Decolonising "decolonisation"

 A conversation about "decolonising the curriculum" has been fashionable in educational circles of late. But the conversation about "decolonising" extends beyond just the professional field of education. The September 2020 issue of the magazine midwives, the magazine of the UK Royal College of Midwives, carries an article entitled "Decolonising maternity services". And in Bristol, the conversation really extends to the decolonising of the civic culture of a whole city much of the wealth of which originated in the slave trade (see, for example, this BBC report, which appears to pre-date the use of the term "decolonising" thought it addresses the issues to which the term refers). The term has of late emerged from the world of academia into that of different professional and cultural fields.

I have two observations to make about what appears to be an emerging fashion for "decolonisation", both as a term in itself and as a term which refers to programmes of ideas and activity. 

The first observation is that, in wider society, we should not adopt this new term without some critical reflection. "Decolonising" is one term, one word. But is it always being used with the same sense, with the same meaning, in different contexts? Does it refer only, as one might think at first sight, to addressing wrongs of the past which may endure into the present of a British Empire, or the empires of other European nations? Or does it refer just to present day questions about disadvantage experienced by people of colour? This point about a certain imprecision in the exact meaning of the term is illustrated at this page from Warwick University: What is decolonising methodology? If it is, as the Warwick University article suggests, "a powerful metaphor for those wanting to critique positions of power and dominant culture", then its practical meaning is going to depend heavily on the perception of power and dominance in culture of the individual who adopts the term. Without having some security about the meaning of the term in its professional and cultural application we should approach its use with caution.

My second observation is perhaps somewhat more significant. The language of "decolonisation" at first sight implies the removal of something, or, at least, the acknowledgement of something, unfortunate from the past that may still have an influence on practice today. But, when it comes to professional practice and wider culture, it is highly likely that the outcome of "decolonisation" will be simply the replacement of  one "colonisation" by another of a different, and perhaps highly ideological, type. The example cited from the magazine midwives above illustrates the point. One paragraph of the article reads:

In 2018, I founded Decolonising Contraception - a community-based organisation for black and people of colour working within Sexual and Reproductive Health. We felt frustrated that the conversations that we wished to have concerning how unethical history continues to influence our practice were not being had, so looked to social and digital media to start new conversations.

And this is the link to the SEXFESTO (ie mission statement) on the website of Decolonising Contraception. It is also worth looking at the activist curriculum vitae on this page at the site (a name and brief CV appear when you hover over each photograph). Quite clearly, the term "decolonisation" is hiding the promotion of a very particular idea of what constitutes sexual and reproductive health. It is also worth being aware of the use of social and digital media to promote that particular idea, an indication of ideological intent.

The practical suggestion I would make for anyone who is faced with the question of "decolonisation" in their professional environment would be this. After the proponents of "decolonisation" have proposed their point of view, ask them to explicitly state what they would like to fill the space that has been left by their "decolonisation". And then challenge them if all they appear to be doing is replacing one (perceived) "colonisation" with another ... and then to resist the ideological colonisation of their profession.