Hello everyone,

Paige and I wanted to post these as a way to get our conversation rolling on Tuesday, and to signal the kinds of questions we’ll be asking you to post yourselves as we progress through the term. Thanks!

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From the Smith, O’Brien, Lomawaima, and other readings, begin to construct a history of history. In what ways is our discipline coterminous with, complicit in, and constitutive of colonialism as it manifests at local, national, and global levels?

Taking into consideration the very trenchant critique of trauma-based studies launched by Tuck and Yang, how do we balance a need for surfacing the history of colonialism and bearing witness (perhaps problematic phrasings in and of themselves) with a sensitivity to the concerns raised here? What is a way forward?

Our colleague Daniel Justice uses terms like humility and empathy as important features of ethical and smart scholarship. What role do you feel (pun intended, perhaps) these more affective components of our lives should play in our intellectual work?