Europe's colonial "backpack"
Channel: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung
Date: 08/04/2022

Part of the series "Decolonial Dialogues: Towards a New Relational Ethic between Africa and Europe"

As an overarching historical context, colonialism emerged as a European project despite different national manifestations. The conquest of other continents was an essential element of European prosperity and identity. The realignment of the world after the Second World War was by no means a turning point: Part of the European unification process itself was a “late colonial project”, based on old (western) patterns of thinking with regard to European-African relations. Here, the Treaty of Rome (1957) – in which the colonies were included in the European Economic Community, while being exempted from customs duties – is only one example.

How can the overcoming of (neo)colonial external relations and the internal formation of Europe be initiated through cooperation on the continent? What ideas do African societies have for a new relational ethic with Europe and its institutional shaping in political, economic, and legal terms?

With

Dr. Yvette Abrahams, senior scholar at the “San and Khoi Unit”, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Dr. Selly Ba, sociologist, programme officer hbs, Dakar
Prof. Dr. Peo Hansen, author of "Eurafrica", Linköping Universität, Sweden
Prof. Dr. Facil Tesfaye, assistant professor & Director African Studies Programme, University of Hong Kong

Moderation: Aisha Camara