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ANOTHER HUMANITY by Benjamin P. Davis

ANOTHER HUMANITY

Decolonial Ethics from Du Bois to Arendt

by Benjamin P. Davis

Pub Date: May 31st, 2025
ISBN: 9781399548588
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

An assistant professor of Africana studies and Hispanic studies at Texas A&M University explores theoretical notions of humanity in this exploration of decolonial literature.

This is a sequel to Davis’ 2023 book, Choose Your Bearing: Édouard Glissant, Human Rights and Decolonial Ethics, which studied ideas surrounding human rights, and it takes an admittedly “esoteric” delve into critical theories on the concept of humanity. It primarily uses decolonial classics—the literature and public remarks of such 20th-century critics of colonialism as W.E.B. Du Bois, Sylvia Wynter, Edward Said, and Hannah Arendt—as the basis of its analysis. Some of the underlying research is well-covered terrain, such as Du Bois’ consistent use of the terms “human” and “humanity,” dating back to Black Reconstruction (1935), but it also makes use of archival materials from private collections, which provide revelatory insights. Indeed, one of the book’s most engaging chapters draws on Said’s archival collection at Columbia University to explore ethical questions of how Western libraries amass and store materials related to colonialism. Although Davis’ volume is clearly intended for scholarly audiences, its willingness to extend its argument beyond the ivory towers of academic debate lends it additional value; specifically, it offers relevant, practical commentary that connects the thoughts of 20th-century luminaries to contemporary 21st-century geopolitics, particularly on issues affecting the Middle East: “Talking about Palestine,” Davis passionately asserts at one point, “wakes us from our respectable scholarly slumber,” as it forces one not only to analyze, but also to apply the theories of Du Bois, Said, and others. The author is a learned scholar who effectively supports his arguments with an array of scholarly footnotes in each chapter and a 19-page bibliography, resulting in a rare combination of academic heft and impassioned prose.

A well-researched study of concepts of humanity, as advanced by decolonial thinkers.