Presentation
Across the world, calls for greater equity in the halls of academia, museums, and publishing houses are loud and clear. They demand more “diversity” and “inclusion,” or that the university should be “globalized,” “decolonized,” or “decentered.” Why, then, if everyone agrees that business as usual is no longer acceptable—and that a wider range of voices needs to be heard—is change so slow ? How is it that progressive institutions created as the solution are now part of the problem ?
One issues is that what it actually means to decolonize or decenter, and what that is meant to accomplish, varies in different parts of the world. We have to empirically examine rather than assume what kinds of intellectual and institutional changes are being called for and what they amount to. During my time at the ICM, I am interested in learning more about how these discussions are playing out in France and in the Francophone world more generally. I am interested in how the globalization and neo-liberalization of higher education drives forward and limits change. Who is behind efforts to decolonize the curriculum, what are they asking for, and whose interests do they serve ? How does what is happening in France affect what is happening in France’s former colonies ? What is the relationship, if any, between discussions about “globalizing” education and diversifying the national curriculum to reflect France’s changing demography ?
A second place to explore these questions is by looking at cultural institutions. The “official” aspects of economic and political colonialism have ended, although their aftereffects are still alive and well, especially in the cultural sector. We see this in former colonial powers’ refusal to repatriate or pay restitution for the cultural patrimony they still hold from their former subjects and are only now reluctantly, and painstakingly slowly, giving back. What is the difference between how France approaches these issues in comparison to other former European powers ? What is going on when prominent looted objects, like the Elgin Marbles or the Benin Bronzes, become part of the national culture of the countries that now hold them ? What does that tell us about the current understanding of the nation and its place in the world ?
We hope to meet for an informal conversation about these and other issues as a first step toward identifying common interests that might lead to collaborations in the future.
Location : Salle 2.023, Bâtiment Recherche Sud, Campus Condorcet, Aubervilliers