Race and Racism: Black Existential Philosophy for Peace Studies

Abstract

This thesis is about the question of race and racism with a focus on why they are not given due scholarly attention in the field of peace studies. The liberal philosophical approaches to race and racism offer a limited view on the relationship between race and European colonialism and modernity. To challenge such limitation, I argue that peace studies need to engage deeply with Africana and black existential philosophy for their critical and transformative ideas. Drawing on such range of theoretical sources, I propose pedagogical and disciplinary imperatives to engage with race and racism in peace studies and in the classroom setting.