Typical identity stereotypes for South Asian Americans, such as the model minority myth, do not convincingly support a trajectory into K–12 education, as South Asian Americans are not readily seen as agents for social change. This qualitative study explored how South Asian American educators’ understanding of their ethnic and racial identity interplayed with their practice as critically conscious educators for social justice. Eleven participants who self-identified as social-justice-oriented were interviewed to share their experiences as South Asian American educators. Their responses revealed South Asian American educators develop their ethnic identity consciousness in complex ways, demonstrating self-awareness and subsequently draw upon their ethnic attachment and racialized experiences to perform as critically conscious educators, developing strong relationships with students from marginalized backgrounds and advancing equity in their schools. The participants’ positionalities reveal that South Asian Americans have tremendous potential as educators for social justice in education.

The purpose of this qualitative transcendental phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences concerning motivation to persist to graduation among degree-seeking academically successful African American males, ages 18-25, attending community colleges in Mississippi. This study was conducted with 10 African American male academically successful college students (average age of 19 years) attending community college in Mississippi. All participants were interviewed, with the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen approach used as the thematic analysis. Initial thematic coding revealed 60 statements/codes, which were merged into 6 themes. Based on thematic findings, students were motivated to persist to graduation by having: (a) a strong sense of identity, inclusive of an academic and racial identity; (b) role models and mentors in the community, family, and university; (c) social support from others, inclusive of academic leaders and faculty as well as family and friends; (d) participation in university organizations (e.g., student government, band, athletics) and the campus community; (e) the development of academic skills, ranging from study and time management skills to learning from others to taking in-person classes; and (f) having a mindset to succeed, which included aspects of overcoming failure, becoming responsible, being self-driven, and having future academic and career goals. Findings can be used to inform the development and implementation of culturally congruent college persistence programming and initiatives for African American male community college students. The implementation of such academic initiatives may, in the long run, have positive economic benefits for the state of Mississippi.

Over the last few decades, yoga has become a multi-billion-dollar industry in the West. This industry is typically represented by glossy photographs of thin white women in physical postures. Given its religious origins in South Asia, this mass marketing of yoga has raised important questions about Western commodification and cultural appropriation. As a result, counter-movements have emerged to “Take Back Yoga” and “Honor the Cultural Roots of Yoga.” This thesis analyzes a range of critical-constructive responses to the commodification and colonization of yoga. It focuses on two case studies: Susanna Barkataki, an American yoga teacher of Indian descent, and Kallie Schut, a British yoga teacher of Indian descent, both of whom combine yoga within wider decolonial and social justice contexts. It argues that Barkataki and Schut are best framed within a decolonial framework distinct from both modern colonial and contemporary postcolonial approaches to yoga.

Text in Afrikaans / In this thesis the term post-colonialism in the Afrikaans drama is investigated, focussing on the post-sixties. The term post-colonialism is difficult to define. Not only are theories of post-colonialism in a state of continuous flux and shifting emphasis, but as a result of different colonial dominations, separate identities have been constructed in South-Africa; so that defining the terms colonial, post colonial and post-colonial proves to be even more problematic. The purpose of this study is to determine to what extent the Afrikaans drama fits into these discourses. The basic point of departure is the fact that post-colonialism played a considerable role in the development of the Afrikaans drama, at the same time providing a more varied scope. The research covers several aspects of post-colonialism in Afrikaans drama; each dealt with in a separate chapter. A multitude of perspectives are featured within the broader discourse in order to obtain multiple norms and standards in a phase of self-criticism. The focus falls mainly on themes and not on performance aspects. New perspectives on issues such as canon texts, silence, hero-worship, the portrayal of woman, patriarchy, and neo-colonialism are presented (chapter 1). In chapter 2 focus falls on the period before 1960, and notably the question of nationalism (associated with apartheid) and the portrayal of the Afrikaner. The literary canon, forms of violence and the position of the super-Afrikaner are viewed in a new light during the re-writing of post-colonial history and the resulting paradigm shifts after 1960. Renewed emphasis is placed on discourse concerning land (chapter 3). Contrasting concepts regarding race, class, language, gender and religion are reconsidered in order to contribute towards the heterogeneous nature of post-colonialism (chapter 4). The function of theatre is to re-evaluate in the context of a post-1994 democratic system. Texts now focus especially on empowerment, re-discovery and re-ordering of history, reconciliation, inter-cultural contact and a post-apartheid syndrome (chapter 5). Anti-hegemonic resistance in Afrikaans literature since the sixties has confronted writers with the challenge of depicting or creating a larger post-colonial reality through their texts. / Afrikaans & Theory of Literature / D. Litt. et Phil. (Afrikaans)

The thesis deals with the theoretic concept of Contextual Pedagogy and its application in the context of a disempowered and marginalized society, the Ju/'hoansi ("Bushmen") of Nyae Nyae in North Eastern Namibia. Contextual Pedagogy derives from the notion of Contextual Theology and is thus initially based on a pedagogical analysis of the KAI ROS-Document, whereby its sociopolitical content and its inherent methodology are being transferred into a context of pedagogy. Referring to theoretical concepts of Critical Theory and Liberation Pedagogy, Conditional Fields are being identified in a first analysis which determine and explain the pedagogical situation in a colonial context of Apartheid South Africa. During a three-year qualitative field research, central aspects of Contextual Pedagogy are being applied within the framework of the development of a post-colonial and community-based school programme in Nyae Nyae, the Village Schools Project. This school programme comprises a curriculum for a teacher training course as well as a curriculum for Grade 1-3 learners in five selected villages of Nyae Nyae, and is based on the dynamic processes between the communities, the Student Teachers and the author as their Teacher Trainer and Village Schools Co-ordinator. A further theoretical evaluation and reflexion of the field research gives rise to a pedagogical superstructure of Contextual Pedagogy, which also investigates the notions of power, empowerment and over-empowerment within a context of development work. By doing so, the previous Conditional Fields of pedagogic work within a theoretical framework of Contextual Pedagogy become extended in relevance for a pedagogical context of a post-colonial society with special reference to marginalized subjects. In conclusion, the finalization of the research project and its subsequent handing-over process to the Namibian government analyzes the paralyzing effects of an excessive bureaucracy, and the resurgence of conservative and colonial thought in the young and fragile democracy of Namibia. / Educational Studies / D.Ed.(Didactics)

This text provides an environmental justice analysis of the stories of the people who lived in the Owens Valley, who watered its land and cultivated its crops—pine trees, apple trees, and kabocha alike. Telling the personal stories of challenge and resistance that manifested alongside the oppressive forces of military and state domination provides the opportunity to align forcibly relocated, exploited and incarcerated people’s struggles throughout time. This text starts with The Nü’ma Peoples who were the first humans to live in the Owens Valley and continues with the struggle for empire between rival colonial empires of agriculture and distant urban cities. Its final chapters end with an in-depth and personal exploration of the unconstitutional incarceration of 117,000 people of Japanese ancestry in the United States during World War II. All the while it weaves in poetry, art and grassroots stories of resistance. It is a call to action for Environmental Studies and Ethnic Studies Departments to link the critical analysis within their disciplines to tell more accurate histories.

Text in Afrikaans / In this thesis the term post-colonialism in the Afrikaans drama is investigated, focussing on the post-sixties. The term post-colonialism is difficult to define. Not only are theories of post-colonialism in a state of continuous flux and shifting emphasis, but as a result of different colonial dominations, separate identities have been constructed in South-Africa; so that defining the terms colonial, post colonial and post-colonial proves to be even more problematic. The purpose of this study is to determine to what extent the Afrikaans drama fits into these discourses. The basic point of departure is the fact that post-colonialism played a considerable role in the development of the Afrikaans drama, at the same time providing a more varied scope. The research covers several aspects of post-colonialism in Afrikaans drama; each dealt with in a separate chapter. A multitude of perspectives are featured within the broader discourse in order to obtain multiple norms and standards in a phase of self-criticism. The focus falls mainly on themes and not on performance aspects. New perspectives on issues such as canon texts, silence, hero-worship, the portrayal of woman, patriarchy, and neo-colonialism are presented (chapter 1). In chapter 2 focus falls on the period before 1960, and notably the question of nationalism (associated with apartheid) and the portrayal of the Afrikaner. The literary canon, forms of violence and the position of the super-Afrikaner are viewed in a new light during the re-writing of post-colonial history and the resulting paradigm shifts after 1960. Renewed emphasis is placed on discourse concerning land (chapter 3). Contrasting concepts regarding race, class, language, gender and religion are reconsidered in order to contribute towards the heterogeneous nature of post-colonialism (chapter 4). The function of theatre is to re-evaluate in the context of a post-1994 democratic system. Texts now focus especially on empowerment, re-discovery and re-ordering of history, reconciliation, inter-cultural contact and a post-apartheid syndrome (chapter 5). Anti-hegemonic resistance in Afrikaans literature since the sixties has confronted writers with the challenge of depicting or creating a larger post-colonial reality through their texts. / Afrikaans and Theory of Literature / D. Litt. et Phil. (Afrikaans)

The thesis deals with the theoretic concept of Contextual Pedagogy and its application in the context of a disempowered and marginalized society, the Ju/'hoansi ("Bushmen") of Nyae Nyae in North Eastern Namibia. Contextual Pedagogy derives from the notion of Contextual Theology and is thus initially based on a pedagogical analysis of the KAI ROS-Document, whereby its sociopolitical content and its inherent methodology are being transferred into a context of pedagogy. Referring to theoretical concepts of Critical Theory and Liberation Pedagogy, Conditional Fields are being identified in a first analysis which determine and explain the pedagogical situation in a colonial context of Apartheid South Africa. During a three-year qualitative field research, central aspects of Contextual Pedagogy are being applied within the framework of the development of a post-colonial and community-based school programme in Nyae Nyae, the Village Schools Project. This school programme comprises a curriculum for a teacher training course as well as a curriculum for Grade 1-3 learners in five selected villages of Nyae Nyae, and is based on the dynamic processes between the communities, the Student Teachers and the author as their Teacher Trainer and Village Schools Co-ordinator. A further theoretical evaluation and reflexion of the field research gives rise to a pedagogical superstructure of Contextual Pedagogy, which also investigates the notions of power, empowerment and over-empowerment within a context of development work. By doing so, the previous Conditional Fields of pedagogic work within a theoretical framework of Contextual Pedagogy become extended in relevance for a pedagogical context of a post-colonial society with special reference to marginalized subjects. In conclusion, the finalization of the research project and its subsequent handing-over process to the Namibian government analyzes the paralyzing effects of an excessive bureaucracy, and the resurgence of conservative and colonial thought in the young and fragile democracy of Namibia. / Educational Studies / D.Ed.(Didactics)

Cette étude se penche sur la façon dont le pouvoir politique se est imaginé et imagée dans le centre-ville de Nairobi. Il examine comment l'environnement bâti de la ville a transformé l'ubiquité en place-de-appartenance. Construit culture est considérée comme un outil (mais non exclusif) pour forger une relation entre la société et un contexte spatial donné; un support pour la société de «personnaliser» son espace. L'accent est mis bâtiments emblématiques situées dans l'espace central, public et symbolique et est en outre délimitée à leur style architectural. L'autorité politique, mais pas singulièrement responsables de l'identité collective, a été choisi comme point de départ, car sa contribution est décisive. Par conséquent, il est aussi un produit de la performance politique Nairobi est interrogé. Une exploration des connotations et les nuances des styles utilisés pour ériger ses bâtiments emblématiques possibles sont esquissées. Gouvernement colonial de Nairobi utilisé un style néo-classique. Kenyatta, le premier président indigène, se est éloigné de cette tradition néo-classique. Sa préférence était une déclaration stylisée-africaine. Et, en plus de choisir un style différent, il réorienté la dynamique spatiale dans City Square ainsi ré-articuler son identité. Pour un examen plus complet de Nairobi, elle est comparée à Dar es-Salaam (la capitale commerciale de la Tanzanie) voisin. Dar es Salaam dispose d'une plus grande variété dans les styles architecturaux: arabo-swahili, classique européenne avec des fonctionnalités omanais-arabes et les Sarrasins compositions décoratives. Pendant ce temps, la variété architecturale à Nairobi coloniale, où les Britanniques avaient plus de six décennies undisturbed- pour élaborer leur image, est carrément néo-classique. Présenté avec plus (ou moins) polarisée images coloniales, les présidents autochtones du Kenya et de la Tanzanie ont réagi différemment. L'image postcoloniale de Nairobi est ouvertement «africaine» peut-être une réponse au classicisme néo aussi manifeste des coloniaux. Dar es Salaam, d'autre part, est dépourvu de stridente de va-et-vient dans ses discours stylistiques. En conclusion, il semble que le plus fougueux du concours sous-jacente de posséder une ville, plus articuler son image spatiale; plus contesté un espace a été, le plus spectaculaire de l'image qu'il porte. Nairobi a connu un concours de propriété plus intense par rapport à Dar es-Salaam. Une concurrence intense nécessite un style architectural décisive tout pluralisme stylistique prospère où le concours est moins intense. Cela peut ne pas se applique à toutes les villes en Afrique, mais ce est la vue en gros plan, l'identité imagé dans l'espace central de Nairobi. / This study looks at how political power has imagined-and-imaged itself in Nairobi’s city centre. It examines how the city’s built environment has transformed ubiquity into place-of-belonging. Built culture is considered as a tool (though not an exclusive one) for forging a relation between society and a given spatial context; a medium for society to ‘personalise’ its space. The focus is iconic buildings sited in the central, public and symbolic space and is further delimited to their architectural style. Political authority, though not singularly responsible for collective identity, has been selected as the point of departure because its contribution is decisive. Therefore, it is as a product of political performance that Nairobi is interrogated. An exploration of possible connotations and nuances of the styles employed to erect its iconic buildings are sketched out. Nairobi’s colonial government used a neo classical style. Kenyatta, the first indigenous president, distanced himself from this neo-classical tradition. His preference was a stylised-African statement. And, in addition to selecting a different style he re-oriented the spatial dynamics in City Square thus re-articulating its identity. For a fuller scrutiny of Nairobi, it is compared to neighbouring Dar es Salaam (the commercial capital of Tanzania). Dar es Salaam features greater variety in architectural styles: Arab-Swahili, European classical with Omani-Arab features and the decorative saracenic compositions. Meanwhile, architectural variety in colonial Nairobi, where the British had over six decades–undisturbed– to craft their image, is bluntly neo-classical. Presented with more (or less) polarised colonial images, the indigenous presidents of Kenya and Tanzania reacted differently. Nairobi’s postcolonial image is overtly ‘african’ perhaps as a response to the equally overt neo classicism of the colonials. Dar es Salaam, on the other hand, is devoid of strident back-and-forth in its stylistic discourses. In conclusion, it appears the more spirited the underlying contest to own a city, the more articulate its spatial image; the more contested a space has been, the more spectacular the image it bears. Nairobi has experienced a more intense ownership contest compared to Dar es Salaam. Intense competition necessitates a decisive architectural style while stylistic pluralism thrives where the contest is less intense. This may not apply to all the cities in Africa but it is the close-up view, the imaged identity in Nairobi’s central space.

Cette thèse, située dans le contexte post-Colonial au Japon, s’articule autour d’un concept crée par Yang Seog-Il, écrivain contemporain zainichi : le « corps asiatique ». Après avoir circonscrit le champ d’analyse couvert par ce terme, notre étude formule la problématique suivante : par quels moyens ce « corps asiatique » s’affronte, dans la littérature de Yang -Dite zainichi-, au dépassement de l’ère coloniale et post-Coloniale au Japon ? Au cours de cette étude, nous recourrons à l’intertexte de la littérature maghrébine d’expression française (de Azouz Begag en particulier) lu comme dans un miroir. La première partie cartographie les contextes socio-Historiques de ces deux populations diasporiques, formées de décolonisés -Zainichi au Japon et Français issus de l’immigration maghrébine en France- apparues au siècle dernier, ainsi que le processus de formation des catégories littéraires associées à ces populations. Ensuite, nous entrons dans la profondeur du corpus, en abordant la manifestation de la subjectivité des (ex-) colonisés en tant que corps asiatique, à l’aide de l’épistémologie de Mikhaïl Bakhtine. La troisième partie enfin, est consacrée à une nouvelle lecture de ces œuvres, en établissant un lien entre le thème littéraire du parricide et le « corps asiatique ». Fils du Japon post-Colonial, Yang Seog-Il désire éliminer et dépasser un père tant filial que symbolique. Cependant, sa tentative de dépassement qui se veut passer par la féminisation de ce « corps asiatique » nous invite à effectuer une ultime lecture sous l’angle de la critique féministe post-Coloniale, pour en dévoiler les restes de rapports de domination. / In the context of post-Colonial Japan this dissertation attaches itself to explore the concept of a contemporary writer, a so-Called Zainichi: Yang Seog-Il’s “Asiatic body”. Having defined the field of interpretations covered by this term, our central question will be: in Yang Seog-Il’s literature how is the “Asiatic body” engaged in a process of overcoming this colonial and post-Colonial era? While reading Yang’s works, we shall use as an intertext and a mirror, some literary cases of contemporary francophone North African descendant writers (especially Azouz Begag’s texts). The first part shall map the socio-Historical context of these two diasporic populations (the Decolonized Zainichi in Japan and the Descendant from North African immigrants in France), that appeared in the last century, and in the same time, the birth of their so-Called post-Colonial literature. In the second part, we intend to make an in-Depth interpretation of our corpus, in taking up the manifestation of subjectivity of the (ex) colonized as the “Asiatic body”, using the Mikhaïl Bakhtine’s epistemology. The third part at last is devoted to a new reading of the literary works we are interested in: by establishing a link between the parricide as a literary theme and the “Asiatic body”, the wish of the son of post-Colonial Japan, Yang Seog-Il, to eliminate the father appears to renegotiate symbolical aspects that must be analysed. Hence, the feminization of the “Asiatic body” undertaken by Yang has to be read under the light of a feminist post-Colonial criticism that might uncover new themes of domination.