Decolonizing Wor:l:ds (internationales literaturfestival berlin)

Decolonizing Wor:l:ds

A special event series of the international literature festival berlin in cooperation with Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V.

07/09-12/09/2018

Locations: aquarium (Südblock), Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V. and Haus der Berliner Festspiele

The end of colonialism has not brought about the end of Western dominance. Our perception of the world and the knowledge we produce about it are — also in Europe — still intertwined with colonial history, both told and untold.  Over 30 years ago, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o called for a »decolonization of the mind«. In his essays, he highlights the crucial significance of African languages for the dissemination of culture and history within the continent and as a means of liberation from colonial power and patterns of thought. Today, we continue to ask what a successful decolonization of society in terms of gender, culture, the economy, and politics could look like. How can colonial traces be made visible in science, literature, and everyday life? How can the call for decolonization be combined with struggles for social justice and against racism?

-------------- PROGRAM --------------

Friday, 07/09, 6 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Language: English

„Decolonizing the Mind“ – contemporary Perspectives

Over 30 years have passed since the publication of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s »Decolonising the Mind«. The author’s »farewell to English« has since become a symbol for resistance against linguistic and cultural assimilation, erasure of memory, alienation, and self-perception. How and where do these struggles resonate today?

Discussion with Mũkoma wa Ngũgĩ (Kenya/ USA) and Rémi Tchokothe (Cameroon/ D).

Saturday, 08/09, 12 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Languages: German and English

Decolonizing Public Spaces

Street names honor, statues immortalize — but whom? Our panelists discuss how public space is historically and politically influenced and address the possibilities of decolonizing urban areas.

Discussion with Noa Ha (D), Christian Kopp (D), and Zethu Matebeni (South Africa).

Saturday, 08/09, 2 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Language: English

Decolonizing of Gender and Sexuality

Part I Divergence from heterosexuality, from traditional gender roles and binary understandings of masculinity and femininity, is often portrayed as a colonial invention, with the purpose of justifying rejection and persecution. Yet does the belief that diversity in sexuality and gender was imported withstand historical and cultural analysis?

Part II The shortcomings of »the« feminist movement have led many feminists to specify their struggles. Drawing race, religion, class, sexuality, and other dimensions into the equation, intersectional feminist thought aims to identify the crossroads between different forms of oppression. How does that make for a more inclusive movement and what might be its limits, especially when it comes to incorporating non-Western feminisms?

With Akwaeke Emezi (Nigeria/USA), Mbali Matandela (South Africa/GB), Zethu Matebeni (South Africa), Anja Michaelsen (D), Musa Okwonga (Uganda/D), Lana Sirri (Palestine/NL), and Zairong Xiang (China/D). Moderation: Zara Rahman

Saturday, 08/09, 4:15 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Language: English

The Politics of Beauty

From skin-whitening creams in Delhi or Dakar beauty stores to eyelid surgery in Beijing clinics, the amount of energy, money, and risk that goes into looking »beautiful« can sometimes be daunting. But what does beautiful look like, and what hides behind the dedication to Western beauty standards? Our panelists discuss the politics of beauty and the necessity to reinvent them.

With Sandrine Micossé-Aikins (D), Umber Ghauri (GB), and kate-hers Rhee (Republic of Korea/D). Moderation: Zara Rahman

Saturday, 08/09, 6:30 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Language: English

Psychology and Diversity – De-colonial Approaches

»Speak Up!« Film & Discussion

In her film »Speak Up!«, Amandine Gay F interviews black women in France and Belgium, finding that they frequently share the feeling that psychological counseling is not for them, that it is »a thing for white people«. Gay discusses biases of psychology and their implications.

Moderation: Melz Owusu

Sunday, 09/09, 12 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Languages: German and English

Chalk and Blackboard – Decolonizing Places of Knowledge

»[T]he night of the sword and the bullet was followed by the morning of the chalk and the blackboard«, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o writes to reveal the intimate link between physical and mental colonization, the latter using education as a vehicle. How can the struggles for a decolonization of universities, libraries, and curricula be strengthened?

With Dalia Gebrial (GB), Nadja Ofuatey-Alazard (D), and Melz Owusu (GB). Moderation: Claudia Simons

Sunday, 09/09, 2 PM

Location: aquarium (Südblock), Skalitzer Str. 6, 10999 Berlin

Language: English and German

#diversity #decolonize – Strukturwandel in Kulturinstitutionen oder Marketingstrategie?

#diversity #decolonize – Structural Change or Marketing Strategies in Cultural Institutions?

As the conversation around diversity in the media and in the cultural sector develop, some question the sincerity and motivations behind it. How justified is this skepticism? How efficient are cultural institutions’s takes on diversity? And what impact do they have on writers and artists of color?

With Sandrine Micossé-Aikins (D), André Alexis (Trinidad and Tobago/Canada),

Aya Cissoko (F) and Masande Ntshanga (South Africa).

Sunday, 09/09, 6 PM

Location: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V., Schumannstr. 8, 10117 Berlin

Languages: German, English, French and German Sign Language

Language and Identity — Closing discussion with Patrick Chamoiseau (F/Martinique)

The Martinique-born author Patrick Chamoiseau [Prix Goncourt 1992], who has dedicated himself to the study of Creole culture, will explore the interconnections between identity and language in the postcolonial context.

Moderation: Vincent von Wroblewsky

Wednesday, 12/09, 4 PM

Location: Haus der Berliner Festspiele (Seitenbühne), Schaperstraße 24, 10719 Berlin

Language: German

Herkunft und Zukunft von Kunstsammlungen aus kolonialen Kontexten in den Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin — Preußischer Kulturbesitz

Die Diskussionen über Kunstobjekte aus ehemaligen Kolonien schlugen in den letzten Jahren hohe Wellen — und tangieren in Deutschland auch die Sammlungen der Staatlichen Museen

zu Berlin, die ab 2019 im Humboldt-Forum gezeigt werden. Im Mai wurde ein Leitfaden zum Umgang mit Sammlungsgut aus kolonialen Kontexten vom Deutschen Museumsbund herausgegeben. Hermann Parzinger (D) ist Präsident der Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, zu der die Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin mit 15 Sammlungen in 15 Häusern gehören. Im Gespräch gibt er Auskunft über den Stand der Dinge und skizziert, wie die von ihm repräsentierten Sammlungen in Zukunft mit Blick auf dieses Thema umgehen werden.

Moderation: Thomas E. Schmidt

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Information:       
Caroline Bertram
Project Officer Africa Division
Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung
email: cbertram@boell.de
Phone: +49 (0) 30 285 34 - 344