Depelchin's thought-provoking essays show that through African histories it is possible to reconnect to all the histories of those who have been disconnected: shackdwellers, the poor, the dispossessed. His analysis of African history demonstrates how peoples have been forced into looking at their own histories through a shattered mirror, deliberately and forcefully crushed so as to render the exercise impossible. But, Depelchin says, history could be written in a way that would help break the mould and free it from being hostage, consciously and unconsciously, to European and US historical intellectual frameworks. Reclaiming African history enables a reconnection to humanity - not just for the sake of Africa, but for the sake of those who did everything to bury African history.
Depelchin's thought-provoking essays show that through African histories it is possible to reconnect to all the histories of those who have been disconnected: shackdwellers, the poor, the dispossessed. His analysis of African history demonstrates how peoples have been forced into looking at their own histories through a shattered mirror, deliberately and forcefully crushed so as to render the exercise impossible. But, Depelchin says, history could be written in a way that would help break the mould and free it from being hostage, consciously and unconsciously, to European and US historical intellectual frameworks. Reclaiming African history enables a reconnection to humanity - not just for the sake of Africa, but for the sake of those who did everything to bury African history.
