ignorance of history serves many ends

January 14, 2021 5:14 PM

There was no single moment when I began to sense the long shadow that Cecil John Rhodes has cast over my life, or over the university where I am a professor, or over the ways of seeing the world shared by so many of us still living in the ruins of the British empire. But, looking back, it is clear that long before I arrived at Oxford as a student, long before I helped found the university’s Rhodes Must Fall movement, long before I even left Zimbabwe as a teenager, this man and everything he embodied had shaped the worlds through which I moved. Oxford professor Simukai Chigudu gives a personal account of colonialism and decolonialism. [Audio link.]
posted by ChuraChura (10 comments total)

I always feel bad when I comment before fully finishing the linked article, but I wanted to thank you for it now, even if I don't finish reading it right away.

His writing is great (and I appreciate his making the small effort of helping the reader keep track of the history in the "Beginning in 1963" paragraph), but his experience and his perspective are especially valuable to me. Thanks to MetaFilter, my distressing ignorance of the legacy of colonialism is slightly less massive than it was, and I really appreciate getting to read Chigudu's story and reflect on his thoughts.

Thank you so much for posting this, ChuraChura! (With luck, I'll finish reading it tomorrow and be back with another comment.)
posted by kristi at 7:05 PM on January 14, 2021 [3 favorites]

Thank you for this, a very eye opening perspective. I deeply hope all of the recent and ongoing madness provides a catalyst to compel recognition of our history and inspire a true effort towards reconciliation. Myopic perhaps, but I must hope.

For a deeper dive into exactly how big a piece of shit Cecil Rhodes was, I highly recommend Robert Evans Behind the Bastards podcast episodes covering him.
posted by calamari kid at 8:07 PM on January 14, 2021 [1 favorite]

That was a really fantastic piece, thanks for sharing it. Very well worth the read.
posted by biogeo at 9:24 PM on January 14, 2021

I agree, the writing is extremely good, and the way he weaves his personal narrative together with his recounting of the history and legacy of colonialism both in Zimbabwe and England is wonderful.

Nothing says "the spirit of colonialism is alive and well" quite so forcefully as Oxford's resistance to removing a statue of Cecil Rhodes. What a lot of work there is to do...
posted by dougfelt at 11:04 PM on January 14, 2021

Thanks. That was very interesting reading. Working within the academy to change it is the only way to progress and extend thinking and learning.

More than 10% (just) of Australia's prime ministers have been Rhodes Scholarship recipients, enjoying an Oxford graduate education on Cecil's dime - Bob Hawke, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull - and each has been active in furthering the colonial project in Australia during their tenure as colonists-in-chief. No longer should we use the term 'Rhodes Scholar' to represent something noteworthy in front of their names, as is often done.
posted by Thella at 3:20 AM on January 15, 2021

I was really glad to get pointed to this moving piece. Thank you!

In a related vein, here’s the remarkable Indigenous journalist Julian Brave Noisecat (whom I’m super proud to count as a former student, full disclosure) writing back in 2015 in Salon, about being the first Indigenous finalist for a Rhodes scholarship. This was among his earliest published writings, but you could see he was bound for bigger things here:

“The Rhodes Scholarship Wasn’t Designed for My People - That’s Why I Had to Win.”

If you don’t know his work, you will, and you should be following it now.
posted by spitbull at 9:28 AM on January 15, 2021 [3 favorites]

spitbull, thank you for posting that - I only discovered Julian Brave Noisecat within the past year or two, and I am such a fan of his work.

I wonder if it would be possible to rename the Rhodes Scholarship going forward.
posted by kristi at 10:30 AM on January 15, 2021 [1 favorite]

Once again, Robert Evans and the others at Behind the Bastards have provided a well researched history of an impactful racist.

Part One: Cecil Rhodes: The First Proud Boy and Part Two
posted by Gor-ella at 12:09 PM on January 15, 2021 [1 favorite]

kristi, if you don’t know it you may enjoy this more recent piece Julian wrote about his dad, a remarkable artist whose work takes my breath away.
posted by spitbull at 1:47 PM on January 15, 2021

great article, and more in the thread, thank you.
posted by th3ph17 at 5:06 PM on January 15, 2021