The Right To Research and the Conditions of Production of History - Einzelansicht

This course examines the right to research and the conditions of scholarly production of historical scholarship. It does so by paying close attention to one book in particular, namely the anthology “The Right to Research: Historical Narratives by Refugee and Global South Researchers” edited by Kate Reed and Marcia C. Schenck, published in January 2023 by McGill-Queen’s University Press in their forced migration studies series. We will work with Michel Rolph Trouillot’s understanding of the “conditions of production” of history and pay close attention to the four axes of silencing he identifies in the writing of history, which occur during the creation of a) sources, b) archives, c) historical narratives, d) “history in the final instance.” Moreover, we will discuss and expand upon Arjun Appadurai’s notion of the right to research, and think about standpoint epistemology, objectivity, diversity and the limits and opportunities of the inclusion paradigm. During our discussion, we will reflect together with the authors of this anthology on questions such as: What makes a person a researcher? Who is and is not considered to be a historian? What does it mean to write history from a refugee camp? What are the scope and limits of oral histories? What story for which audience? How can we understand a right to research? What follows for our historical practice inside and outside the academy?

During this course, we will read through the anthology and supplement the chapters with additional secondary literature. Exploring what it means to become a researcher, The Right to Research understands historical scholarship as an ongoing conversation - one in which we all have a right to participate. The course thus offers a special format, whereby we will discuss each chapter in the presence of the author. This means, you will have the privilege of meeting and interacting with the contributors of the anthology who are living in, or working from, France, Syria, Kurdistan, Rwanda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, and Burundi. They inhabit different points along the continuum from displacement to emplacement and each of them have chosen to research and write a topic dear to their heart. The chapters cover topics such as education in Kakuma Refugee Camp, the political power of hip-hop in Rwanda, women migrants to Yemen, and the development of photojournalism in Kurdistan.

Appadurai, Arjun. "The Right to Research." Globalisation, Societies and Education 4, no. 2 (2006): 167-77.

Kleist, J. Olaf. "The History of Refugee Protection: Conceptual and Methodological Challenges." Journal of Refugee Studies 30, no. 2 (2017): 161-69. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/fex018. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/fex018.

Levi, Giovanni. "Frail Frontiers?*." Past & Present 242, no. Supplement_14 (2019): 37-49. https://doi.org/10.1093/pastj/gtz037. https://doi.org/10.1093/pastj/gtz037.

Reed, Kate, Marcia C. Schenck, ed. The Right to Research: Historical Narratives by Refugee and Global South Researchers. Edited by James Milner Meagan Bradley, Refugee and Forced Migration Studies Series. Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2023.

Táíwò, Olúfẹ́mi. Against: Decolonization: Taking African Agency Seriously. Hurst, 2022.

Trouillot, Michel-Rolph. Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History. Beacon Press, 1995.

As per module catalogue.