Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal

The advent of covid-19 ushered in contestations bordering on racism, power and knowledge across the globe. This article grapples with racism as an overarching theme in the debates surrounding medical colonisation and the prevailing ‘vaccine diplomacy’ which have made Africa’s position in the geopoli...

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Main Author: Gilbert Tarugarira
Other Authors: Midlands State University, Zimbabwe
Format: research article
Language:English
Published: MSU Press 2023
Subjects:
Online Access:https://cris.library.msu.ac.zw//handle/11408/5531
https://thedyke.msu.ac.zw/index.php/thedyke/article/view/63/19
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author Gilbert Tarugarira
author2 Midlands State University, Zimbabwe
author_facet Midlands State University, Zimbabwe
Gilbert Tarugarira
author_sort Gilbert Tarugarira
collection DSpace
description The advent of covid-19 ushered in contestations bordering on racism, power and knowledge across the globe. This article grapples with racism as an overarching theme in the debates surrounding medical colonisation and the prevailing ‘vaccine diplomacy’ which have made Africa’s position in the geopolitical knowledge, socio-economic and scientific development, oblique. Racial domination and exploitation have occurred repeatedly throughout history wherever two distinct racial groups have established contact. A submission is made that African dignity and status were decimated by the dehumanising experiences at the hands of the white people which began with the transatlantic slave trade, followed by European colonisation and race-consciousness which emanated from the first two factors. The trend has continued this time under the garb of disruptive technologies through which Africans are being forced to adopt fabricated identities born of the covid-19 pandemic. As whites came to believe in their inherent superiority, the Africans sank into the paralysing belief of their own inferiority. The article demystifies the imperial logic that, it was the white men’s burden to civilise Africa by showing how colonialism and racism contributed toward the relegation of African scientific ingenuity into the abyss of scientific innovations. The western scientists’ prejudices against African metaphysics and epistemology amidst the claim that Africans’ intellectual capacity remains very limited are challenged.
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spelling ir-11408-55312023-04-05T12:37:52Z Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal Gilbert Tarugarira Midlands State University, Zimbabwe Covid-19 Racism Medical colonisation Indigenous knowledge Technology The advent of covid-19 ushered in contestations bordering on racism, power and knowledge across the globe. This article grapples with racism as an overarching theme in the debates surrounding medical colonisation and the prevailing ‘vaccine diplomacy’ which have made Africa’s position in the geopolitical knowledge, socio-economic and scientific development, oblique. Racial domination and exploitation have occurred repeatedly throughout history wherever two distinct racial groups have established contact. A submission is made that African dignity and status were decimated by the dehumanising experiences at the hands of the white people which began with the transatlantic slave trade, followed by European colonisation and race-consciousness which emanated from the first two factors. The trend has continued this time under the garb of disruptive technologies through which Africans are being forced to adopt fabricated identities born of the covid-19 pandemic. As whites came to believe in their inherent superiority, the Africans sank into the paralysing belief of their own inferiority. The article demystifies the imperial logic that, it was the white men’s burden to civilise Africa by showing how colonialism and racism contributed toward the relegation of African scientific ingenuity into the abyss of scientific innovations. The western scientists’ prejudices against African metaphysics and epistemology amidst the claim that Africans’ intellectual capacity remains very limited are challenged. 15 2 94 109 2023-04-05T12:37:51Z 2023-04-05T12:37:51Z 2022-02-15 research article https://cris.library.msu.ac.zw//handle/11408/5531 https://thedyke.msu.ac.zw/index.php/thedyke/article/view/63/19 en The Dyke 2790-9036 open MSU Press
spellingShingle Covid-19
Racism
Medical colonisation
Indigenous knowledge
Technology
Gilbert Tarugarira
Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title_full Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title_fullStr Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title_full_unstemmed Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title_short Positioning Africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: A historical appraisal
title_sort positioning africa in the global politics surrounding the covid-19 pandemic: a historical appraisal
topic Covid-19
Racism
Medical colonisation
Indigenous knowledge
Technology
url https://cris.library.msu.ac.zw//handle/11408/5531
https://thedyke.msu.ac.zw/index.php/thedyke/article/view/63/19
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