decolonising
Dismantling colonial structures
Decolonising is the process of dismantling colonial systems, attitudes, or legacies.
Beyond the literal sense of former colonies gaining independence, the word now commonly describes efforts to remove colonial influences from institutions, curricula, or ways of thinking: decolonising the university, decolonising the museum's collection.
The concept prompts reexamination of whose knowledge, history, and perspectives have been centered or marginalized.
Also spelled decolonizing.
Breaking into constituent elements
- unlearningAbandoning acquired beliefs
- counter-narrativeStory opposing mainstream version
- curriculum reformRestructuring educational content
- decenteringShifting away from self-focus
Control over one's fate
- self-ruleGovernance without outside control
- independenceFreedom from external control
- nationhoodStatus as independent country
- autonomyIndependent decision-making capacity
self-governance · indigenous sovereignty · land rights · treaty rights · political autonomy · nation-building · statehood · secession
Adapting to native practices
- cultural revivalRestoration of heritage practices
- ancestral knowledgeUnderstanding inherited from forebears
- cultural renaissanceRebirth of arts and thought
- repatriationFormal return to homeland
indigenous practices · oral traditions · traditional medicine · heritage preservation · native languages · storytelling traditions · sacred sites · traditional arts
Opposition to foreign domination
- dismantlingTaking apart systematically
- liberation movementsOrganized campaigns seeking autonomy
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
- solidarityUnity among allies
Pan-Africanism · national liberation · freedom struggle · independence movements · revolutionary
Compensation for historical wrongs
- truth-tellingCommunicating only facts
- reconciliationRestoration of friendly relations
- repatriationFormal return to homeland
- memorializationPreserving in lasting tribute
apology · acknowledgment · monument removal · renaming · healing · intergenerational trauma · restorative justice · truth commissions
deconstructing
Breaking into constituent elements
- unlearningAbandoning acquired beliefs
- counter-narrativeStory opposing mainstream version
- curriculum reformRestructuring educational content
self-determination
Control over one's fate
- self-ruleGovernance without outside control
- independenceFreedom from external control
- nationhoodStatus as independent country
autonomy · self-governance · indigenous sovereignty · land rights · treaty rights · political autonomy · nation-building · statehood · secession · nonalignment
indigenization
Adapting to native practices
- cultural revivalRestoration of heritage practices
- ancestral knowledgeUnderstanding inherited from forebears
- cultural renaissanceRebirth of arts and thought
repatriation · indigenous practices · oral traditions · traditional medicine · heritage preservation · native languages · storytelling traditions · sacred sites · traditional arts · foodways
anti-imperialism
Opposition to foreign domination
- dismantlingTaking apart systematically
- liberation movementsOrganized campaigns seeking autonomy
- resistanceCapacity to withstand force
solidarity · Pan-Africanism · national liberation · freedom struggle · independence movements · revolutionary
reparations
Compensation for historical wrongs
- truth-tellingCommunicating only facts
- reconciliationRestoration of friendly relations
- repatriationFormal return to homeland
memorialization · apology · acknowledgment · monument removal · renaming · healing · intergenerational trauma · restorative justice · truth commissions
decolonisingcolonising
Establishing control over territory
colonizing · imperialising · empire-building · recolonising · annexing
decolonisingcultural imperialism
Dominant society imposing its ways
imposing · assimilating · homogenising · cultural erasure · cultural hegemony
decolonisingcolonisation
Establishing control abroad
imperial expansion · settler colonialism · partition · exploitation
colony, colonial, colonist, colonialism, colonise, neocolonialism, colonisation, precolonial, decolonize