TEST #1 Theories of Ethnicity and Race pt.2

what are Post-Colonial Societies

Post-colonial societies are those that were once colonized and later achieved formal political independence, but continue to be shaped by colonial power structures, racial hierarchies, and ways of thinking long after colonizers physically leave.

This is why the slide emphasizes that colonization is not an event but a structure — its effects persist socially, economically, culturally, and psychologically.

eurocentrism

European society was used as the benchmark by which all societies could be measured. Resulted in expansion, exploitation, and enslavement in the colonies

Colonialism

Colonialism refers to the process through which one society expands its power by occupying another territory, expropriating Indigenous land, extracting resources, and imposing its political, economic, and cultural systems on the colonized population.

Colonialism is not only about land or economics; it also involves producing racial hierarchies that define colonizers as civilized and colonized peoples as inferior.

Settler-Colonial Relationship (Coulthard)

A settler-colonial relationship is a form of domination where colonial power becomes embedded and normalized in society, continuing to dispossess Indigenous peoples of land and self-determination even after colonial rule formally ends.

Coulthard emphasizes that this domination is structural, meaning it is built into institutions, laws, and everyday social relations rather than being a temporary historical injustice.

Post-Colonialism (as a Theory)

Post-colonialism is an intellectual and political framework that analyzes how colonial ideologies, racial hierarchies, and power relations persist after independence.

It focuses on:

- The relationship between colonizer and colonized

- How identities were shaped through domination

- Resistance to Eurocentric knowledge

- The search for identities not defined by colonial values

Post-colonial theory explains why racism can persist even in formally independent or multicultural societies.

Glen Coulthard - Red Skin, White Masks

Coulthard critiques the politics of recognition, which seeks validation from the settler state, arguing that this often reproduces colonial power instead of dismantling it.

He argues that true decolonization requires rebuilding Indigenous culture, governance, and identity outside of settler approval, rather than seeking inclusion within colonial frameworks.

Edward Said - Orientalism

Edward Said argued that Western scholars and artists constructed "the Orient" (Arab and Eastern societies) as exotic, backward, irrational, and timeless in order to justify domination.

This process, known as Orientalism, created knowledge that positioned the West as modern and superior while denying colonized peoples the ability to define themselves.

Said's key point is that knowledge is power — how groups are represented shapes how they are governed.

The Western Gaze

The Western (or white) gaze refers to the authoritative way Western societies look at and interpret non-Western cultures, assuming the right to judge, classify, and define them.

This gaze renders whiteness invisible and universal while making racialized groups hypervisible and "other."

Frantz Fanon

Frantz Fanon argued that colonialism is inherently violent and psychologically damaging, shaping how colonized people see themselves and their worth.

He believed that violence by the colonized could be a necessary response to the violence of colonization, and that language was a key site of domination, where adopting the colonizer's language often meant distancing oneself from Indigenous identity.

Proximity to Whiteness (Post-Colonial Context)

Proximity to whiteness refers to how closely individuals or groups align with white norms in appearance, speech, culture, or behaviour, which often grants them greater access to power and legitimacy.

In post-colonial societies, this is described as a "post-colonial hangover", where colonial values continue to shape social hierarchies long after independence.

Colourism

Colourism is discrimination based on skin tone, where lighter skin is valued over darker skin, reflecting colonial histories and racial hierarchies tied to whiteness.

It operates both between racial groups and within them.

Internalized Racism

Internalized racism occurs when racialized individuals absorb dominant beliefs about whiteness being superior, leading to self-doubt, self-policing, or distancing from their own identity.

This shows how colonial power operates psychologically, not just structurally.

Critical Whiteness Studies

Critical Whiteness Studies examine whiteness as a socially constructed identity and system of power rather than a neutral or invisible norm.

This approach highlights how whiteness shapes institutions, urban spaces, and everyday interactions while remaining largely unexamined.

Racialization & Whiteness (Toni Morrison Example)

Toni Morrison critiques the assumption that racialized lives only gain meaning through the white gaze, exposing how whiteness is positioned as the default reference point.

This illustrates how racialization is relational — identities are defined in relation to whiteness, not independently.