Feminist and Anti-Racist Philosophies of Space and Time [6-weeks, $250 Suggested]

***This class is sold out, but interested students can audit this course asynchronously.

Instructor: Dahiya | Tuesdays March 22-April 26 | 7:00-9:00 PM ET

In 1837, German philosopher Wilhelm Hegel famously declared that Africa “is no historical part of the world; it has no movement or development to exhibit.” It is instead simply a dark, voluminous landmass in the Southern hemisphere. More recently, Black feminist theorist Brittney Cooper argues “that if time had a race, it would be white,” and according to author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates, “the defining feature of being drafted into the black race is the inescapable robbery of time.” What does it mean to be outside of history and for time itself to be racialized? What is the relation between power, politics, oppression, and philosophical concepts of space and time? How are time and space experienced under colonialism? What is the spacetime of slavery?

In this six-week course, we will explore how “abstract” concepts of space and time are deeply intertwined with histories of racism, colonialism, and the history of enslavement. Together, we will examine how certain philosophical conceptions of space and time actually bolster sexed, raced, and colonial oppression. Using landmark readings in the history and philosophy of science, Caribbean anti-colonial philosophy, Black feminist thought, and certain strands of 20th-century French philosophy, we will study how the concepts time and space can and must be rethought in order to create new times and spaces where oppressed peoples can not only live but flourish.

We depend on a mix of direct student donations and supplemental donations to make all classes pay-what-you-can. Please pick the pricing tier that corresponds with your needs and that you are able to pay now. If you would like to pay in installments, make your first payment now and make a note on your check-out form. If you would like to donate more later in the term, you can always come back and use the “Make a One Time Donation” button! To use a full scholarship, just pick the $3 tier to cover site/processor fees.

If at any point up to 48 hours before your first class session you realize you will be unable to take the class, we will work with you to reallocate your funds to a future class, to another student’s scholarship, or refund it. After classes begin, we are only able to make partial refunds and adjustments.