It's Sunday again, Reader!
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Although I skipped a newsletter last week, I try to keep Sunday as the delivery day. “A Sunday newsletter, trying to be delivered weekly”, that should probably be the new motto.

I got a kind message of one of the subscribers about the fact that the last newsletter had helped her a lot. Those messages make my day because I’m really writing this for you.

Having said that, if you know anyone who’d appreciate this content, please forward it to them and ask them to subscribe. Or open this edition in the browser and share it on your social media for others to read.

Scratching the surface of decoloniality

The word that is constantly on top of my mind is ‘decoloniality’, after I finished the Maria Lugones Summer School on the topic last week. We had to write a final assignment and I’ve published mine on my website: “Reflections on the decolonial summer school”.
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​You know how reading a good book can change your perspective on the news you consume daily? The summer school had the same effect on me. It made me realize even more the importance of the apology by the mayor of Amsterdam about the city’s role in the slavery past. Professor Gloria Wekker let us light a candle during her class in the summer school on the historical day the apology was done. I also pay more attention to articles about decolonising the media industry, like this one about filmmaker Benji Timu (New Zealand) who wants to change the narrative for Pasifika within media:

And it has brought me confusion as well, for example about a BBC article saying that “UN human rights chief calls for reparations over racism”. Because decoloniality also means to look critically at institutions like the United Nations and concepts like ‘human rights’. Both invented and initiated through Western dominance. Does it mean they’re bad? Not necessarily but progress in modernity always comes with a downside and we should investigate that other darker side of the story. That’s what the summer school has taught me.
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What does this mean for journalism?

Well, actually it means to just do the work with an awareness of the fact that the truth we grew up in isn’t universal. There are pluriversal truths out there and it’s not necessarily our view that gets to decide which truth is more important. We should therefore always question who is talking about what, when, and why that’s important in the context of colonisation. Because modernity doesn’t come without it. As one of the two directors of the summer school, Walter Mignolo, says:

For a journalism training I’m coordinating at the moment I had to read an article by the climate change editor of The Guardian who asked himself the question “Does journalism actually make a difference?” and his conclusion should be applied to the topic of decoloniality as well:

Honestly, I feel I just scratched the surface of this topic. So hopefully my writing about it in this newsletter isn’t too abstract or chaotic. I’m constantly looking for ways to bring across a new way of seeing in order to create better stories. And that is another thing the summer school puts a lot of emphasis on: the experience of a new view shouldn’t just take place on an economical or rational level. We need embodiment, spiritual knowledge, philosophical perspectives, artistic expression, a multidisciplinary and collaborative approach to fully comprehend our joined histories and heal as a community. ​
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- Sanne

Journal prompt

Did you ever get doubts about something that seemed inherently 'good' to you? In your personal life or in a worldly matter? What created the crack in your beliefs? How did it make you feel?

What am I reading or watching?

• I’m binge watching episodes of American television sitcom "Friends" (1994) and I’m not really proud to say that because the reason often is distraction from things that I really need to do. We all have these moments I guess :).
  It’s fascinating to see though that there weren’t any mobile phones at that time, the Twin Towers were still there and it seemed normal to have a monkey as a pet. It also strikes me how I perceive Phoebe’s role so differently now. I thought of her as a funny but also a bit crazy woman at the time the series came out. Now I see that she is actually the one who has the most healthy morals if it’s about caring for our planet and animals. If you’re also re-watching Friends, I’d love to hear if your perception has changed.

What can you do?

• You can start reading more about decoloniality to get a better understanding of the term. Walter Mignolo talks about the key concepts in this interview by Alvina Hoffmann.
• Take good care of yourself. There is so much going on in the world at the moment, you can’t be there for others if you’re not taking care of yourself. Stay safe and healthy.

See you again on a Sunday!