Hof van Wie?

Background

‘Hof van Wie?’ aims to address the narrowing of discourses represented in media platforms, which Anthony feels has contributed to a shift to right wing, openly fascist politics in Europe.

Situating ourselves in historical and political contexts is essential for analyzing our political choices. By holding space for critical discussions of history, politics, and contemporary struggles, we can cut through mainstream and extremist discourses that propagates both apathy and open expressions of white supremacy.

Anthony chose the topic because of the ways in which histories, discourses, and material effects of colonialism reproduce. When people lack a developed historical materialist analysis, their strategic and tactical analyses with respect to organizing and activism may be lacking. He feels we need to fully grasp the influence of 500 years of colonialism, including up to today, in order to address the issues in our contemporary societies.

Part of this project was conducted when Anthony was in Suriname visiting family. There, he saw influences on Suriname’s present from across the whole 500-year history of European economic extractivism. One particular example was the stuwmeer, created by the Afobakka Dam. The dam, used to power bauxite refining for Suralco, a subsidiary of the U.S. firm Alcoa, flooded an entire bioregion and the communities that inhabited it. Dead breaches reach out of the water, boat pilots manuvring around the shallow areas of the lake. Around the tops of mountains submerged under thousands of litres of water. Due to upstream gold mining practices, the water contains high levels of mercury. The descendants of the maroon communities were displaced during the dam’s construction between 1961-1964 still live “temporary housing” (‘transmigratie dorpen’).

Approach & Methodology

Anthony’s Action Project uses a multi-media strategy to carve out space where decolonial, historically grounded discussions can take place. In doing so, the project will contribute to a growing community of journalists, activists, movements, organizers, academics, and artists who are engaged in struggles to bring about an end to the colonial structures that haunt us daily.

“This applies to progressive movements as much as conservative or reactionary ones. Those who claim to work for progress may in fact play into the hands of colonialist / imperialist powers, when they do not understand the historical power politics that shape our contemporary conditions.”

Impact

Anthony reached 100 people with his project, including Instagram users, conference attendees, and panel speakers.

Next Steps

The next steps are to continue building out the various elements of the project. This includes continuing to research contemporary and historical imperialist geopolitics, maintaining an active social media presence, and producing written and audio analytical content.