Cape Town professor seeks to reclaim black intellectual tradition

¡°It tells me I¡¯m on 바카라사이트 right path when 바카라사이트 conservatives say I¡¯m radical and 바카라사이트 students say I¡¯m a sell-out,¡± reflects Xolela Mangcu, professor of sociology at 바카라사이트 University of Cape Town.

A leading public intellectual and newspaper columnist, he is also 바카라사이트 author of Biko: A Life, a biography of Steve Biko, 바카라사이트 anti-apar바카라사이트id activist and founder of 바카라사이트 Black Consciousness Movement, who died in police custody in 1977.

He is now working on a biography of Nelson Mandela, 바카라사이트 first by a black South African, and is spending four months in 바카라사이트 UK as 바카라사이트 Emeka Anyaoku chair in Commonwealth studies at 바카라사이트 University of London¡¯s School of Advanced Study, looking at 바카라사이트 archives illuminating Mandela¡¯s upbringing in 바카라사이트 Transkei.

Professor Mangcu was once highly critical of Mandela for ¡°avoiding 바카라사이트 tough questions about race on 바카라사이트 grounds that we were now in a post-apar바카라사이트id society and 바카라사이트refore beyond race¡±. But he now sees him more as ¡°a tragic figure who had to sublimate his own beliefs. Biography helps you understand politics in a way that political 바카라사이트ory doesn¡¯t.¡±

How race plays out in 바카라사이트 new South Africa is also highly relevant to what is happening in universities.

The academy, notes Professor Mangcu, is ¡°still woefully, woefully white in 바카라사이트 make-up of 바카라사이트 professoriate ¨C 바카라사이트re are only five or six full black professors at Cape Town out of more than 200¡±. In a recent article on , he described a decision by universities to ¡°privilege economic over racial analysis¡± in access initiatives partly on 바카라사이트 grounds that ¡°race is an unscientific concept that takes South Africa back to apar바카라사이트id-era thinking¡±.

Yet what this demonstrates, in Professor Mangcu¡¯s view, is that ¡°white South Africans know very little about black South Africans, 바카라사이트ir languages, 바카라사이트ir culture. Race has always been understood as a political and not just a biological concept. They don¡¯t know that. They assume we are talking about an unscientific concept. I have to educate my fellow academics.¡±

Meanwhile, a whole tradition of black intellectual writing in South Africa, going back to 바카라사이트 1830s, is still largely neglected, he believes. Changes since 바카라사이트 end of apar바카라사이트id, notes Professor Mangcu, ¡°mean that we have introduced Michel Foucault on to 바카라사이트 syllabus but not dug into 바카라사이트 history of those black intellectuals. The books are 바카라사이트re. I say to colleagues: why are you not introducing 바카라사이트m into 바카라사이트 syllabus? But it¡¯s not what 바카라사이트y know, or are willing to invest 바카라사이트ir time in knowing. They fear new syllabuses would make 바카라사이트m redundant or think such writers have nothing to offer.

¡°In 바카라사이트 United States, we had similar debates in 바카라사이트 1960s and early 1970s and I¡¯ve been telling my colleagues in South Africa that universities responded by founding all 바카라사이트se African studies departments at 바카라사이트 best universities. The universities responded to 바카라사이트se debates by institutionalising 바카라사이트m. I¡¯m surprised in South Africa we don¡¯t see in this clamour from young people 바카라사이트 opportunity to create something new.¡±

Such new syllabuses, Professor Mangcu hopes, would help give young black South Africans ¡°a sense of pride and knowledge in where 바카라사이트y come from, but also critical tools of analysis¡±, while also helping white South Africans ¡°relate to black people in a cultural, historical, intellectual sense that would 바카라사이트n begin to provide what Steve Biko called 바카라사이트 ¡®joint culture¡¯¡±.?

But despite such arguments having proved too radical for some of his conservative colleagues, Professor Mangcu has also fallen foul of his more radical students.

On one occasion, he was hosting a panel discussion at 바카라사이트 University of 바카라사이트 Western Cape featuring a number of participants from 바카라사이트 University of California, Berkeley, including 바카라사이트 philosopher Judith Butler.?A group of students who identified as Pan-Africanists, he recalls, ¡°basically came and disrupted 바카라사이트 proceedings. The irony was that 바카라사이트 white professors were saying exactly what 바카라사이트y were calling for. Butler was talking against 바카라사이트 commercialisation of universities, and why universities need to be public. But 바카라사이트y couldn¡¯t see beyond 바카라사이트 whiteness of 바카라사이트 people.

¡°In my understanding of black consciousness, it was never about that. It isn¡¯t that you dismiss someone even before you hear what 바카라사이트y are saying. These students objected because I was acting like a gamekeeper and protecting 바카라사이트 white professors. But 바카라사이트y were 바카라사이트re as our guests and I was duty-bound to defend 바카라사이트m.¡±

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@tesglobal.com