OSP: Paul Gilroy - Postcolonial theory and diasporic identity

 

1) How does Gilroy suggest racial identities are constructed?

He has argues that racial identities are historically constructed – formed by colonialization,

slavery, nationalist philosophies and consumer capitalism.

2) What does Gilroy suggest regarding the causes and history of racism?

‘Race’ [is not] the eternal cause of racism [but is] its complex, unstable product. I should probably emphasise at this point that neither race nor racism are the exclusive historical property of the minorities who are their primary victims.

3) What is ethnic absolutism and why is Gilroy opposed to it?

Ethnic absolutism is a line of thinking which sees humans are part of different ethnic compartments, with race as the basis of human differentiation. Gilroy is opposed to ethnic absolutism as it is counter to his argument that racism causes race.

4) How does Gilroy view diasporic identity?

He considers a transatlantic diasporic identity, where groups across the Atlantic share cultural practices – a “single, complex unit” of black cultural practitioners as a result of a shared history of oppression and

slavery. Gilroy sees black identities as a product of movement

5) What did Gilroy suggest was the dominant representation of black Britons in the 1980s (when the Voice newspaper was first launched)?

At the time, the dominant representation of black Britons was as “external and estranged from the imagined community that is the nation.” As such, to accept the role of slavery into the cultural identities

of Britain would be to challenge the negative stereotype of black Britons at the time, and reverse the “external and estranged” relationship with the nation.

6) Gilroy argues diaspora challenges national ideologies. What are some of the negative effects of this?

This tension between the national ideology and the diasporic ideologies helps to create the diasporic identity. Identities are created in both positive and negative ways. Positive ways of creating an identity could be in the participation and relationships individuals experience. On the other hand, negative experiences of exclusion, exposure to regressive ideologies and marginalisation will also create an identity which is then shared within the diasporic community and perhaps from the origin country.

7) Complete the first activity on page 3: How might diasporic communities use the media to stay connected to their cultural identity? E.g. digital media - offer specific examples.

as they may be unable to go there they are able to see their cultural identity by watching it on the tv for example 60% of the weekly users of www.bbc.co.uk/urdu/ are not from within the borders of Pakistan.

8) Why does Gilroy suggest slavery is important in diasporic identity?

For Gilroy, the Black Atlantic diaspora is irreversible because the experience of slavery irrevocably

changed the diasporic identity. It cannot be ‘rewound’ to a state of cultural purity and cannot return to Africa as the place of origin has changed

9) How might representations in the media reinforce the idea of ‘double consciousness’ for black people in the UK or US?

It was first W. E. B. Du Bois that posited the idea of double consciousness. Du Bois considered the psychological dilemma faced by African American’s in The Souls of Black Folks (1903). Here Du

Bois theorises that this dilemma is the position of having two modes of perception: Seeing one’s identity from a black person’s perspective (as a thinking human being).  Seeing one’s identity from the perspective of the American state (as a second-class citizen not entitled to the same rights as other

humans).

10) Finally, complete the second activity on page 3: Watch the trailer for Hidden Figures and discuss how the film attempts to challenge ‘double consciousness’ and the stereotypical representation of black American women.

By putting them in a position of sophistication or power that isn't usually shown in TV shows or wider media and by showing them as intellectual leaders