Abstract

On both sides of the Atlantic, polemics have been raging on complex questions relating to identity and race: cancel culture, wokism, critical race theory, assaults on affirmative action policies, and labeling scholars “Islamo-Leftists.” The focus of this article is provided by a closer examination of the ways in which a group of militant academics have instrumentalized the notion of “decolonialism” and how adherents have positioned themselves as the self-appointed imaginary defenders of academic freedom in research. Having identified the primary corrupting influence as originating in the United States, they have sought to discredit scholarship on decolonial, postcolonial, and intersectional studies, delineating in the process a common enemy. What transpires is an antagonism aimed at scholars who have elected to subject French Republican ideals to greater scrutiny, highlighted shortcomings in secularist policies while pointing to deep-seated historical fractures in the country’s sense of exceptionalism, and also underscoring France’s inability to address structural racism and disquieting forms of Islamophobia. We all know the considerable impact postcolonial studies have had internationally, reconfiguring and reshaping intellectual debates and institutional frameworks and stimulating broad interdisciplinary research. One cannot overstate the importance of fostering spaces in which rigorous research findings can be shared and discussed and of finding our way back to the kind of dialogue and exchanges that were foundational elements in a tradition that made France’s reputation and were a source of pride.

摘要

在大西洋两岸，关于身份和种族的复杂问题的争论一直在激烈进行：取消文化、工人主义、批判种族理论、对平权行动政策的攻击，以及给学者贴上“伊斯兰左翼分子”的标签。本文的重点是通过仔细研究一群激进的学者如何利用“非殖民主义”概念，以及追随者如何将自己定位为研究中学术自由的自封的想象捍卫者。在确定主要的腐败影响源自美国后，他们试图抹黑非殖民、后殖民和交叉研究的学术成果，并在此过程中描绘出共同的敌人。所发生的事情是针对那些选择让法国共和理想接受更严格审查的学者的对抗，强调了世俗主义政策的缺陷，同时指出了该国例外论意识中根深蒂固的历史裂痕，并强调了法国无力解决结构性种族主义和令人不安的伊斯兰恐惧症形式。我们都知道后殖民研究在国际上产生了巨大的影响，重新配置和重塑了知识辩论和制度框架，并刺激了广泛的跨学科研究。