April: Pedagogy of the Oppressed

Why deny it? I was afraid of freedom. I am no longer afraid! —Paulo Freire Fear of freedom, of which its possessor is not necessarily aware, makes him see ghosts. Such an individual is actually taking refuge in an attempt to achieve security, which he or she prefers to the risk of liberty. —Paulo Freire …

No Tea, No Shade

A peculiar anxiety marks E. Patrick Johnson’s introduction to No Tea, No Shade. It emerges as repeated assurances that younger scholars respect and follow the work of older scholars. Listen: The black queer “children” who came of age during the burgeoning stages of black queer studies also learned from the lessons of their foremothers and …

Inxeba: Kwanda

I have been having trouble thinking-feeling about Kwanda—acted by the beautiful Niza Jay Ncoyini. I am always undone by scenes of anti-queer violence, from the insults and bullying to the beatings and killings. I am undone when queerness is treated as a synonym for disposability. Undone because of the impossible demand that truncation not be …

Inxeba: Readings

What is a black queer diasporic reading of Inxeba? What is an African queer reading of Inxeba? What is a South African queer reading of Inxeba? What is a Xhosa queer reading of Inxeba? By reading, I mean at least two things. First, what does each position—black diasporic, African, South African, Xhosa—bring to the film? …

3 works about Kenya

3 works explain the structures of power in Kenya. Grace Musila, "Phallocracies and Gynocratic Transgressions" Wambui Mwangi, "Silence is a Woman" Shailja Patel, "Politics of Contempt" Cumulatively, these works describe how minoritized Kenyans—poor, refugees, women, forest dwellers, sex workers, queers—are rendered disposable. These works describe the powerful alliances dedicated to uphold various ethno-patriarchies. These works …

cram

I am impressed–and frankly intimidated—by people who consume and regurgitate large amounts of information. In primary school, these people memorized every single political figure in Kenya, from the president to every local headman. In high school, they memorized every single Kenyan export, knowing where it was produced, in what quantities, how it was processed, and …

March: Pedagogy of the Oppressed

2018 is the 50-year anniversary of Paulo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. I am going to assume that academic and activist organizations around the world are marking the event in some way, and that public and private institutions of learning will continue to ignore all of Freire's lessons. Ideally, I would like to stage a series …