Marxism and Decolonization in the 21st Century Living Theories and True Ideas

The Global Contributions of Black Decolonial Marxism—A Foreword

Ramón Grosfoguel

1. Introduction: Marxism and Decolonization in the 21st Century

Part I: Marxist and Decolonial Theories

2. The Philosophy of Liberation: Troubling the Marxism of the 21st Century in Africa

3. The Limits of Postcolonial Critique of Marxism: A Defence of Radical Universalism

4. From Karl Marx to Kwame Nkrumah: Towards a Decolonial Political Economy

5. Triple Internationalism: Imperialism, Marxism, and Decolonization

6. Marxist Theory, Decoloniality, and Black African Subjectivity

7. Convergence and Divergence of Marxism and Decolonisation of the 21st Century

Part II: Marxist and Decolonial Praxis

8. Black Marxism and Liberatory Praxis: The Contributions of Black Marxists to Decolonization Thought

9. The Constraints for Marxism and African Revolutions: Breaking Bread with Ayi Kwei Armah

10. Ante-Marx(ism): Biko, Conquest, and Azania

11. Biographical Comparative Analysis of Black Power and Black Consciousness Activists: Onkgopotse and Stokely

12. Racial Capitalism: Marxism and Decolonial Politics

13. Is Marxism Clad in Eurocentric Garb? A Decolonial Political Economy of the Media

Part III: Empirical Interventions: Race, Gender, Class, Culture, and Land

14. Marxism in Decoloniality: A Non-Reductionist Approach to Colonial Wounded-ness in the 21st Century

15. ‘For What the First Sight Misses is the Invisible’: Decolonial Feminism and the Representation of Women in Dalit Women’s Writing

16. ‘Cargo-Cultism’ vs. ‘Everyday Decoloniality’ in 21st-Century India: Reflections on Multiracial Decolonial Practices of Anglo-Indians

17. Economic Policy-Making and Gender in 21st Century South Africa: A Marxist Feminist Look into Policy

18. Karl Marx is Long Dead; Long Live Karl Marx: Zimbabwe’s Fast-Tracked Land Reform Viewed Through Marxist Lenses

19. Marxism, Decoloniality, and the Plight of Mineworkers in South Africa

Postscript

Aditya Nigam

Biography

Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni is Professor/Chair of Epistemologies of the Global South with Emphasis in Africa at the University of Bayreuth, Germany. He is a leading decolonial theorist and historian with over 100 publications; recent books include Decolonization, Development and Knowledge in Africa: Turning Over a New Leaf (2020) and Epistemic Freedom in Africa: Deprovincialization and Decolonization (2018).

Morgan Ndlovu is Professor of Anthropology and Development Studies at the University of Zululand in South Africa and a founding member of the Africa Decolonial Research Network (ADERN). He is the author of Performing Indigeneity: Spectacles of Culture and Identity in Coloniality (2019).

'In the excitement over the current surge in decoloniality theory, some riding this wave are oblivious of the powerful role played by Marxism in analysing the oppressive nature of global capital and in illuminating the path of national liberation. The editors and authors of this collection confront this erasure, highlighting the influence of Marxism on the great thinkers of decolonization and exploring both the intersections and tensions between the two streams of thought and the movements shaped by them in the great battles against capitalism and colonialism. For those seeking decolonization of the mind and the world, this book is a stimulus and a resource in incorporating the best of progressive traditions while thinking freshly into the future.'

Helena Sheehan, Emeritus Professor, Dublin City University, Ireland, author of Marxism and the Philosophy of Science: A Critical History and Navigating the Zeitgeist

'This book relaunches the important debate about the relevance of Marxism for the unfinished project of decolonization—understood as local and global decoloniality—just as it rightly keeps in view that decoloniality necessarily involves a critique of capitalism as an economic, political, and ideological system. The book offers multiple invaluable approaches to the exploration of this task, grounded on a large array of perspectives from the Global South. It is an indispensable reference for exploring Marxism, decoloniality, as well as their connections and tensions in the 21st century.'

Nelson Maldonado-Torres, Professor of Latino & Hispanic Caribbean Studies, Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA

'In an Africa that seeks its epistemological freedom, what place does Marxist thought occupy? This book presents the case for the critical value of Marxist thought, but turns away from party vanguardism and Stalinism, and the coercion that so often came in the name of Marx. The contributors show how Marxism inspired African freedom fighters and decolonization, even now, is a weapon against today's dictatorships. It argues that Africa champions the Marxism that was in fact never realized in Europe.'

Stephen Chan OBE, Professor of World Politics, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, UK

'This book argues convincingly that neo-liberalism has not pushed Marxism to oblivion. It equally demonstrates the maximalist connections between Marxism and decoloniality, focusing on the impact of globalization, nationalism, politics, creativity, and the media. Here is a compelling book that provides a solid foundation for teaching and research, and it reminds us that Marxism is integral to politics in a new reading of Africa.'

Toyin Falola, Professor and the Frances and Sanger Mossiker Chair in the Humanities, University of Texas at Austin, USA