcoming injustice and oppression which can be understood in the simple terms of ‘’peace not war’’. Raising an informed and educated generation aware of their misfortune and maltreatment was of utmost importance to invoke this potential in spirit and practice. Finally, on August 15th 1947, the victory of resistance was assumed with the Indian Independence Act ending nearly a century of colonial oppression (Bandyopadhyay, 2009, p. 9). The Problem of Post-Colonialism Towards the second half of the twentieth century, a global pattern emerged amongst the majority of Western colonies which were increasingly declared independent from the colonial rule, thereby introducing a new era known as post-colonialism. By the very composition of the word and the attribution of the prefix ‘’post-’’, post-colonialism suggests the end of colonisation (McClintock, 1992, p. 85). While the latter may sustain in theory, reality begs to differ. Thus, in light of the ever real aftermath of colonisation, I wish to elaborate upon the problem of post-colonialism in what follows. Initially post-colonial theory was intended in defence of the colonised, aimed at understanding the underlying notions of colonisation and the subsequent racial power dynamics that came to be, thereby exposing various narratives which have been long oppressed by the colonial hegemony (Walter, 2007, p. 497). Furthermore, the implied temporal lense of post- colonialism allows for it to flow seemingly naturally from colonialism as the result of increased independence and the simultaneous collapse of the West’s colonial authority (McClintock, 1992, p. 94). Understood as such, post-colonialism gives rise to the false conception of a liberated world, posing colonisation to be something of the past (McClintock, 1992, p. 86). On the one hand, this can be argued by the prevailing physical independence which indeed, for
  • 21. BROWN HISTORY 21 most part, implies a free world. On the other hand, the post-colonial condition is not as straightforward and cannot simply be reduced to such optimism (McClintock, 1992, p. 91). Dismissing colonialism as something of the past poses a threat which fails to acknowledge the pressing social problems of contemporary society. As such, our modern world still bares the burden of colonisation evident in a widerange of interrelated issues from injustice and inequality to racism and discrimination. Post-colonialism aggravates this debacle by maintaining certain power structures which clearly distinguish the colonial oppressor from the oppressed (McClintock, 1992, p. 89). In doing so, the oppression is carried on beyond ‘’post- colonialism’’, considering the ex-colonised only in relation to Western domination and their colonial past. Drawing upon Beauvoir’s conception of the Other, this proves the discontinuity and insignificance ascribed to their sole existence (McClintock, 1992, p. 86; Walter, 2007, p. 453). Contrary to the suggested ideal of independence, the colonised remain oppressed within the realm of post-colonialism. Consequently, the hierarchy established in colonial history still prevails in the structure and organisation of today’s world, administering the highest privilege to the white Westerner and any other colour or culture as inferior (Walter 2007, p. 469). Thus, while post-colonialism may be a product of good intentions and has certainly proven insightful for a better understanding of colonialism, its theory is lacking as a means to overthrow the negative social connotations rooted within colonialism (Walter, 2007, p. 452). Before proposing a more complete and compatible theory for addressing this, I wish to first define and elaborate upon the insinuated problem of colour prejudice, racism and ethnic discrimination. Perpetual Colour Prejudice As mentioned before, our world is tainted by the prevailing inequalities fostered by the perpetual colour prejudice of race and culture as analogous to the Western perspective of
  • 22. BROWN HISTORY 22 colonialism (Césaire, 1972, p 8). The self-constructed conception of white dominance over the rest, connotes to the belief of the West being further developed and more civilised, which in turn adheres to the narrative attributed to justify colonisation (Walter, 2007, p. 453). Accordingly, racism can be understood as a construct of colonialism which persists to oppress the colourful Other despite the promise of independence. While colonialism is responsible for creating such sense of discrimination, it has also purposely prevented and putrefied progress and development in the global South, still marked by its hardship. The ever long history of oppressive colonialism has imposed and demanded submission from its subjects. The hierarchical subjugation of the colonised has been engraved in the minds of man and internalised as a self-fulfilling prophecy that seems to be everlasting (Ndlovu- Gatsheni, 2019, p. 207). In his essay Colonialism is a System, Jean Paul Sartre sets out to prove just that. The underlying argument uncovers colonialism as a systematic structure of oppression. As such, colonialism is in favour of the West, advocating its own advantage while deliberately destroying and suppressing any form of development by the Other (Césaire, 1972, p. 6). This enforced hierarchy invokes a sense of inescapable inferiority amongst the colonised, in turn, coinciding perfectly with the predominant Western hegemony which poses the Western perspective as a guiding principle for all of humanity (Walter, 2007, p. 493). The assumed universality further contributes to the inferiority complex of the non-West (Césaire, 1972, p. 7; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). Understood as such, the extensive consequences of colonialism are for most part intangible and a process of the mind into the practice of prejudice. The attempt to overthrow colonial connotations thus demands more than physical liberation. Consequently, total independence can only be attained successfully by decolonising the mind (Mignolo, 2007, p.450).
  • 23. BROWN HISTORY 23 III: Decolonisation & Education In contrast to post-colonialism, decolonisation is explicitly aimed at deconstructing and dismantling the logic of coloniality (Mignolo, 2007, p. 452; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, P. 214). This logic is built upon the notions of racial, cultural and religious differences which are considered to be inferior and subordinate if divergent from the West (Zembylas, 2020, p. 3). The oppressive power and domination of the racial Other is a direct product of colonialism, which first produced racism (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019 p. 203). Decolonisation thus addresses racial discrimination as a pertinent problem of colonialism which in turn has come to rule the reason of man (Zembylas, 2020, p. 18). Entrapped by the narratives still preserving injustice and inequality, decolonisation must go beyond mere political independence to unleash its liberating potential (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203). The very objective of decolonisation is to transcend and overturn racial discrimination and the accompanying social hierarchies intrinsic to the rationality of Western colonialism and its civilisation (Mignolo, 2007, p. 459). In the following sections I will elaborate more upon the necessity to free the mind from colonial connotations and how decolonisation can aid to attain liberation in full. For this, I will draw upon the power and liberating potential of education as an instrument for decoloniality. The Colonised Mind To delve into the importance of decolonisation, colonialism must be understood as more than solely a system of physical domination and oppression. While the foreign lands and its indigenous population have been the direct victims of Western colonisation, the effects stretch far beyond this territorial tangibility. As such, colonial ideology has perpetrated the cognitive realm through its authoritative intervention with culture in its most extensive form. This includes, yet is certainly not limited to the conception of knowledge, language, aesthetics and even politics (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 206). The cognitive approach of exerting colonial
  • 24. BROWN HISTORY 24 power is characteristic to so-called neo-colonialism (Loomba, 1998, p. 25). In contrast to colonialism as discussed so far, neo-colonialism relies on non-physical forms of control to effectively colonise the mind. While these provocations of neo-colonial power may seem implicit and subtle, the oppression remains fierce and ferocious, penetrating deep into the soul and persistently pestering the mind into submission (Nandy, 1983, p. 11; Freire, 1985, p. 192). The peculiarity of neo-colonialism is that it can go unnoticed as it dominates both the conscious and unconscious. Thus, as colonialism exceeds the physical domain, it becomes a product of the mind by which the history of colonial oppression is continued. The latter is evident in our global hierarchy and world order classified by colour and culture as analogous to the underlying rationality of the power dynamic between coloniser and colonised. Thus, as the white man once introduced humanity to civilisation, today he dictates the terms of development, Western development (Nandy, 1983, p. 12). To give an example, the notions Third World and Developing World are generally attributed in reference to non-Western, impoverished countries (Freire, 1985, p. 188). This derogatory terminology expresses our relative reality as the weight of the West appears critical in setting the standard for our world’s wealth and welfare (Nandy, 1983, p. 26; McClintock, 1992, p. 93). Here the general insinuation of the ‘’West is best’’ mentality returns as the Western world serves as a guiding principle and ideology for the Rest ( Walsh, 2015, p. 15). As such, the latter implies an internalisation of the former (Freire, 1985, p. 185). This is in line with the long term implications of Western colonialism which disguises dependency as independence. By successfully imposing Eurocentric power and preeminence over the many centuries of colonisation, the oppressed subjects have eventually come to internalise their domination as a natural consequence of their presumed lack of civilisation and deficiency of their dark complexion (Freire, 1985, p. 192). Ashish Nandy articulates this as the birth of the ‘’Intimate Enemy’’ who has come to believe in his own inferiority (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 208).
  • 25. BROWN HISTORY 25 Humiliated by the constant badgering and bullying of colonialism, the Intimate Enemy is provoked to dissociate from the Self as its sole perception is shame induced (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). By acknowledging and accepting the condescension, it eventually becomes the truth (Hall, 2016, p. 161). Thus, the oppression of the Other seems to be objectively rational, in turn justifying the continuation of asymmetrical power relations even long after the alleged colonial independence (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 213). This has contributed to an arbitrary and lop-sided conception of the world which can be described as the dominant Western hegemony. Antonio Gramsci was the first to introduce the notion of cultural hegemony which he defined as the manifestation of power through cultural institutions. Thereby, shaping moral beliefs, norms and values as well as common knowledge and one's perception and consciousness (1971, p. 10). By means of this, a hegemony ultimately enforces one perspective as dominant over the other, establishing a hierarchical power dynamic by which the subaltern is suppressed (Hall, 2016, p. 162). While Gramsci focuses his study of hegemony on the class specific society of the capitalist bourgeoisie and the proletariat, many thinkers and theorists have borrowed from his conception to explore various other relations of power and dominance. Stuart Hall is one of them. In his book, Cultural Studies 1983, Hall delves into domination and hegemony within the context of social formation (Hall, 2016, p. 155). Hall elaborates on Gramsci’s process of hegemony as the alignment of interests between the dominant and subaltern social groups which eventually, in the particular moment of hegemony, gives rise to a universal code of conduct and the conception of a sole commanding world-view. However, the coordination of interests essentially takes into consideration the dominant ideology which is surreptitiously forced upon the subaltern to ensure that the dominant will becomes command. Along these lines, hegemonic universality professes its power and oppression as the product of collective conviction (Hall, 2016, p. 162).
  • 26. BROWN HISTORY 26 The same universal rationality underlies the construction of Western hegemony which in turn has come to dictate our global hierarchy and social dynamics (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 208). Coloured by Eurocentrism, Western hegemony predicates the Western way as the only way, thereby excluding alternate approaches to the realms of power, knowledge and being (Walsh, 2015, p. 13; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 215). In doing so, the West once again safeguards its position of power in relation to the subaltern Other (Walsh, 2015, p. 19). This is only made possible as the everlong history of colonial oppression is normalised (Curry, 2019, p. 36; Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 206). Consequently, Western hegemony is both an affirmation and continuation of coloniality by which the hierarchy of the West over the non- West is labelled as common sense (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 212). Hall shows the intrinsic danger of a hegemony as the argument of common sense solely arises when reason is lacking. This in turn hints at the impaired ability to think, act and be critical of the system of power. (2016, p. 165). In other words, the asymmetry of power is taken for granted and the oppression of the (ex-)colonised seems to be nothing out of the ordinary (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). This is the direct result of the reciprocal relationship between colonialism and Western hegemony by which the mind is colonised into believing in the ubiquitous superiority of the West. The Pedagogy of Decolonisation In this final section I will establish the importance of education. Thereby emphasising its emancipatory potential within the context of today’s racialised social struggle which is deeply rooted in the remnants of colonialism (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 1). In other words, I will explain how education is instrumental to decolonise the mind. As briefly mentioned before, decoloniality goes against colonialism. While it is essentially in resistance to the latter, decoloniality should be understood as more than a mere theoretical critique. As such, decolonisation is the very act of delinking and undoing the
  • 27. BROWN HISTORY 27 colonial condition (Mignolo, 2007, p. 452). Accordingly, debunking colonial rationality is of utmost importance for the process of colonial independence and liberation (Walsh, 2015, p. 11). Thus far this rationality has sustained a dominant power structure in favour of the West. Through the establishment of Western hegemony, the oppression of the colonised Other has become a universal standard and by that, a universal problem (Ndlovu-Gatsheni, 2019, p. 203). However, the problem in effect remains particular to the oppressed. In his book Politics of Education, Paolo Freire articulates the dynamic between the dominant and subordinate culture as ‘’being’’ and ‘’non-being’’ in an analogous fashion to Beauvoire’s conception of the Other (Freire, 1985, p. 192; Beauvoire, 2009, p. 30). Thus, understood as such, the non-being ascribed to the non-Western comes to expose the insignificance of the Other, in turn disregarding the burden of its particular problem. Remarkably, the inequality between West and non-West is further aggravated by education (Connell, 2012, p. 681). The reason for this is twofold. Firstly, this can be attributed to a presumed universal pedagogy. Drawing upon the notion of Western universality, this implies that standard education is West-centered, thereby creating a fundamental gap between the two worlds (Walsh, 2015, p. 12). Secondly, the sustenance of an asymmetrical power structure is due to the performative nature of education (Connell, 2012, p. 681; Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 2). Within an educational system, knowledge is generally passed on from educator to student under the common assumption of it being true (Freire, 1985, p. 189). However, the universality of education poses the threat of unconsciously consuming subjective knowledge which in turn is reproduced as the objective truth. Consequently, the real danger of performative education is the birth of biased subjectivities which are inherently complicit to the universal West (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). Here the reciprocity becomes clear between the universal and performative character of education which are intended to further develop the political agenda of the West and its domination over the Other. This is in line with Freire’s
  • 28. BROWN HISTORY 28 understanding that pedagogy and politics are interrelated and cannot be considered separate from one another (1985, p. 188). Thus, in order to overthrow the oppressive system of Western power, we must unlearn the colonial teachings of condescension and replace these with decolonial teachings (Walsh, 2015, p. 13). For the purpose of decoloniality, it is necessary to be critical of the imposed knowledge and to challenge Western hegemony. However, being truly critical is especially difficult when the mind is entrapped and constrained by the Western doctrine (Walsh, 2015, p. 12; Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 2). As a result, it is hardly possible to formulate criticism beyond the Eurocentric framework of critique (Bartholomew, 2018, p. 629). As such, the main pitfall in Freire is returning to Marxism and modernity (Walsh, 2015, p. 14). Effectively decolonising the mind thus requires departure from the Western realm. This implies leaving behind the principle of Western universality which in turn gives rise to the significance of the Other and its Other modes of existence (Freire, 1895, p. 189; Walsh, 2015, p. 12). It is at this moment that the plurality and diversity of mankind is acknowledged. In order to materialise decoloniality, this plurality should be accompanied by a corresponding multiplicity of pedagogies (Walsh, 2015, p. 15). The shift from universality to pluriversality is a liberating one which renders all subjects equal. Thereby doing away with hierarchical structures and oppressive systems. In contrast to universalism, pluriversality embraces its racial, cultural and ethnic differences and the vast variety of lived experiences it produces (Connell, 2012, p. 682; Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 3). The latter is especially beneficial within the context of transformative education as the transcultural encounters are materialised, thereby enhancing the potential of shared learning. These social engagements are promising in their potential to redefine the cultural dynamics, excluded from higher, hierarchical interventions. Understood as such, education is instrumental to the novel conception of a collective bottom-up culture
  • 29. BROWN HISTORY 29 instead of an imposed top-down culture (Connell, 2012, p. 682; Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 1). However, generating and reproducing such a system of fairness and equality relies strictly on the virtues of respect and responsibility (Connel, 2012, p. 682). These notions stand central to racial and cultural justice. As such, mutual respect invokes a sense of similarity thereby giving rise to the ability of sympathising with the Other (Southwell & Depaepe, 2019, p. 4). In turn, personal responsibility ensures equal treatment of the Other as one cannot account for unfairness and injustice on oneself (Connel, 2012, p. 681). By means of this, the Other is no longer oppressed, liberated of condemnation and condescension from above. Thus, to conclude, a morally righteous education system is trivial to overcome colonial injustice and colour prejudice. Conclusion In conclusion, our contemporary social struggle is inseparable from the long history of Western colonialism, which has divided the world based on racial and cultural differences. The asymmetrical power of coloniality has come to oppress the Other, justified by the inference of its racial inferiority to the West. Stripped from their humanity, the colonised is beaten down and tamed to obey the Western order. Although this hierarchy is initially enforced through the excessive physical aggression of colonial violence, it is effectively sustained by instilling the sense of an inherent inferiority of the Other. Thereby colonising the body and mind as the oppression is internalised. This is essential to comprehend the universal dominance of Western hegemony which in turn sustains the oppressive dynamic of colonialism placing the West over non-West. While post-colonialism draws upon political independence to declare the end of colonialism, this is far from true. Our world is still coloured by racism, discrimination and colour prejudice. In order to transcend these connotations and attain complete liberation,
  • 30. BROWN HISTORY 30 coloniality must be undone. Decoloniality is aimed at exactly this, deconstructing and debunking the pervasive colonial rationality. Here education can serve as a means to decolonise the mind by the unlearning of colonial teachings and instead learning of decolonial teachings. This requires leaving behind the universality of the hegemonic West and instead, embracing the world’s diversity. Circling back to the central issue of this thesis; under what conditions can education serve as a means of liberation thereby focussing especially on decolonising the mind. To conclude by answering, decolonial pedagogies are essentially pluriversal and necessitate the notions of mutual respect and responsibility to truly transcend and break free from colonialism. Under these moral conditions education can serve as a means to liberate the mind from colonial connotations closely associated to South Asia. Eventually giving rise to a more just and equal world, free from racial discrimination and colour prejudice.
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