Lewis Gordon visits the School of Law as Writer-in-Residence 2016
Lewis Gordon, the 2016 Writer-in-Residence, presented four seminars on his work.
Lewis Gordon, the 2016 Writer-in-Residence, presented four formal seminars on aspects of his work pertaining to the student movements’ call for decolonization of universities and their systems of knowledge and its production.
The first seminar was a discussion of Frantz Fanon and the continued relevance of his thought. The second explored Black Existentialism and Gordon’s critique of optimism and pessimism, and the third was devoted to theories on the decolonization of knowledge, the creolization of theory, and Gordon’s work on disciplinarity and its transcendence.
In the fourth, Gordon discussed his recent work on the decolonization of normative life and thinking through alternative conceptions of norms, especially when, as he formulated it, justice is not enough.
Students presented their own work in the final seminar, in which the group offered feedback. The seminars were each followed by group dinner discussions.
Realizing the reach of Birkbeck students across the city, Gordon expanded his work as writer-in-residence through participating in their collaborations in various colloquia, conferences, and community projects over the course of his three-weeks stay.
These included keynoting the Focus on the Funk conference at Birkbeck, the Kanthropology conference at Kingston University, Faith, Philosophy, and Social Justice at Christ College, a public seminar at Goldsmiths on his recent book What Fanon Said, and a public conversation on decolonization, education, and political commitments at SOAS.
Gordon also participated in community meetings on racism, discussions of recent developments in UK politics, meetings with a variety of public intellectuals and activists across the city, and was interviewed by Chris Jones in a segment of the radio program Boom & Bass for Kane FM 103.7.
The students and general community from this broad spectrum of events have informed Gordon that they look forward to his return to continue the wonderful dialogue they inaugurated from this visit.
About the Writer-in-Residence Programme:
The writer in residence programme enables a three-week period of residence for a scholar who has achieved distinction in the field of critical theory.
Through a series of seminars with PhD students and staff, recipients of the fund will work through the theoretical, empirical and methodological questions that arise in the writing process.
Writers and Artists in Residence Programme
Internet links to some of the events:
- Kanthropology: http://www.kanthropology.com/ & audio: http://backdoorbroadcasting.net/2016/05/lewis-gordon-o-kanthropology-moving-on-fanthropologically-in-africana-philosophy/
- Focus on the Funk: http://criticallegalthinking.com/2016/03/04/focus-funk-journeys/
- Faith, Philosophy, and Social Justice, at Christ College London, Woolwich :https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/faith-philosophy-and-social-justice-tickets-25081724112?ref=enivtefor001&invite=MTAwOTAxNTUvbGV3aXNyZ29yZG9uQGdtYWlsLmNvbS8w&utm_source=eb_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=inviteformalv2&utm_term=eventpage
- Seminar on What Fanon Said: http://www.gold.ac.uk/calendar/?id=9979
- SOAS discussion of decolonization: http://london.carpediem.cd/events/262030-decolonising-knowledge-education-and-the-university-from-ideas-and-political-commitment-to-political-action-at-soas-university-of-london/